Aq 4 (10-09) Released October 21, 2009, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Catfish Feed Deliveries" call Charles Butler at 601-965-4575, office hours 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CT. NASS US Department of Agriculture Washington, D.C. September 2009 Catfish Feed Deliveries Down 22 Percent from Last Year Total catfish feed delivered in the United States during September was 85,638 tons, down 22 percent from September 2008, and down 24 percent from the previous month. Foodsize catfish feed delivered totaled 82,125 tons, down 24 percent from the corresponding month a year ago. Feed delivered for fingerlings and broodfish totaled 3,513 tons, up 82 percent from the corresponding month a year ago. September feed delivered to Mississippi catfish growers for foodsize fish totaled 41,091 tons, down 25 percent from last year. Mississippi accounted for 50 percent of the total foodsize catfish feed delivered to U.S. farmers. The other major States with catfish feed deliveries for foodsize fish in September and their comparison to the previous year were Alabama with 24,546 tons, down 13 percent; Arkansas with 9,502 tons, down 35 percent; and Louisiana with 1,180 tons, down 56 percent. Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Foodsize Fish, United States, 2008-2009 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Month : By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------- Tons ------ Percent ------- Tons ------ Percent : Jan : 3,316 4,455 134 3,316 4,455 134 Feb : 5,182 7,034 136 8,498 11,489 135 Mar : 16,491 18,927 115 24,989 30,416 122 Apr : 38,143 31,621 83 63,132 62,037 98 May : 81,333 57,843 71 144,465 119,880 83 Jun : 120,833 93,389 77 265,298 213,269 80 Jul : 124,571 104,060 84 389,869 317,329 81 Aug : 114,866 107,840 94 504,735 425,169 84 Sep : 107,400 82,125 76 612,135 507,294 83 Oct : 58,811 670,946 Nov : 14,404 685,350 Dec : 4,263 689,613 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Fingerlings and Broodfish, United States, 2008-2009 1/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Month : By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ Tons ----- Percent ------ Tons ------ Percent : Jan : 293 254 87 293 254 87 Feb : 238 268 113 531 522 98 Mar : 482 927 192 1,013 1,449 143 Apr : 986 1,116 113 1,999 2,565 128 May : 1,392 1,774 127 3,391 4,339 128 Jun : 1,755 3,191 182 5,146 7,530 146 Jul : 3,078 4,209 137 8,224 11,739 143 Aug : 2,857 5,453 191 11,081 17,192 155 Sep : 1,935 3,513 182 13,016 20,705 159 Oct : 749 13,765 Nov : 360 14,125 Dec : 43 14,168 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ The sum of the published States may not equal the total to avoid disclosure individual operations. Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Foodsize Fish, Alabama, 2008-2009 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Month: By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ Tons ------ Percent ------- Tons ------ Percent : Jan : 1,617 1,992 123 1,617 1,992 123 Feb : 2,103 2,490 118 3,720 4,482 120 Mar : 5,224 7,290 140 8,944 11,772 132 Apr : 9,435 10,891 115 18,379 22,663 123 May : 19,235 17,599 91 37,614 40,262 107 Jun : 34,461 29,018 84 72,075 69,280 96 Jul : 34,535 36,818 107 106,610 106,098 100 Aug : 32,978 32,334 98 139,588 138,432 99 Sep : 28,119 24,546 87 167,707 162,978 97 Oct : 16,740 184,447 Nov : 5,314 189,761 Dec : 2,023 191,784 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Foodsize Fish, Arkansas, 2008-2009 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Month : By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ Tons ------ Percent ------ Tons ------ Percent : Jan : 160 165 103 160 165 103 Feb : 163 509 312 323 674 209 Mar : 1,302 2,084 160 1,625 2,758 170 Apr : 4,770 3,922 82 6,395 6,680 104 May : 12,094 7,437 61 18,489 14,117 76 Jun : 14,971 10,882 73 33,460 24,999 75 Jul : 16,137 10,429 65 49,597 35,428 71 Aug : 14,912 14,450 97 64,509 49,878 77 Sep : 14,726 9,502 65 79,235 59,380 75 Oct : 7,971 87,206 Nov : 1,721 88,927 Dec : 202 89,129 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Fingerlings and Broodfish, Arkansas, 2008-2009 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Month : By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ----- Tons ---- Percent ------ Tons ----- Percent : Jan : 198 50 25 198 50 25 Feb : 126 156 124 324 206 64 Mar : 164 314 191 488 520 107 Apr : 326 144 44 814 664 82 May : 494 173 35 1,308 837 64 Jun : 461 283 61 1,769 1,120 63 Jul : 528 637 121 2,297 1,757 76 Aug : 676 820 121 2,973 2,577 87 Sep : 589 389 66 3,562 2,966 83 Oct : 47 3,609 Nov : 154 3,763 Dec : 3,763 