Results from the Scottish Agricultural Census: June 2023 Methodology Report

Modular component

For 2023 a modular section was included in the census form asking questions relating to agricultural production methods and fertiliser, manure and slurry. The purpose of the modular section of the census form is to provide information about farming businesses that’s important for understanding the farming sector but does not need to be asked annually. Creating space for these questions will help to provide a better picture of farming practises in Scotland.

Crop rotation and mineral and organic fertiliser use were included in the June agricultural census publication to provide a summary of some of the data collected as part of the module. These are first estimates of this data and final estimates will be published as part of the modular report.

Fewer people responded to the modular questions compared with the main census form. This was expected due to the modular questions not being relevant to some farm types. For the crop rotation question 4,200 holdings provided a response, 24 per cent of the total respondents. Full coverage statistics will be published as part of the module report.