1997 Montana Agricultural Stamstics 



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NOTES FROM THE 

 STATE STATISTICIAN 



We are proud to present the thirty-fourth edition of 

 Montana Agricultural Statistics to Montana's 

 agricultural community. Montana's farmers, 

 ranchers, and agribusinesses made this publication 

 possible through their willingness to provide basic 

 agricultural information. 



As producers continue to expand their markets 

 globally and add value to their products, the need 

 for accurate, unbiased information becomes even 

 more important. The Montana Agricultural 

 Statistics Service works in cooperation with the 

 Montana Department of Agriculture, the Montana 

 Wheat and Barley Committee, the Montana Alfalfa Seed Committee, Montana State University, and 

 many other producer organizations to provide basic agricultural information. As of January 1997. 

 Congress transferred the authority to collect the Agricultural Census from the Department of Commerce 

 to our Agency. For the first time in history a USDA agency will conduct the Agricultural Census! We 

 are excited about conducting the Agricultural Census and serving agriculture. 



We have made the information in this bulletin available on Internet. Check out our homepage at 

 www.nass.usda.gov/mt/homepage.htm. As you look over the bulletin, we would appreciate any 

 comments or suggestions you have for improving this publication. Again, to everyone involved in 

 Montana's agriculture, thanks for your continued support. Thanks to our staff of statisticians, 

 technicians, and enumerators who are dedicated to providing Montana's number one industry, 

 agriculture, with high quality statistics. A special thanks goes to Wendy Bruski who spent many hours 

 preparing this publication for release and Bonnie Heller who put it on the Internet. 



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Peggy Stringer 

 State Statistician 



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