美國農業部將推出AI工具，在資料出錯後檢查作物生產數據

湯姆・波蘭塞克（Tom Polansek）報導By Tom Polansek

芝加哥，11月6日（路透社）——美國農業部官員表示，該部將使用自行打造的人工智慧工具，檢查下週每月作物生產報告中的資料；此前一連串資料失誤已削弱農民與交易商對其預測的信任。CHICAGO, Nov 6 (Reuters) - The US Department of Agriculture will use an artificial intelligence tool it built to check data in next week's monthly crop production report, agency officials said, after a series of data missteps eroded farmers' and traders' trust in its forecasts.

美國農業部9月玉米資料被發現有誤後，官員判定這項AI工具原本會標示出該問題，並決定將其用於預定11月10日發布的作物生產報告。美國農業部次長史考特・哈欽斯（Scott Hutchins）在受訪時表示。After the USDA discovered errors in its corn data from September, officials determined the AI tool would have flagged the problem and decided to use it on the crop production report due on November 10, USDA Under Secretary Scott Hutchins said in an interview.

這項工具首次上線，將考驗該機構能否重建市場對其資料的信心；這些資料往往會牽動市場行情。The tool's debut tests whether the agency can restore confidence in data that often moves markets.

哈欽斯週四表示：「我非常樂觀看待，我們未來將能運用這些工具，協助我們避免這類真正令人非常遺憾的錯誤。」"I'm very bullish on the fact that we'll be able to utilize these tools in the future to help us avoid these kinds of really, truly unfortunate errors," Hutchins said on Thursday.

上個月，美國農業部修正了9月玉米產量與單位面積產量資料。這項修正將美國第三大玉米生產州內布拉斯加州的單位面積產量估值上調約3%，並將堪薩斯州的估值下調約2%。Last month, the USDA corrected its September corn production and yield data. The correction raised the yield estimate by about 3% in Nebraska, the third-biggest corn-producing state, and lowered it by about 2% in Kansas.

該機構長期被視為全球農業市場資訊的黃金標準。此前，美國農業部因大幅上修去年玉米種植面積估值而面臨批評；今年夏天，該部也曾公布不正確的牛肉出口銷售資料。The agency, long viewed as the gold standard of global agricultural market information, previously faced criticism after it made sharp upward revisions to estimates for last year's corn acreage. Over the summer, it reported inaccurate beef export sales data.

美國農業部先前表示，由於回應調查的農民減少，該部將啟動一項試辦計畫，更大幅仰賴科技來改善作物種植面積與單位面積產量估值。The USDA previously said it was launching a pilot project that would rely more heavily on technology to improve crop acreage and yield estimates as fewer farmers respond to its surveys.

電腦檔案錯誤COMPUTER FILE ERROR

美國農業部國家農業統計局（National Agricultural Statistics Service）農業統計委員會主席蘭斯・霍尼格（Lance Honig）告訴路透社，一個電腦檔案錯誤合併了田野調查員收集的灌溉與非灌溉玉米種植面積資料，導致9月資料出錯。他說，堪薩斯州與內布拉斯加州受到影響，是因為兩州灌溉田地比例較高，而灌溉田地通常有較高的單位面積產量。Lance Honig, chair of the agricultural statistics board for USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service, told Reuters that a computer file incorrectly combined data on irrigated and non-irrigated corn acres gathered by field surveyors, causing the errors in September's data. Kansas and Nebraska were affected because they have higher percentages of irrigated fields, which often have higher yields, he said.

霍尼格說：「9月發生的這項錯誤，實際上是非常孤立的事件。坦白說，只要有適當的驗證，我們原本應該能抓到。田野層級收集到的資料並沒有問題。」"This error that occurred in September is literally a very isolated occurrence that, quite frankly, with the proper validation, we should have caught," Honig said. "There was no issue with the data that was gathered at the field level."

這些錯誤激怒了農民；他們正因柴油、肥料及其他投入成本價格飆升而難以獲利。代表3萬5000名農民的全國玉米種植者協會（National Corn Growers Association）上個月表示，9月的錯誤不可接受，並進一步傷害農民對美國農業部製作準確報告能力的信心。The errors angered farmers who are struggling to make money as they pay soaring prices for diesel, fertilizer and other inputs. Last month, the National Corn Growers Association, which represents 35,000 farmers, said the September errors were unacceptable and had further hurt farmers' confidence in the USDA's ability to produce accurate reports.

印第安納州經紀公司A/C Trading總裁吉姆・格拉赫（Jim Gerlach）週五表示：「你現在就是不知道美國農業部接下來會怎麼做。他們的報告變得非常反覆無常。」"You just don't know what the USDA is going to do anymore," said Jim Gerlach, president of brokerage A/C Trading in Indiana, on Friday. "Their reports have become so erratic."

去年，總統唐納・川普（Donald Trump）政府大幅縮減政府規模後，外界對聯邦資料可信度的疑問增加。美國農業部已有數千名員工離職，專家擔心這些裁減削弱了該機構產製準確且及時資料的能力。Questions around the credibility of federal data increased after President Donald Trump's administration sharply downsized the government last year. Thousands of employees at the USDA have left, and experts have worried the cuts hobbled the agency's ability to produce accurate and timely data.

哈欽斯表示，9月的錯誤與人力流失無關。他說，新的AI工具將補強該機構的資料驗證，而非取代它。Hutchins said the September errors were not related to staffing losses. The new AI tool will add to, not replace, the agency's data validation, he said.

哈欽斯說：「這項工具基本上會被用作一種檢查機制，確保沒有任何我們在正常流程中未能看見或辨識出的異常。」"The tool is basically going to be used as a check to make sure that there are no anomalies that we were not able to see or identify in the normal process," Hutchins said.

本週，市場分析師質疑美國農業部另一份每月大豆加工報告的準確性；該報告顯示，愛荷華州大豆壓榨量與豆粕產量之間出現明顯落差。美國農業部表示，正依正常程序檢視該報告，並將在下個月作出任何必要修正。This week, market analysts questioned the accuracy of another monthly USDA report on soy processing which showed a sharp divide between how many soybeans were crushed and how much soymeal was produced in Iowa. The USDA said it was reviewing the report as part of a normal process and would make any necessary revisions next month.

（湯姆・波蘭塞克報導；艾蜜莉・施莫爾（Emily Schmall）與桑吉夫・米格拉尼（Sanjeev Miglani）編輯）(Reporting by Tom Polansek. Editing by Emily Schmall and Sanjeev Miglani)