HDR1012000170010223951500Catfish Processing HDR2012000170010223951500Catfish Processing Narrative Released February 23, 1995, by the Agricultural Statistics Board. Estimates refer to January 1994 and 1995, and 1994 revised monthly summary. Catfish Processing Up 6 Percent Farm-raised catfish processed during January totaled 38.8 million pounds round weight, up 6 percent from January 1994. The average price paid to producers was 78 cents per pound for January 1995, 4 cents more than a year ago and 1 cent more than the previous month. Net pounds of processed fish sold during January totaled 19.2 million pounds, an increase of 2 percent from the comparable month in 1994. Sales of fresh fish, at 7.27 million pounds, were down 6 percent from January 1994 and represented 38 percent of total sales. Frozen fish sales, at 11.9 million pounds, were up 8 percent from a year ago and accounted for the remaining 62 percent of total fish sales. Sales of whole fish represented 25 percent of the total, fillets accounted for 50 percent, and the remaining 25 percent were mostly, steaks, nuggets, and value added products. Freshwater catfish imports during December 1994 totaled 192 thousand pounds, compared with 373 thousand imported the previous year. All of the imports were from Brazil. Exports reported for December 1994 totaled 2,400 pounds, all of which went to France. Import and export data were compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Census. 1994 Catfish Processing Down 4 Percent Farm-raised catfish processed during 1994 totaled 439 million pounds, down 4 percent from the 459 million pounds processed in 1993. The average price paid to producers for 1994 was 78.4 cents per pound, 11 percent more than the 1993 average price of 70.9 cents per pound. Net pounds of processed fish sold during 1994 totaled 216 million pounds, a decrease of 7 percent from the amount sold during 1993. Sales of fresh fish, at 87.2 million pounds, represented 40 percent of total sales and were down 7 percent from 1993. Frozen fish sales, at 129 million pounds, were down 7 percent and accounted for the remaining 60 percent of total sales. The 1994 average price received by processors for total fresh fish was $2.23 per pound, up 10 percent from the $2.03 average in 1993. Total frozen fish averaged $2.49 per pound for 1994, 9 percent more than the 1993 average of $2.29. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ For information call James E. Brewster at (202) 720-8784. Office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET. Aq 1 (2-95) HDR2012000170010223951500Farm-Raised Catfish Farm-Raised Catfish: Quantity Processed and Prices Paid to Producers by Major Processors, and United States Imports, 1994-95 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Round Weight Processed : Average Price : Imports :------------------------------------: Paid to : of Month : Monthly : Cumulative : Producers 1/ : Catfish 2/ :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1994 : 1995 : 1994 : 1995 : 1994 : 1995 : 1993 : 1994 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : ---------- 1,000 Pounds --------- Dollars per Pound (000) Pounds : Jan : 36,714 38,807 36,714 38,807 .74 .78 118 535 Feb : 35,035 71,749 .77 183 102 Mar : 40,446 112,195 .79 127 163 Apr : 34,494 146,689 .80 328 57 May : 34,163 180,852 .80 204 459 Jun : 34,595 215,447 .80 253 362 Jul : 35,901 251,348 .80 277 261 Aug : 39,813 291,161 .80 444 342 Sep : 38,716 329,877 .80 426 322 Oct : 39,072 368,949 .77 596 200 Nov : 36,054* 405,003 .77 781 491 Dec : 34,266 439,269 .77 373 192 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ * Revised. 