U.S. Herbicide Application Estimates for 84 Crops

Estimates of herbicide use in U.S. agricultural crop production cover 96 active ingredients applied to 84 crops. Data includes 1987 figures for harvested acres, average application rate per acre, total treated acres, and total pounds of active ingredient used. The database was compiled by Resources for the Future (RFF) for regulatory and research purposes.

Use Cases

• Analyze total pounds of active ingredient used per crop to assess environmental loading.
• Compare average rate of use per acre across different crops and active ingredients.
• Aggregate total number of acres treated on a county or state level for regional policy analysis.
• Correlate number of acres of harvested crop with herbicide application rates to study farming practices.

Strengths

• Covers 96 distinct herbicide active ingredients.
• Includes data for 84 different agricultural crops.
• Allows aggregation at county, state, and national levels.

Limitations

• Data is limited to a single year (1987), making temporal analysis impossible.
• No information provided on total row count or sample size for validation.
• Geographic coverage is limited to the 48 contiguous U.S. states.

Provenance

Source

Resources for the Future, Inc. (RFF)

Collection Method

Compiled estimates from agency reports, journal publications, and other hard copy sources.

Time Range

1987

Geography

48 contiguous states of the United States