Aq 1 (2-00) Catfish Processing National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released February 24, 2000, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Catfish Processing" call John Lange (202) 720-0585 or Mike Barker at (202) 720-3243, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET Catfish Processing Up 4 Percent Farm-raised catfish processed during January 2000 totaled 50.6 million pounds round weight, up 4 percent from January 1999. The average price paid to producers was 74.4 cents per pound for January 2000, up 2.8 cents from last month and 4.1 cents above a year ago. Net pounds of processed fish sold during January 2000 totaled 25.4 million pounds, up 10 percent from the comparable month in 1999. Sales of fresh fish, at 9.61 million pounds, were up 1 percent from January 1999 and represented 38 percent of total sales. Frozen fish sales, at 15.8 million pounds, were up 16 percent from a year ago and accounted for the remaining 62 percent of total fish sales. Sales of whole fish represented 19 percent of the total fish sold, fillets accounted for 60 percent, and the remaining 21 percent were mostly steaks, nuggets, and value added products. The January 2000 average price received by processors for total fresh fish was $2.22 per pound, up 10 cents from last year. Prices for fresh whole fish were $1.63 per pound, up 9 cents from last year. Prices for fresh fillets were up 9 cents to $2.82 per pound. Total frozen fish averaged $2.43 per pound, up 8 cents from January 1999. Prices for frozen whole fish were up 8 cents to $2.02, while frozen fillets at $2.81 per pound were up 19 cents from a year ago. Freshwater catfish imports for November 1999 totaled 285 thousand pounds, 64 percent above a year earlier. Vietnam accounted for 52 percent, Guyana 35 percent, with the remainder coming from Canada and Thailand. Imports for December 1999 were 305 thousand pounds, more than 3 times the amount imported a year ago. Vietnam accounted for 80 percent of the December imports, with the rest coming from Canada, China and Thailand. There were no exports reported for November 1999. Exports for December 1999 totaled 48.7 thousand pounds, with 79 percent going to Argentina and the remainder to the Netherlands. Import and export data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Census. 1999 Catfish Processing Up 6 Percent Farm-raised catfish processed during 1999 totaled 597 million pounds, 6 percent above the 564 million pounds processed in 1998. The average price paid to producers in 1999 was 73.7 cents per pound, 1 percent below the 74.3 cents last year. Net pounds of processed fish sold in 1999 totaled 293 million pounds, 4 percent above the 281 million pounds sold last year. The 1999 average price received for processed fish was $2.34 per pound, up 2 percent from $2.29 from a year ago. Farm-Raised Catfish: Quantity Processed and Prices Paid to Producers by Major Processors, and United States Imports, 1999-2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Round Weight Processed : Average Price : Imports :------------------------------------: Paid to : of Month : Monthly : Cumulative : Producers 1/ : Catfish 2/ :----------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 : 1998 : 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : ---------- 1,000 Pounds -------- Dollars