1/ Price of fish delivered to the processing plant door. Price includes charges for any services provided by the processing plant, such as seining and hauling, but does not include any adjustments based on year-end settlements. 2/ Data furnished by U.S. Bureau of Census. HDR2012000170010223951500Catfish Processors Catfish Processors: Sales Volume, Average Price, and Ending Inventory, United States, January 1994-95 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Sales : Average : Ending : Volume : Price : Inventory Item :------------------------------------------------------- : 1994 : 1995 : 1994 : 1995 : 1994 : 1995 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : 1,000 Pounds Dollars Per Pound 1,000 Pounds Fresh : Whole Fish : Round & Gutted Only : 922 613 1.04 1.08 1/ 1/ Whole Dressed : 2,742 2,608 1.69 1.82 1/ 1/ Total : 3,664 3,221 1.54 1.69 270 262 : Other : Steaks : 132 116 1.89 2.09 1/ 1/ Nuggets : 537 690 1.32 1.38 1/ 61 Other 2/ : 298 192 3.02 3.26 1/ 1/ Total : 967 998 1.92 1.82 148 83 : Fillets 3/ : 3,101 3,054 2.69 2.89 379 393 : Total Fresh : 7,732 7,273 2.05 2.22 797 738 : Frozen : Whole Fish : Round & Gutted Only : Whole Dressed : 1,483 1,573 1.84 1.98 1,356 1,626 Total : 1,483 1,573 1.84 1.98 1,356 1,626 : Other : Steaks : 168 222 1.61 1.77 81 1/ Nuggets : 1,290 1,791 1.15 1.27 764 1,111 Other 2/ : 1,674 1,718 2.44 2.58 1,904 1/ Total : 3,132 3,731 1.87 1.91 2,749 2,738 : Fillets 3/ : 6,425 6,614 2.68 2.83 4,189 5,863 : Total Frozen : 11,040 11,918 2.33 2.43 8,294 10,227 : Total Fresh & Frozen : 18,772 19,191 2.21 2.35 9,091 10,965 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ NA = Not available. 1/ Not published to avoid disclosure of individual operations. 2/ Includes all products not already reported, including weight of breading and added ingredients. 3/ Includes regular, shank, and strip fillets; excludes any breaded product. Catfish Processors: Fresh and Frozen Annual Sales Volume by Month, United States, 1994 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Whole Fish : Other : : :-------------------------------------------------------: : Month : Rnd & : : : : : : :Fillets: Total :Gutted : Whole : Total :Steaks :Nuggets: Other : Total : 2/ : Sales : Only :Dressed: : : : 1/ : : : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Fresh : Jan : 922 2,742 3,664 132 537 298 967 3,101 7,732 Feb : 812 2,865 3,677 126 618 182 926 3,204 7,807 Mar : 846 *2,897 *3,743 131 655 *234 *1,020 3,550 *8,313 Apr : 667 2,525 3,192 115 591 206 912 3,061 7,165 May : 665 2,511 3,176 128 624 327 1,079 3,103 7,358 Jun : 619 2,273 2,892 126 559 222 907 3,015 6,814 Jul : 575 2,461 3,036 126 581 207 914 3,046 6,996 Aug : 555 *2,618 *3,173 *144 *617 *198 *959 *3,383 *7,515 Sep : 580 2,599 3,179 112 633 220 965 3,183 7,327 Oct : 615 2,582 3,197 103 655 207 965 3,212 7,374 Nov : 527 *2,361 *2,888 99 539 183 821 *2,784 *6,493 Dec : 597 2,265 2,862 94 532 164 790 2,665 6,317 : Total: 7,980 30,699 38,679 1,436 7,141 2,648 11,225 37,307 87,211 : Frozen : Jan : 1,483 1,483 168 1,290 1,674 3,132 6,425 11,040 Feb : 1,625 1,625 121 982 2,191 3,294 6,637 11,556 Mar : 1,494 1,494 *276 1,230 1,989 *3,495 6,699 *11,688 Apr : 1,219 1,219 188 1,162 1,508 2,858 5,870 9,947 May : 1,336 1,336 225 1,008 1,538 2,771 6,562 10,669 Jun : 1,281 1,281 208 1,179 1,306 2,693 6,385 10,359 Jul : 1,300 1,300 238 1,489 1,569 3,296 6,432 11,028 Aug : *1,338 *1,338 *207 *1,310 *1,877 *3,394 *6,736 *11,468 Sep : 1,357 1,357 191 1,226 1,615 3,032 6,267 10,656 Oct : 1,421 1,421 198 1,967 1,502 3,667 6,689 11,777 Nov : *1,324 *1,324 192 *1,259 1,406 *2,857 *5,753 *9,934 