A survey is looking to provide better data on just what producers do with their forage lands.

The overall study, being done by the University of Saskatchewan, is looking at some of the practices that those producers use.

Said results would be used to then better inform both lawmakers and the public on how producers are growing food in the province.

Judson Christopherson, a graduate student with the College of Agriculture at the University of Saskatchewan, details just what they're looking for.

"Producers will be asked to detail things such as chemical and fertilizer use, their crop types, seed varieties, and yields, amongst many other practices and metrics. Survey participants will report one parcel of land in two time periods. The first time period being 1991-1994, while the second is 2016-2019."

Christopherson says that those who aren't fully active in agriculture or who might not have complete records can still fill out part of the survey for the 2016-2019 period.

The role of this survey and study is to better inform non-producers about the methods used.

"The beef industry is often on the receiving end of harsh and unfair criticisms and this can potentially spill over into policy-making that governs producers," said Christopherson, "This study will quantify past emissions reductions and future carbon sequestration potential of forage production. This will bring a balance to the sustainability narrative surrounding the beef industry as a whole."

While farmers are getting busy at this time of year, Christopherson says it's worth the effort to get the data out there.

"As a cow-calf producer myself, I know that time is extremely valuable at this point in the year, however, this survey is a way to ensure your voice reaches an academic audience and is heard by your political representatives. The greater the response volume, the more credible the research will be."

Producers wishing to take the survey can do so at surveymonkey.ca/r/forage-registration.