Statistical Indicators previously published in Agricultural Outlook addressing a broad spectrum of agriculture-related issues. Includes commodity and food prices, general economic indicators, government program expenditures, farm income estimates, and trade and export statistics.
The U.S. Household Food Security Survey Module was translated into Spanish and adapted for use in the Dominican Republic. Qualitative assessment in a focus group was conducted to confirm the relevance of the concepts and to refine the questions. A pilot survey of 110 households in a rural, economically vulnerable community was conducted, and the data were analyzed to assess the validity of the questions as a multiple-item measure of household food insecurity. Both internal and construct validity appear to be acceptable, although further assessment of two items is recommended. The Dominican survey module complements work in several other countries in Central and South American and the Caribbean to develop a common set of food security questions for use in diverse cultural and linguistic settings.
Disclaimer: This report was prepared by Clark Atlanta University and the Instituto Dominicano De Investigaciones Agropecuarias Y Forestales under a cooperative agreement with the Economic Research Service. The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of ERS or USDA.
This report examines changes in consumers' use of nutrition labels on food packages between
1995-96 and 2005-06. The analysis finds that, although a majority of consumers report using nutrition labels when buying food, use has declined for most label components, including the Nutrition Facts panel and information about calories, fats, cholesterol, and sodium. By contrast, use of fiber information has increased. The decline in label use is particularly marked for the cohort of adults less than 30 years old.
Poor diets and rising obesity rates among Americans persist despite increased public awareness of the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. This report presents a consumer demand model to illustrate how both long-term health objectives and immediate visceral influences—long intervals between meals and eating away from home—can drive individuals’ food choices. The model predicts that cognitive dietary information will have less influence on food choices in the face of immediate visceral factors. Using data from the 1994-96 Continuing Survey of Food Intake by Individuals and the companion Diet Health and Knowledge Survey, the analysis finds that when individuals extend the period between meals or consume more of their food away from home, they are significantly more likely to consume more calories and lower diet quality.
This data product identifies which countries, under phytosanitary rules issued by USDA's Animal and Plant Health and Inspection Service, are eligible to export to the United States the fresh fruits and vegetables that are most important in the American diet. Data on the absolute and relative importance of these countries in international fruit and vegetable production and trade, individually and in aggregate, are included. Exporting countries are also classified according to income level.
Issued monthly, WASDE provides the most current USDA forecasts of U.S. and world supply-use balances for major grains, soybeans and products, and cotton, and U.S. supply and use data for sugar and livestock products.
A futures-price forecasting model is used to provide season-average price forecasts for corn, soybeans, and wheat. In addition to the monthly forecasts for prices received, the model computes a forecast for the counter-cyclical payment rate for each commodity. The 2002 Farm Act provides for counter-cyclical payments when prices are below specified levels.
The latest U.S. agricultural trade data are now available from ERS. This new data product announces USDA's monthly release of calendar year, fiscal year, year-to-date, and monthly value of U.S. agricultural exports, imports, and trade balance.
The Livestock and Meat Trade Data Set contains monthly and annual data for imports and exports of live cattle, hogs, sheep, and goats, as well as beef and veal, pork, lamb and mutton, chicken meat, turkey meat, and eggs. The tables report physical quantities, not dollar values or unit prices. Data on beef and veal, pork, and lamb and mutton are on a carcass-weight-equivalent basis. Breakdowns by country are included.
Examines supply, use, prices, and trade for cotton and wool, including supply and demand prospects in major importing and exporting countries. Includes data on raw fibers and textiles.
Released by 4 p.m. ET. Subscribe to the free electronic version to receive timely notification of newsletter availability. Users who subscribe to this newsletter will also receive articles on timely topics via e-mail notification.
Examines supply, use, prices, and trade for oil crops (primarily soybeans and products), including supply and demand prospects in major importing and exporting countries. Includes information on cottonseed, peanuts, sunflowerseed, tropical oils, corn oil, and animal fats.
Timely version released by 4 p.m. ET. Final full pdf available no later than 4 business days after the day of initial release. Subscribe to the free electronic version to receive timely notification of newsletter availability. Users who subscribe to this newsletter will also receive articles on timely topics via e-mail notification.
Examines supply, use, prices, and trade for rice, including supply and demand prospects in major importing and exporting countries. Contains information on U.S. rough, milled, and long-, medium-, and short-grain rice.
Timely version released by 4 p.m. ET. Final full pdf available no later than 4 business days after the day of initial release. Subscribe to the free electronic version to receive timely notification of newsletter availability. Users who subscribe to this newsletter will also receive articles on timely topics via e-mail notification.
Provides a monthly update of year-to-date quantities and values of U.S. agricultural exports and imports. Also provides data on leading destination countries for exports and import source countries.
Examines supply, use, prices, and trade for feed grains, including supply and demand prospects in major importing and exporting countries. Focuses on corn; also contains information on sorghum, barley, oats, and hay.
Released by 9 a.m. ET. Subscribe to the free electronic version to receive timely notification of newsletter availability. Users who subscribe to this newsletter will also receive articles on timely topics via e-mail notification.
Examines supply, use, prices, and trade for wheat, including supply and demand prospects in major importing and exporting countries. Contains data and information on U.S. wheat by class.
Timely version released by 9 a.m. ET. Final full pdf available no later than 4 business days after the day of initial release. Subscribe to the free electronic version to receive timely notification of newsletter availability. Users who subscribe to this newsletter will also receive articles on timely topics via e-mail notification.