Dec : 1,169 1,169 178 1,111 1,375 2,664 5,311 9,144 : Total: 16,347 16,347 2,390 15,213 19,550 37,153 75,766 129,266 : Fresh &: Frozen: Jan : 922 4,225 5,147 300 1,827 1,972 4,099 9,526 18,772 Feb : 812 4,490 5,302 247 1,600 2,373 4,220 9,841 19,363 Mar : 846 4,391 5,237 407 1,885 2,223 4,515 10,249 20,001 Apr : 667 3,744 4,411 303 1,753 1,714 3,770 8,931 17,112 May : 665 3,847 4,512 353 1,632 1,865 3,850 9,665 18,027 Jun : 619 3,554 4,173 334 1,738 1,528 3,600 9,400 17,173 Jul : 575 3,761 4,336 364 2,070 1,776 4,210 9,478 18,024 Aug : 555 3,956 4,511 351 1,927 2,075 4,353 10,119 18,983 Sep : 580 3,956 4,536 303 1,859 1,835 3,997 9,450 17,983 Oct : 615 4,003 4,618 301 2,622 1,709 4,632 9,901 19,151 Nov : 527 3,685 4,212 291 1,798 1,589 3,678 8,537 16,427 Dec : 597 3,434 4,031 272 1,643 1,539 3,454 7,976 15,461 : Total: 7,980 47,046 55,026 3,826 22,354 22,198 48,378 113,073 216,477 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Revised. 1/ Includes all products not already reported, such as nuggets, including weight of breading, and added ingredients. 2/ Includes regular, shank, and strip fillets; excludes any breaded products. Catfish Processors: Fresh and Frozen Average Sales Price by Month, United States, 1994 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Whole Fish : Other : : :-------------------------------------------------------: : Month : Rnd & : : : : : : :Fillets: Total :Gutted : Whole : Total :Steaks :Nuggets: Other : Total : 2/ : Sales : Only :Dressed: : : : 1/ : : : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Dollars per Pound Fresh : Jan : 1.04 1.69 1.54 1.89 1.32 3.02 1.92 2.69 2.05 Feb : 1.12 1.74 1.62 1.91 1.37 3.26 1.82 2.73 2.10 Mar : 1.14 1.85 1.71 2.03 1.41 3.19 1.90 2.86 2.22 Apr : 1.14 1.87 1.73 2.06 1.43 3.28 1.93 2.91 2.26 May : 1.14 1.87 1.73 2.08 1.43 3.13 2.02 2.91 2.27 Jun : 1.14 1.88 1.74 2.09 1.44 3.41 2.02 2.92 2.30 Jul : 1.14 1.88 1.76 2.11 1.42 3.34 1.95 2.93 2.29 Aug : 1.15 *1.87 *1.75 *2.07 *1.41 *3.41 *1.92 2.94 2.31 Sep : 1.15 1.83 1.72 2.10 1.40 3.33 1.92 2.93 2.27 Oct : 1.12 1.85 1.72 2.08 1.39 3.36 1.89 2.93 2.27 Nov : *1.09 1.82 1.70 2.06 1.38 3.38 1.91 2.91 2.25 Dec : 1.09 1.79 1.66 2.10 1.37 3.36 1.87 2.91 2.21 : Avg : 1.12 1.83 1.70 2.05 1.40 3.27 1.92 2.88 2.23 : Frozen : Jan : 1.84 1.84 1.61 1.15 2.44 1.87 2.68 2.33 Feb : 1.84 1.84 1.83 1.29 2.49 2.11 2.72 2.42 Mar : 1.97 1.97 1.91 1.35 2.57 2.09 2.86 2.51 Apr : 2.01 2.01 1.88 1.33 2.51 1.99 2.89 2.52 May : 2.01 2.01 1.87 1.32 2.49 2.01 2.87 2.54 Jun : 2.00 2.00 1.94 1.32 2.62 2.00 2.92 2.56 Jul : 2.02 2.02 1.93 1.29 2.50 1.91 2.93 2.52 Aug : 2.03 2.03 *1.89 1.29 *2.54 *2.02 *2.93 2.56 Sep : 2.05 2.05 1.84 1.25 2.52 1.97 2.90 2.53 Oct : 2.06 2.06 1.82 1.15 2.60 1.78 2.87 2.43 Nov : 2.02 2.02 1.77 1.21 2.53 1.90 2.88 2.48 Dec : 2.01 2.01 1.77 1.24 2.54 1.95 2.85 2.48 : Avg : 1.98 1.98 1.85 1.26 2.53 1.97 2.86 2.49 : Fresh & : Frozen : Jan : 1.04 1.74 1.63 1.73 1.20 2.53 1.88 2.68 2.21 Feb : 1.12 1.78 1.69 1.87 1.32 2.55 2.05 2.72 2.29 Mar : 1.14 1.89 1.78 1.95 1.37 2.64 2.05 2.86 2.39 Apr : 1.14 1.92 1.81 1.95 1.36 2.60 1.98 2.90 2.41 May : 1.14 1.92 1.81 1.95 1.36 2.60 2.01 2.88 2.43 Jun : 1.14 1.92 1.82 2.00 1.36 2.73 2.01 2.92 2.46 Jul : 1.14 1.93 1.84 1.99 1.33 2.60 1.92 2.93 2.43 Aug : 1.15 1.92 1.83 1.96 1.33 2.62 2.00 2.93 2.46 Sep : 1.15 1.91 1.82 1.94 1.30 2.62 1.96 2.91 2.42 Oct : 1.12 1.92 1.82 1.91 1.21 2.69 1.80 2.89 2.37 Nov : 1.09 1.89 1.80 1.87 1.26 2.63 1.90 2.89 2.39 Dec : 1.09 1.86 1.76 1.88 1.28 2.63 1.93 2.87 2.37 : Avg : 1.12 1.88 1.78 1.92 1.30 2.62 1.96 2.87 2.39 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Revised. 