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Foodsize Fish, Louisiana, 2008-2009 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Month : By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ Tons ----- Percent ------ Tons ------ Percent : Jan : 30 168 560 30 168 560 Feb : 104 122 117 134 290 216 Mar : 359 518 144 493 808 164 Apr : 1,532 1,312 86 2,025 2,120 105 May : 2,741 1,897 69 4,766 4,017 84 Jun : 1,983 1,822 92 6,749 5,839 87 Jul : 2,861 1,411 49 9,610 7,250 75 Aug : 2,260 1,601 71 11,870 8,851 75 Sep : 2,674 1,180 44 14,544 10,031 69 Oct : 1,971 16,515 Nov : 359 16,874 Dec : 60 16,934 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Foodsize Fish, Mississippi, 2008-2009 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Month : By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ Tons ------ Percent ------- Tons ------ Percent : Jan : 825 782 95 825 782 95 Feb : 1,462 2,147 147 2,287 2,929 128 Mar : 6,590 6,336 96 8,877 9,265 104 Apr : 18,222 12,628 69 27,099 21,893 81 May : 42,292 26,165 62 69,391 48,058 69 Jun : 63,735 45,116 71 133,126 93,174 70 Jul : 65,177 49,001 75 198,303 142,175 72 Aug : 58,766 53,148 90 257,069 195,323 76 Sep : 54,664 41,091 75 311,733 236,414 76 Oct : 26,948 338,681 Nov : 4,566 343,247 Dec : 419 343,666 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Fingerlings and Broodfish, Mississippi, 2008-2009 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Month: By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : ------ Tons ----- Percent ------ Tons ----- Percent : Jan : 41 41 100 41 41 100 Feb : 49 73 149 90 114 127 Mar : 212 460 217 302 574 190 Apr : 488 855 175 790 1,429 181 May : 699 1,477 211 1,489 2,906 195 Jun : 1,169 2,688 230 2,658 5,594 210 Jul : 2,425 3,445 142 5,083 9,039 178 Aug : 1,923 4,479 233 7,006 13,518 193 Sep : 1,109 2,796 252 8,115 16,314 201 Oct : 575 8,690 Nov : 120 8,810 Dec : 8,810 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Foodsize Fish, Other States East of the Mississippi River, 2008-2009 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Month : By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ Tons ----- Percent ------ Tons ------ Percent : Jan : 159 357 225 159 357 225 Feb : 262 426 163 421 783 186 Mar : 771 967 125 1,192 1,750 147 Apr : 1,361 1,019 75 2,553 2,769 108 May : 1,960 1,504 77 4,513 4,273 95 Jun : 1,739 2,023 116 6,252 6,296 101 Jul : 2,488 2,272 91 8,740 8,568 98 Aug : 2,473 2,449 99 11,213 11,017 98 Sep : 2,808 2,453 87 14,021 13,470 96 Oct : 1,366 15,387 Nov : 601 15,988 Dec : 238 16,226 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Foodsize Fish, Other States West of the Mississippi River, 2008-2009 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Month : By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------ Tons ----- Percent ------ Tons ------ Percent : Jan : 525 991 189 525 991 189 Feb : 1,088 1,340 123 1,613 2,331 145 Mar : 2,245 1,732 77 3,858 4,063 105 Apr : 2,823 1,849 65 6,681 5,912 88 May : 3,011 3,241 108 9,692 9,153 94 Jun : 3,944 4,528 115 13,636 13,681 100 Jul : 3,373 4,129 122 17,009 17,810 105 Aug : 3,477 3,858 111 20,486 21,668 106 Sep : 4,409 3,353 76 24,895 25,021 101 Oct : 3,815 28,710 Nov : 1,843 30,553 Dec : 1,321 31,874 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Catfish Feed: Tons Delivered For Fingerlings and Broodfish, Other States West of the Mississippi River, 2008-2009 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Month : By Month :Percent of : Cumulative :Percent of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2008 : 2009 : Year : 2008 : 2009 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ----- Tons ---- Percent ----- Tons ---- Percent : Jan : 11 143 1,300 11 143 1,300 Feb : 6 7 117 17 150 882 Mar : 70 58 83 87 208 239 Apr : 52 37 71 139 245 176 May : 63 72 114 202 317 157 Jun : 33 98 297 235 415 177 Jul : 60 62 103 295 477 162 Aug : 190 68 36 485 545 112 Sep : 103 255 248 588 800 136 Oct : 82 670 Nov : 56 726 Dec : 25 751 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reliability of Catfish Feed Deliveries Estimates Survey Procedures: All participating catfish feed mills are feed mills that produce and deliver catfish feed to bonafide catfish producers. Survey data for catfish feed are collected from feed mills by the USDA-NASS Mississippi Field Office, which is responsible for ensuring survey coverage is as complete as possible. Mills are contacted by mail, telephone, fax, or internet. Diligent effort is made to ensure that all operations are accounted for in the estimate. Estimation Procedures: The "Catfish Feed Deliveries" report refers strictly to