Per Pound (000) Pounds : Jan : 48,723 50,552 48,723 50,552 .703 .744 91 57 Feb : 48,891 97,614 .714 9 53 Mar : 56,310 153,924 .732 99 113 Apr : 46,830 200,754 .756 82 250 May : 47,703 248,457 .777 208 541 Jun : 48,445 296,902 .775 193 372 Jul : 50,074 346,976 .768 195 475 Aug : 50,372 397,348 .743 132 479 Sep : 50,414 447,762 .728 21 304 Oct : 52,407 500,169 .716 92 217 Nov : 48,118 548,287 .713 174 285 Dec : 48,341 596,628 .716 90 305 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 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. Catfish Processors: Sales Volume, Average Price, and Ending Inventory, United States, January 1999-2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Sales : Average : Ending : Volume : Price : Inventory Item :------------------------------------------------------- : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 : 1999 : 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : 1,000 Pounds Dollars Per Pound 1,000 Pounds Fresh : Whole Fish : Round & Gutted : Only : 1,039 986 1.04 1.14 1/ 1/ Whole Dressed : 2,611 2,510 1.71 1.80 1/ 1/ Total : 3,650 3,496 1.54 1.63 208 234 : Other : Steaks : 80 106 1.99 1.98 4 1/ Nuggets : 995 1,122 1.33 1.36 78 102 Other 2/ : 168 201 3.12 3.19 4 1/ Total : 1,243 1,429 1.61 1.66 86 105 : Fillets 3/ : 4,581 4,686 2.73 2.82 451 460 : Total Fresh : 9,474 9,611 2.12 2.22 745 799 : Frozen : Whole Fish : Round & Gutted : Only : Whole Dressed : 1,139 1,231 1.94 2.02 921 1,403 Total : 1,139 1,231 1.94 2.02 921 1,403 : Other : Steaks : 107 124 1.75 1.96 185 133 Nuggets : 1,959 2,755 1.11 1.07 1,857 1,915 Other 2/ : 1,240 1,037 2.70 2.76 984 972 Total : 3,306 3,916 1.73 1.55 3,026 3,020 : Fillets 3/ : 9,188 10,654 2.62 2.81 7,024 7,640 : Total Frozen : 13,633 15,801 2.35 2.43 10,971 12,063 : Total Fresh & Frozen : 23,107 25,412 2.26 2.35 11,716 12,862 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 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, 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Whole Fish : Other : : :-------------------------------------------------------: : Month : Rnd & : : : : : : :Fillets: Total :Gutted : Whole : Total :Steaks :Nuggets: Other : Total : 2/ : Sales : Only :Dressed: : : : 1/ : : : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Fresh : Jan : 1,039 2,611 3,650 80 995 168 1,243 4,581 9,474 Feb : 1,225 2,732 3,957 83 1,347 184 1,614 5,030 10,601 Mar : 1,443 3,024 4,467 90 1,452 200 1,742 5,768 11,977 Apr : 1,086 2,373 3,459 85 898 170 1,153 4,897 9,509 May : 1,023 2,469 3,492 80 956 191 1,227 4,918 9,637 Jun : 1,093 2,287 3,380 78 859 189 1,126 4,707 9,213 Jul : 1,054 2,417 3,471 79 1,035 191 1,305 4,846 9,622 Aug : 830 2,441 3,271 80 1,234 181 1,495 5,002 9,768 Sep : 1,008 2,575 3,583 80 1,095 179 1,354 4,550 9,487 Oct : 946 2,615 3,561 73 1,405 198 1,676 4,811 10,048 Nov : 993 2,216 3,209 74 1,045 180 1,299 4,171 8,679 Dec : 1,071 2,242 3,313 68 987 172 1,227 4,142 8,682 : Total:12,811 30,002 42,813 950 13,308 2,203 16,461 57,423 116,697 : Frozen : Jan : 1,139 1,139 107 1,959 1,240 3,306 9,188 13,633 Feb : 1,323 1,323 175 2,061 1,485 3,721 10,135 15,179 Mar : 1,320 1,320 135 2,197 1,448 3,780 11,467 16,567 Apr : 1,227 1,227 111 1,721 1,047 2,879 9,873 13,979 May : 1,171 1,171 143 1,921 1,201 3,265 9,891 14,327 Jun : 1,114 1,114 123 2,099 1 159 3,381 10,012 14,507 Jul : 1,267 