1/ Includes all products not already reported, such as nuggets, including weight of breading, and added ingredients. 2/ Includes regular, shank, and strip fillets; excludes any breaded products. Catfish Processors: Fresh and Frozen End-of-Month Inventory by Month, United States, 1994 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Whole Fish : Other : : :-------------------------------------------------------: : Month : Rnd & : : : : : : :Fillets: Total :Gutted : Whole : Total :Steaks :Nuggets: Other : Total : 2/ : Sales : Only :Dressed: : : : 1/ : : : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Fresh : Jan : 3/ 3/ 270 3/ 3/ 3/ 148 379 797 Feb : 3/ 3/ 345 5 80 3 88 468 901 Mar : 3/ 3/ 342 3/ *57 3/ *79 343 *764 Apr : 3/ 3/ 251 1 68 18 87 328 666 May : 3/ 3/ 287 6 116 16 138 411 836 Jun : 3/ 3/ 306 3/ 104 3/ 130 425 861 Jul : 3/ 3/ 306 3/ 105 3/ 135 545 986 Aug : 3/ 3/ *358 3/ 87 3/ *104 *539 *1,001 Sep : 3/ 3/ 376 3/ 81 3/ 117 551 1,044 Oct : 3/ 3/ 317 3/ 94 3/ 112 555 984 Nov : 3/ 3/ 243 3/ 83 3/ 106 453 802 Dec : 3/ 3/ 184 3/ 54 3/ 105 722 1,011 : Frozen : Jan : 1,356 1,356 81 764 1,904 2,749 4,189 8,294 Feb : 1,101 1,101 3/ 476 3/ 1,978 2,924 6,003 Mar : *1,116 *1,116 95 *580 1,467 *2,142 *2,874 *6,132 Apr : 928 928 71 662 1,565 2,298 3,019 6,245 May : 714 714 83 837 1,084 2,004 2,332 5,050 Jun : 658 658 95 1,047 1,011 2,153 2,274 5,085 Jul : 678 678 96 970 1,174 2,240 2,231 5,149 Aug : *827 *827 *133 *1,054 *1,310 *2,497 *2,771 *6,095 Sep : *959 *959 *183 *1,265 *1,268 *2,716 *3,357 *7,032 Oct : 963 963 218 1,043 1,412 2,673 3,690 7,326 Nov : 1,118 1,118 247 1,127 1,575 2,949 4,964 9,031 Dec : 1,416 1,416 252 1,223 1,746 3,221 5,975 10,612 : Fresh & : Frozen : Jan : 3/ 3/ 1,626 3/ 3/ 3/ 2,897 4,568 9,091 Feb : 3/ 3/ 1,446 3/ 556 3/ 2,066 3,392 6,904 Mar : 3/ 3/ 1,458 3/ 637 3/ 2,221 3,217 6,896 Apr : 3/ 3/ 1,179 72 730 1,583 2,385 3,347 6,911 May : 3/ 3/ 1,001 89 953 1,100 2,142 2,743 5,886 Jun : 3/ 3/ 964 3/ 1,151 3/ 2,283 2,699 5,946 Jul : 3/ 3/ 984 3/ 1,075 3/ 2,375 2,776 6,135 Aug : 3/ 3/ 1,185 3/ 1,141 3/ 2,601 3,310 7,096 Sep : 3/ 3/ 1,335 3/ 1,346 3/ 2,833 3,908 8,076 Oct : 3/ 3/ 1,280 3/ 1,137 3/ 2,785 4,245 8,310 Nov : 3/ 3/ 1,361 3/ 1,210 3/ 3,055 5,417 9,833 Dec : 3/ 3/ 1,600 3/ 1,277 3/ 3,326 6,697 11,623 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Revised. 1/ Includes all products not already reported, such as nuggets, including weight of breading, and added ingredients. 2/ Includes regular, shank, and strip fillets; excludes any breaded products. 3/ Not published to avoid disclosure of individual operations. HDR2012000170010223951500Catfish Processing Estimates Catfish Processing Estimates Survey Procedures: Survey data for catfish processing are collected from approximately 30 processors. All participating processors must meet the minimum criteria of having a capacity to process at least 2,000 pounds live weight of catfish per 8-hour shift. The survey is conducted entirely by NASS Headquarter's staff in Washington, D.C. NASS field offices, however, are responsible for keeping Headquarters informed of any new processing operations in their state to ensure that the survey coverage is as complete as possible. Processors are contacted either by mail or telephone. Diligent effort is made to ensure that all operations are accounted for in the estimate. Estimation Procedures: The "Catfish Processing" report refers strictly to farm-raised fish and excludes wild capture fish. Prior to summarization, questionnaires are compared with the previous month's reports for comparable placement of data, reasonable price levels, and reasonable inventory carryover