USDA launches pilot to modernize crop data collection

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is launching a pilot project that relies more heavily on technology as part of an effort to improve its closely watched US crop acreage and yield estimates, Reuters reported, citing Secretary Brooke Rollins on Tuesday, in the face of mounting criticism over the reliability of government data.Rollins discussed USDA's data modernization plan at the Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa, following a month-long series of listening sessions with farmers and agricul