1,267 131 2,242 1,228 3,601 10,579 15,447 Aug : 1,144 1,144 128 2,802 1,331 4,261 9,445 14,850 Sep : 1,051 1,051 110 2,340 1,282 3,732 10,160 14,943 Oct : 1,025 1,025 117 2,245 1,160 3,522 10,634 15,181 Nov : 1,043 1,043 112 2,000 1,096 3,208 9,414 13,665 Dec : 972 972 106 2,478 1,009 3,593 9,125 13,690 : Total : 13,796 13,796 1,498 26,065 14,686 42,249 119,923 175,968 : Fresh &: Frozen: Jan : 1,039 3,750 4,789 187 2,954 1,408 4,549 13,769 23,107 Feb : 1,225 4,055 5,280 258 3,408 1,669 5,335 15,165 25,780 Mar : 1,443 4,344 5,787 225 3,649 1,648 5,522 17,235 28,544 Apr : 1,086 3,600 4,686 196 2,619 1,217 4,032 14,770 23,488 May : 1,023 3,640 4,663 223 2,877 1,392 4,492 14,809 23,964 Jun : 1,093 3,401 4,494 201 2,958 1,348 4,507 14,719 23,720 Jul : 1,054 3,684 4,738 210 3,277 1,419 4,906 15,425 25,069 Aug : 830 3,585 4,415 208 4,036 1,512 5,756 14,447 24,618 Sep : 1,008 3,626 4,634 190 3,435 1,461 5,086 14,710 24,430 Oct : 946 3,640 4,586 190 3,650 1,358 5,198 15,445 25,229 Nov : 993 3,259 4,252 186 3,045 1,276 4,507 13,585 22,344 Dec : 1,071 3,214 4,285 174 3,465 1,181 4,820 13,267 22,372 : Total :12,811 43,798 56,609 2,448 39,373 16,889 58,710 177,346 292,665 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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. Catfish Processors: Fresh and Frozen Average Sales Price by Month, United States, 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 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 1.71 1.54 1.99 1.33 3.12 1.61 2.73 2.12 Feb : 1.08 1.72 1.55 2.00 1.31 3.10 1.55 2.71 2.10 Mar : 1.07 1.78 1.57 2.03 1.35 3.18 1.59 2.76 2.15 Apr : 1.09 1.78 1.59 2.05 1.38 3.22 1.70 2.75 2.20 May : 1.10 1.82 1.63 2.06 1.41 3.25 1.74 2.84 2.26 Jun : 1.09 1.80 1.60 2.06 1.41 3.22 1.76 2.86 2.26 Jul : 1.08 1.79 1.59 2.05 1.34 3.22 1.66 2.86 2.24 Aug : 1.09 1.79 1.63 2.07 1.36 3.21 1.62 2.85 2.25 Sep : 1.10 1.78 1.61 2.08 1.38 3.24 1.66 2.85 2.21 Oct : 1.10 1.79 1.63 2.08 1.31 3.21 1.57 2.83 2.19 Nov : 1.08 1.79 1.59 2.06 1.36 3.21 1.65 2.84 2.20 Dec : 1.07 1.78 1.57 2.04 1.36 3.22 1.66 2.83 2.18 : Avg : 1.08 1.78 1.59 2.05 1.35 3.20 1.64 2.81 2.19 : Frozen : Jan : 1.94 1.94 1.75 1.11 2.70 1.73 2.62 2.35 Feb : 1.95 1.95 1.61 1.18 2.55 1.75 2.66 2.37 Mar : 1.95 1.95 1.81 1.25 2.64 1.80 2.71 2.44 Apr : 1.98 1.98 1.84 1.20 2.67 1.76 2.74 2.47 May : 2.01 2.01 1.91 1.17 2.69 1.76 2.78 2.49 Jun : 2.01 2.01 1.81 1.09 2.73 1.68 2.81 2.48 Jul : 2.01 2.01 1.85 1.15 2.72 1.71 2.82 2.49 Aug : 2.01 2.01 1.80 1.08 2.67 1.60 2.82 2.41 Sep : 2.01 2.01 1.91 1.10 2.69 1.67 2.81 2.47 Oct : 2.00 2.00 1.92 1.11 2.71 1.66 2.78 2.47 Nov : 2.02 2.02 1.85 1.09 2.71 1.67 2.77 2.45 Dec : 2.01 2.01 1.79 1.05 2.66 1.52 2.77 2.39 : Avg : 1.99 1.99 1.81 1.13 2.68 1.69 2.76 2.44 : Fresh & : Frozen : Jan : 1.04 1.78 1.64 1.85 1.18 2.75 1.70 2.66 2.26 Feb : 1.08 1.80 1.65 1.74 1.23 2.61 1.69 2.68 2.26 Mar : 1.07 1.83 1.66 1.90 1.29 2.71 1.73 2.73 2.32 Apr : 1.09 1.85 1.69 1.93 1.26 2.75 1.74 2.74 2.36 May : 1.10 1.88 1.73 1.96 1.25 2.77 1.75 2.80 2.40 Jun : 1.09 1.87 1.70 1.91 1.18 2.80 1.70 2.83 2.40 Jul : 1.08 1.87 1.70 1.93 1.21 2.79 1.70 2.83 2.40 Aug : 1.09 1.86 1.73 1.90 1.17 2.73 1.61 2.83 2.35 Sep : 1.10 1.85 1.70 1.98 1.19 2.76 1.67 2.82 2.37 Oct : 1.10 1.85 1.71 1.98 1.19 2.78 1.63 2.80 2.36 Nov : 1.08 1.86 1.70 1.93 1.18 2.78 1.66 2.79 2.36 Dec : 1.07 1.85 1.67 1.89 1.14 2.74 1.56 