catfish feed delivered to bonafide catfish producers and excludes catfish feed delivered to producers of other species. The totals include both bagged and bulk feed. Prior to summarization, questionnaires are compared to previous reports for comparability. Estimates are made for feed mills whose reports are not available in time to be included in the release. Those mills are identified by an asterisk on page 11 of this release. Estimates are based on the mill's previous reports and current conditions. Published totals are a straight summation of the individual reports and estimated data. If a mill uses a fiscal accounting system, proration is used to convert reported data to a calendar month basis. Two unusual features of this report are worthy of note: (1) cooperating feed mills are listed by name, and (2) it is impossible for the public to infer the amount of catfish feed produced in each State. Since many mills deliver feed to more than one State and to growers of other species, any inferences about overall production per State or per mill are not valid. Revision Policy: Revisions may be necessary in the following month's publication pending a review of late reports received from mills. Revisions to previous estimates are made to improve month-to-month relationships. Estimates for the previous month are subject to revision in all States and regions monthly totals. In February, all monthly estimates for the previous year are reviewed and subject to revisions. The review is primarily based on data that may have been received after the original estimates were published. Reliability: Estimates are based on data from cooperating catfish feed mills, and therefore have no sampling variability. However, estimates may be subject to errors such as omissions, duplication, mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing of data. These errors are minimized through strict quality controls in the edit and summarization process and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness. Terms and Definitions Used for Catfish Feed Deliveries Estimates Broodfish - Fish kept for egg production, including males. Broodfish produce the fertilized eggs that go to hatcheries. The most desirable size is 3 to 10 pounds or 4 to 6 years of age. Catfish Feed - For the purposes of this report catfish feed is defined as feed delivered to bonafide catfish producers. Thus, it is not the absolute total amount of feed produced or even sold by a mill. (Some catfish feed is sold to producers of other species of fish.) The definition includes medicated feed. Catfish feed is designed to float on the surface of the water. Catfish are fed this way from the moment they hatch. Therefore, they learn to go to the surface for feed. The result is a clean nutritious diet for American farm raised catfish. Catfish Feed for Foodsize Fish - Feed containing pellets larger than 1/8 of an inch. Catfish Feed for Fingerlings/Broodfish - Feed containing pellets 1/8 of an inch or smaller. Fingerlings - Fish weighing 2 to 60 pounds per 1,000 fish or 2 to 6 inches in length. Foodsize Fish - Fish being grown commercially for human consumption. Optimum sizes at harvest depend on the market but are generally no lower than 3/4 pound but near one pound. Data were compiled in cooperation with the following feed mills: Alabama Feed Mill LLC Land O Lakes Arkat Feeds Melick Aqua Feed LLC *Cargill Animal Nutrition Rangen Inc. Carolina Fish Feeds Silver Cup Delta Western Southfresh Feeds Fishbelt Feeds Inc. Star Milling Co. Flint River Mills Inc. Topwater Feed Mill *Estimated Information Contacts Listed below are the commodity specialists in the Livestock Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to contact for additional information. Dan Kerestes, Chief, Livestock Branch............................................(202) 720-3570 Bruce Boess, Head, Poultry and Specialty Commodities Section.....................(202) 720-4447 Doug Bounds - Poultry Slaughter, Turkey Hatchery, Turkeys Raised...............(202) 690-3237 Charles Butler - Catfish Feed Deliveries.......................................(601) 965-4575 David Colwell - Cold Storage...................................................(202) 720-8784 Chris Hawthorn - Catfish Processing, Catfish Production, Trout Production, Census of Aquaculture, Egg Products, Mink.....................(202) 720-0585 Kim Linonis - Layers, Eggs.....................................................(202) 690-8632 Troy Marshall - Broiler Hatchery, Chicken Hatchery, Honey......................(202) 720-3244 ACCESS TO REPORTS!! 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