This data set provides monthly average price values, and the differences among those values, at the farm, wholesale, and retail stages of the production and marketing chain for selected cuts of beef, pork, and broilers. In addition, retail prices are provided for beef and pork cuts, turkey, whole chickens, eggs, and dairy products.
Timely livestock, dairy, and poultry information, focusing on current and forecast production, price, and trade statistics for each of the sectors.
Released by 9:00 a.m. ET. Supporting tables available later in the month after release of key livestock and animal product data. Subscribe to the free electronic version to receive timely notification of newsletter availability. Users who subscribe to this newsletter will also receive articles on timely topics via e-mail notification. Printed copies can be purchased from the National Technical Information Service (NTIS) by calling 1-800-999-6779 (specify SUB-LDPM-4042).
Interactive database that contains statistics on four feed grains (corn, grain sorghum, barley, and oats), foreign coarse grains (feed grains plus rye, millet, and mixed grains), hay, and related items. Tables previously published annually in the Feed Yearbook are available and updated continuously as data are added to the database. Custom queries also allow users to retrieve historical data.
This data product contains statistics on wheat - including the five classes of wheat: hard red winter, hard red spring, soft red winter, white, and durum - and rye. Includes data published in the monthly Wheat Outlook and previously annual Wheat Yearbook. Data are monthly, quarterly, and/or annual depending upon the data series.
The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, which governs Federal farm programs for 2008-12, was enacted into law in July 2008. ERS’ side-by-side comparison of this new Farm Act with previous legislation is now available at www.ers.usda.gov/FarmBill/2008. Summarized but substantive, this comparison is a time-saving reference on farm bill provisions.
Provides current intelligence and forecasts the effects of changing conditions in the U.S. vegetables and melons sector (including potatoes, pulses, and mushrooms). Topics include production, consumption, shipments, prices received, trade, and more.
Released by 4 p.m. ET. Subscribe to the free electronic version to receive timely notification of newsletter (and yearbook) availability. Users who subscribe to this newsletter will also receive articles on timely topics via e-mail notification. Printed copies of the newsletter (and yearbook) can be purchased from the National Technical Information Service (NTIS) by calling 1-800-999-6779 (specify SUB-VGS-4039).
Estimates are presented for the farm business balance sheets for the U.S. for 1960 to present and individual States for 1960 through 2003. The balance sheet includes component accounts for assets, debt, and equity, where equity equals assets minus debt.
The Farm Income and Costs briefing room provides indicators of economic performance for the U.S. farm sector and major crop and livestock farm groups. Farm balance sheet estimates are used by USDA and other public and private sector clients to form a perspective about the financial health of the U.S. agricultural economy. Distributional analyses identify sub-sectors and business types that are performing well relative to past trends and to other groups and types of farms. Identification of these businesses enables analysts to more closely examine factors contributing to financial performance, such as assessment of debt-repayment difficulties of specific farm types, industry sub-sectors, and regions of the country.
Offers the latest forecast of value and volume of U.S. farm exports, by commodity and region, as well as the agricultural trade balance for the coming year. Keeps readers abreast of how U.S. agricultural trade stacks up in a global market.
Released at 4 p.m. ET. Subscribe to the free electronic version to receive timely notification of newsletter availability. Printed copies can be purchased from the National Technical Information Service by calling 1-800-999-6779 (specify SUB-AES-4035).
The Farm Household Economics and Well-Being briefing room focuses on indicators of the economic well-being of the households of the principal operators of family farms. It includes USDA's latest forecast for 2008. Indicators of well-being include household income and wealth (from both farm and off-farm sources), and indicators of health insurance coverage. The briefing room compares the financial well-being of farm households relative to all U.S. households, identifies the contributions of off-farm employment, non-farm self-employment, transfer payments, and financial market investments in household income, and discusses how taxes influence both income and wealth. The briefing room also describes the demographic characteristics of the principal farm operator households and how members of these households allocate their time to farm and off-farm work.
To better understand how information about potential health hazards influences food demand, this case study examines consumers’ responses to newspaper articles on avian influenza, informally referred to as bird flu. The focus here is on the response to bird flu information in Italy as news about highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza (HPAI H5N1) unfolded in the period October 2004 through October 2006, beginning after reports of the first outbreaks in Southeast Asia, and extending beyond the point at which outbreaks were reported in Western Europe. Estimated poultry demand, as influenced by the volume of newspaper reports on bird flu, reveals the magnitude and duration of newspaper articles’ impacts on consumers’ food choices. Larger numbers of bird flu news reports led to larger reductions in poultry purchases. Most impacts were of limited duration, and all began to diminish within 5 weeks.
Each month, the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) provides supplemental food packages to about a half a million low-income pregnant and postpartum women, children younger than 6, and seniors 60 and older. This study—the first in-depth study of the program since 1982—looks at how CSFP operates, who participates in it, and how it fits into the overall food assistance landscape. The study estimates that 2.9 million mothers, infants, and children meet eligibility requirements for CSFP but not for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). An estimated 7.5 million seniors would be eligible if CSFP were available everywhere. In eight States where the program is widely available, more seniors participate in CSFP than in the Food Stamp Program. Use of volunteers, staff stability, and the small scale of operations contribute to CSFP’s simplicity and accessibility. Focus group participants liked the program’s
simplicity, the quality of the food it provides, and the nutrition education they received.
Disclaimer: This study was conducted by the The Urban Institute under Cooperative Agreement #43-3AEM-5-80091 with the Economic Research Service. The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of ERS or USDA.
29 releases of 29 products this month on 13 different days.