2.79 2.31 : Avg : 1.08 1.84 1.69 1.90 1.20 2.74 1.68 2.77 2.34 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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. Catfish Processors: Fresh and Frozen End-of-Month Inventory by Month, United States, 1999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Whole Fish : Other : : :-------------------------------------------------------: : Month : Rnd & : : : : : : :Fillets: :Gutted : Whole : Total :Steaks :Nuggets: Other : Total : 2/ : Total : Only :Dressed: : : : 3/ : : : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Fresh : Jan : 3/ 3/ 208 4 78 4 86 451 745 Feb : 3/ 3/ 184 5 95 4 104 420 708 Mar : 3/ 3/ 180 3/ 83 3/ 84 393 657 Apr : 3/ 3/ 136 3/ 85 3/ 93 348 577 May : 3/ 3/ 196 3/ 88 3/ 102 336 634 Jun : 3/ 3/ 194 3/ 79 3/ 88 385 667 Jul : 3/ 3/ 163 3/ 88 3/ 97 391 651 Aug : 3/ 3/ 210 3/ 92 3/ 117 413 740 Sep : 3/ 3/ 177 3/ 118 3/ 125 494 796 Oct : 3/ 3/ 192 3/ 114 3/ 120 437 749 Nov : 3/ 3/ 159 3/ 101 3/ 109 392 660 Dec : 3/ 3/ 169 3/ 86 3/ 94 397 660 : Frozen : Jan : 921 921 185 1,857 984 3,026 7,024 10,971 Feb : 895 895 98 1,430 913 2,441 6,059 9,395 Mar : 969 969 119 1,480 850 2,449 4,940 8,358 Apr : 960 960 115 1,514 949 2,578 3,964 7,502 May : 844 844 105 1,701 796 2,602 3,435 6,881 Jun : 861 861 116 1,927 940 2,983 3,253 7,097 Jul : 737 737 90 1,845 777 2,712 3,486 6,935 Aug : 611 611 83 1,418 663 2,164 4,000 6,775 Sep : 644 644 96 1,645 724 2,465 4,599 7,708 Oct : 719 719 123 1,774 680 2,578 5,667 8,964 Nov : 729 729 120 2,064 806 2,990 6,515 10,234 Dec : 1,078 1,078 114 2,283 968 3,365 7,448 11,891 : Fresh & : Frozen : Jan : 3/ 3/ 1,129 189 1,935 988 3,112 7,475 11,716 Feb : 3/ 3/ 1,079 103 1,525 917 2,545 6,479 10,103 Mar : 3/ 3/ 1,149 3/ 1,563 3/ 2,533 5,333 9,015 Apr : 3/ 3/ 1,096 3/ 1,599 3/ 2,671 4,312 8,079 May : 3/ 3/ 1,040 3/ 1,789 3/ 2,704 3,771 7,515 Jun : 3/ 3/ 1,055 3/ 2,006 3/ 3,071 3,638 7,764 Jul : 3/ 3/ 900 3/ 1,933 3/ 2,809 3,877 7,586 Aug : 3/ 3/ 821 3/ 1,510 3/ 2,281 4,413 7,515 Sep : 3/ 3/ 821 3/ 1,763 3/ 2,590 5,093 8,504 Oct : 3/ 3/ 911 3/ 1,888 3/ 2,698 6,104 9,713 Nov : 3/ 3/ 888 3/ 2,165 3/ 3,099 6,907 10,894 Dec : 3/ 3/ 1,249 3/ 2,369 3/ 3,459 7,845 12,551 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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. Catfish Processing Estimates Survey Procedures: Survey data for catfish processing are collected from approximately 26 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: 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 Harvest Select Amite River Industries Heartland Catfish Aqua Farm Catfish Lake's Farm Raised Catfish, Inc. Carolina Classics Catfish, Inc. Plantation Fisheries Confish Inc. Pride of the Pond Delta Pride Catfish, Inc. Pride of the South Catfish Co. Delta Supreme Fish Processing Prime Line Catfish Co *Farm Fresh Catfish Co Seabrook Seafood, Inc. Fast Catfish Simmons Farm-Raised Fish Breeders of Idaho Southern Farm Fish Processors Franklin Catfish Southern Pride Freshwater Farms, Inc. Southfresh Farms Guidry Catfish Processors, Inc. Superior Fish Processors * Estimated The next "Catfish Processing " report will be released at 3:00 p.m. ET on March 23, 2000. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact the USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD). 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