HDR1012000170011222951500CATFISH PROCESSING HDR2012000170011222951500CATF HIGHLIGHTS Released December 22, 1995, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Catfish Processing" call James E. Brewster at (202) 720-8784, office hours 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET. For assistance with general agricultural statistics, information about NASS, its products or services, contact the NASS Information Hotline at 1-800-727-9540 or E-mail: NASS@AG.GOV. Estimates refer to November 1994 and 1995. Catfish Processing Down 5 Percent Farm-raised catfish processed during November totaled 34.1 million pounds round weight, down 5 percent from November 1994. The average price paid to producers was 78 cents per pound for November 1995, unchanged from the last two months and 1 cent above a year ago. Net pounds of processed fish sold during November totaled 16.7 million pounds, an increase of 2 percent from the comparable month in 1994. Sales of fresh fish, at 6.91 million pounds, were up 6 percent from November 1994 and represented 41 percent of total sales. Frozen fish sales, at 9.77 million pounds, were down 2 percent from a year ago and accounted for the remaining 59 percent of total fish sales. Sales of whole fish represented 24 percent of the total, fillets accounted for 54 percent, and the remaining 22 percent were mostly, steaks, nuggets, and value added products. The November 1995 average price received by processors for total fresh fish was $2.20 per pound, down 5 cents from last year. Prices for fresh whole fish decreased 7 cents per pound to $1.63. Prices for fresh fillets decreased 1 cent to $2.90 per pound. Total frozen fish averaged $2.48 per pound, unchanged from November 1994. Prices for frozen whole fish decreased 7 cents per pound to $1.95, while frozen fillets at $2.82 per pound were down 6 cents from $2.88 a year ago. Freshwater catfish imports during September 1995 totaled 402 thousand pounds, up 25 percent from the 322 thousand pounds imported the previous year. Ninety- six percent of imports were from Brazil, with the remaining 4 percent coming from Canada and Vietnam. No exports were reported for September 1995. October data were not available at the time of this release due to Government furlough. If available they will be included in the release on January 23, 1996. Import and export data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Census. Aq 1 (12-95) HDR2012000170011222951500FRM-RAISED CATF:QUNTITY PRCSSD & PRCS PD 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 : 1994 : 1995 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : ---------- 1,000 Pounds -------- Dollars Per Pound (000) Pounds : Jan : 36,714 38,807 36,714 38,807 .74 .78 535 61 Feb : 35,035 38,515 71,749 77,322 .77 .79 102 49 Mar : 40,446 42,200 112,195 119,522 .79 .79 163 172 Apr : 34,494 36,588 146,689 156,110 .80 .79 57 181 May : 34,163 37,030 180,852 193,140 .80 .79 459 384 Jun : 34,595 36,047 215,447 229,187 .80 .79 362 203 Jul : 35,901 35,800 251,348 264,987 .80 .79 261 294 Aug : 39,813 38,827 291,161 303,814 .80 .79 342 245 Sep : 38,716 37,634 329,877 341,448 .80 .78 322 402 Oct : 39,072 39,456 368,949 380,904 .77 .78 200 3/ Nov : 36,054 34,119 405,003 415,023 .77 .78 491 Dec : 34,266 439,269 .77 192 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1/ Price for fish delivered to 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. 3/ Data not available at publication time, due to Government furlough. HDR2012000170011222951500CATF PRCSSRS:SLS VOL, AV PRC&ENDNG INVEN. Catfish Processors: Sales Volume, Average Price, and Ending Inventory, United States, November 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 : 527 739 1.09 1.06 1/ 1/ Whole Dressed : 2,361 2,223 1.82 1.80 1/ 1/ Total : 2,888 2,962 1.70 1.63 243 190 : Other : Steaks : 99 1/ 2.06 1/ 1/ 1/ Nuggets : 539 693 1.38 1.39 83 77 Other 2/ : 183 1/ 3.38 1/ 1/ 1/ Total : 821 1,049 1.91 1.87 106 85 : Fillets 3/ : 2,784 2,897 2.91 2.90 453 457 : Total Fresh : 6,493 6,908 2.25 2.20 802 732 : Frozen : Whole Fish : Round & Gutted : Only : Whole Dressed : 1,324 999 2.02 1.95 1,118 1,187 Total : 1,324 999 2.02 1.95 1,118 1,187 : Other : Steaks : 192 209 1.77 1.85 247 1/ Nuggets : 1,259 1,361 1.21 1.25 1,127 991 Other 2/ : 1,406 1,060 2.53 2.71 1,575 1/ Total : 2,857 2,630 1.90 1.89 2,949 2,619 : Fillets 3/ : 5,753 6,143 2.88 2.82 4,964 6,458 : Total Frozen : 9,934 9,772 2.48 2.48 9,031 10,264 : Total Fresh & Frozen : 16,427 16,680 2.39 2.36 9,833 10,996 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 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. HDR2012000170011222951500CATF PRCSSNG ESTI.,DEF,NXT RLSE & EEO STMNT 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, captured 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: Average Price Paid to Producers - Refers to the 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. 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 Guidry Catfish Processors, Inc. Amite River Industries Harvest Select Aqua Farm Catfish, Inc. Lake's Farm Raised Catfish, Inc. Carolina Classics Catfish, Inc. Pride of the Pond Confish, Inc. Prime Line Catfish Co. Corbin Fish Farm Seabrook Seafood, Inc. Delta Pride Catfish, Inc. Simmons Farm-Raised Dorey Fish Co. Southern Farm Fish Processors Farm Fresh Catfish Co. Southern Pride Fish Breeders of Idaho Southfresh Farms Franklin Catfish Superior Fish Processors Freshwater Farms, Inc. * Estimated The next "Catfish Processing" report will be released at 3 p.m. ET on January 23, 1996. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in its programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, and marital or familial status. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact the USDA Office of Communications at (202) 720-5881 (voice) or (202) 720-7808 (TDD). To file a complaint, write the Secretary of Agriculture, USDA, Washington, D.C., 20250, or call (202) 720-7327 (voice) or (202) 720-1127 (TDD). USDA is an equal employment opportunity employer.