given the sales and processing totals reported. Estimates are made for those processors whose reports are not available in time to be included in the release. These plants are identified by an asterisk on page 5 of this release. Estimates are normally based on the processor's previous report and current conditions. Published totals are a straight summation of the individual reports and estimated data. Price items are weighted by the associated volumes to compute weighted average prices. The published price for total whole fish, however, reflects an adjustment to the round and gutted only price to bring it to an equivalent dressed weight price. If a plant uses a fiscal accounting system, proration is used to convert reported data to a calendar month basis. Only national level estimates are published due to the limited number of plants involved. Generally, individual items are not published if there are less than three plants reporting, or if any one plant has 60 percent or more of the total. One unique feature of the "Catfish Processing" report is the listing of cooperating processors by name on each month's release. This feature originally was used to solicit industry cooperation in maintaining coverage, but it has continued because of the processors' overall acceptance of this policy. Import and export data for frozen catfish fillets, which are compiled by the Department of Commerce, are also included in this report. Reliability: Catfish processing estimates are based on a census of all known active processors and, therefore, have no sampling variability. However, estimates may be subject to errors such as omissions, duplication, and mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing of the 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. Revision Policy: Revisions may be necessary following a review of late reports received from plants. Revisions of less than 2 percent of the existing published levels of any category will normally not be made. Definitions Used For Catfish Processing: Fillets - Boned sides of the fish, cut lengthwise away from the backbone. Fresh Fish - Fish intended for immediate consumption. Also referred to as ice-packed. Frozen Fish - Fish which are individually quick frozen and glazed (IQF) or individually bagged and bulk frozen. Nuggets - Small fillets cut from below the rib section of the fish. Usually includes breading or added ingredients. Round & Gutted Only - Fish with no processing done or viscera only removed. Round Weight - A term for fish live weight. Steaks - Cross-section cuts from larger dressed fish. Strips - Finger size pieces of fish cut from fillets. Usually includes breading or added ingredients. Whole Dressed - Weight of whole fish with only head, viscera, and skin removed. Generally, 60 percent of the live weight remains as dressed fish. Processing data were compiled in cooperation with the following processors: America's Catch Harvest Select Amite River Industries Kueter's Lake Aqua Farm Catfish, Inc. La Louision Arkansas Fresh Catfish Lake's Farm Raised Catfish, Inc. Carolina Classics Catfish, Inc. Limestone Fish Processors Confish, Inc. Pride of the Pond Corbin Fish Farm Prime Line Catfish Co. Delta Pride Catfish, Inc. Saul's Fish Processors Dorey Fish Co. Seabrook Seafood, Inc. Farm Fresh Catfish Co. Simmons Farm-Raised Fish Breeders of Idaho Southern Farm Fish Processors Franklin Catfish Southern Pride Freshwater Farms, Inc. Southfresh Farms Guidry Catfish Processors, Inc. The next "Catfish Processing" report will be released at 3 p.m. ET on March 23, 1995. 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