QUALITY DECLARATION - SUMMARY
INSTITUTIONAL ENVIRONMENT
For information on the institutional environment of the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), including the legislative obligations of the ABS, financing and governance arrangements, and mechanisms for scrutiny of ABS operations, please see ABS Institutional Environment.
RELEVANCE
The publication, Principal Agricultural Commodities, Australia (cat. no. 7111.0), contains preliminary estimates of principal crops and livestock numbers from the Agricultural Survey, 2008-09. Also included in this issue, presented as datacubes, are preliminary estimates of wheat grain storage and use and grain storage capacity.
TIMELINESS
Principal Agricultural Commodities, Australia (cat. no. 7111.0) is generally published within 5 months of the end of the reference period. Final agricultural commodity estimates from the 2008-09 Agricultural Survey will be released in Agricultural Commodities, Australia (cat. no. 7121.0) in April 2010. Additional data from this collection will also be released in April 2010 in Water Use on Australian Farms, 2008-09 (cat. no. 4618.0).
ACCURACY
Preliminary data from the 2008-09 Agricultural Survey are based on a response rate of 79% and have been extensively edited. The resultant estimates have been checked against earlier years' estimates and relevant other sources, including contact with data providers and industry bodies, to ensure their accuracy.
COHERENCE
The 2008-09 Agricultural Survey was conducted using a frame based on the Australian Taxation Office's Australian Business Register (ABR). This is the same as the frame used initially for the 2005-06 Agricultural Census and for subsequent annual agricultural surveys. The estimates are directly comparable across these collection periods, however, it is recommended that care be taken when comparing estimates from these collection cycles to earlier years, i.e. prior to 2005-06. Detailed explanatory and technical notes relating to this change in frame were included in the 2005-06 PDF release of Agricultural Commodities, Australia (cat. no. 7121.0).
INTERPRETABILITY
The annual Agricultural Survey and five-yearly Agricultural Census provide a broad range of data about Australian agricultural commodities through a suite of standard products or as data customised for individual requirements. Time series data are available for some estimates that were collected through previous Agricultural Surveys/Censuses, including the 2007-08 Agricultural Resource Management Survey. Detailed explanatory notes are provided with each publication to assist users in determining and specifying their data requirements and to understand the concepts underlying the data.
ACCESSIBILITY
An extensive range of data are available from a variety of agriculture based collections on the ABS website <www.abs.gov.au>.
If the information you require is not available as a standard product or service, the ABS Consultancy Services can assist with customised services to suit your requirements. Inquiries should be made to the National Information and Referral Service on 1300 135 070.
Quality Declaration 
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