Aq 1 (4-06) Catfish Processing National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released April 21, 2006, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Catfish Processing" call Mike Barker at 202-720-3243, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. Catfish Processing Down 1 Percent Farm-raised catfish processed during March 2006 totaled 56.3 million pounds round weight, down 1 percent from March 2005. The average price paid to producers was 74.5 cents per pound for March 2006, up 1.6 cents from last month and 1.2 cents above a year ago. Net pounds of processed fish sold during March 2006 totaled 29.4 million pounds, up 7 percent from the comparable month in 2005. Total end of the month inventory decreased 8 percent from last month and was down 27 percent from a year ago. Sales of fresh fish, at 11.3 million pounds, were up 7 percent from March 2005 and represented 39 percent of total sales. Frozen fish sales, at 18.0 million pounds, were up 7 percent from a year ago and accounted for the remaining 61 percent of total fish sales. Sales of whole fish represented 18 percent of the total fish sold, fillets accounted for 60 percent, and the remaining 22 percent were mostly steaks, nuggets, and value added products. The March 2006 average price received by processors for total fresh fish was $2.28 per pound, a decrease of 3 cents from last year. Prices for fresh whole fish were $1.54 per pound, down 7 cents from last year. Prices for fresh fillets were up 4 cents at $2.89 per pound. Total frozen fish averaged $2.38 per pound, up 3 cents from March 2005. Prices for frozen whole fish were up 5 cents at $2.03 and frozen fillets at $2.75 per pound were up 5 cents from a year ago. Freshwater imports of frozen, boneless, Ictalurus, Pangasius and Siluriformes catfish fillets for February 2006 totaled 2.49 million pounds, more than twice the amount imported last year. Thirty two percent of all imports were from China, 24 percent from Vietnam, with the remainder coming from Cambodia and Malaysia. The Ictalurus (channel catfish) imports totaled 417 thousand pounds. Exports of frozen, boneless catfish fillets reported for February 2006 totaled 15.3 thousand pounds, of which 12.4 thousand pounds went to Canada. Fresh fillet exports totaled 63.7 thousand pounds, with 42.2 thousand pounds going to Canada and the rest to Mexico and the United Kingdom. Import and export data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Census. Farm-Raised Catfish: Quantity Processed by Major Processors, United States, 2005-2006 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Round Weight Processed : :-----------------------------------------------------------: Percent Month : Monthly :Percent of : Cumulative : of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2005 : 2006 : Year : 2005 : 2006 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : -- 1,000 Pounds -- Percent --- 1,000 Pounds -- Percent : Jan : 53,856 49,666 92 53,856 49,666 92 Feb : 51,720 49,145 95 105,576 98,811 94 Mar : 57,117 56,315 99 162,693 155,126 95 Apr : 50,306 212,999 May : 51,552 264,551 Jun : 49,626 314,177 Jul : 47,241 361,418 Aug : 50,686 412,104 Sep : 47,151 459,255 Oct : 49,034 508,289 Nov : 46,674 554,963 Dec : 45,707 600,670 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Farm-Raised Catfish: Prices Paid to Producers by Processors and Imports, United States, 2005-2006 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Price per : Change : : Percent Month : Pound 1/ : from : Imports 2/ : of :-----------------------: Previous :-----------------------: Previous : 2005 : 2006 : Year : 2005 : 2006 : Year -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ---- Dollars ---- Dollars 1,000 Pounds Percent : Jan : 0.725 0.726 0.001 1,383 2,644 191 Feb : 0.731 0.729 -0.002 1,230 2,491 203 Mar : 0.733 0.745 0.012 1,161 Apr : 0.725 2,198 May : 0.722 2,695 Jun : 0.721 2,538 Jul : 0.723 2,048 Aug : 0.724 2,684 Sep : 0.724 2,219 Oct : 0.724 4,062 Nov : 0.724 4,648 Dec : 0.726 3,239 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Price for 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 adjustments based on year-end settlements. 2/ Pounds of frozen boneless fillets. Includes Ictalurus, Pangasius and Silurformes catfish. Data furnished by U.S. Bureau of Census. Catfish Processors: Sales Volume, Average Price, and Ending Inventory, United States, March 2005-2006 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Sales : Average : Ending : Volume : Price : Inventory Item :--------------------------------------------------------- : 2005 : 2006 : 2005 : 2006 : 2005 : 2006 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 Pounds Dollars per Pound 1,000 Pounds : Fresh Fish : Whole : Round & Gutted : 1,570 2,205 1.26 1.20 * * Whole Dressed : 1,832 1,819 1.85 1.87 * * Total : 3,402 4,024 1.61 1.54 187 212 : Other : Steaks : 103 89 2.15 2.17 * * Nuggets : 973 908 1.30 1.26 136 111 Other 1/ : 294 217 3.05 3.09 * * Total : 1,370 1,214 1.74 1.65 153 121 : Fillets 2/ : 5,795 6,090 2.85 2.89 632 363 : Total Fresh : 10,567 11,328 2.31 2.28 972 696 : Frozen Fish : Whole Dressed : 1,166 1,331 1.98 2.03 1,213 1,047 : Other : Steaks : 133 110 1.94 2.02 97 115 Nuggets : 3,103 3,033 1.05 1.00 2,176 1,529 Other 1/ : 1,680 1,946 2.81 2.58 940 995 Total : 4,916 5,089 1.68 1.63 3,213 2,639 : Fillets 2/ : 10,824 11,619 2.70 2.75 8,654 5,881 : Total Frozen : 16,906 18,039 2.35 2.38 13,080 9,567 : Fresh & Frozen Fish : Whole : Round & Gutted : 1,570 2,205 1.26 1.20 * * Whole Dressed : 2,998 3,150 1.90 1.94 * * Total : 4,568 5,355 1.71 1.66 1,400 1,259 : Other : Steaks : 236 199 2.03 2.09 * * Nuggets : 4,076 3,941 1.11 1.06 2,312 1,640 Other 1/ : 1,974 2,163 2.85 2.63 * * Total : 6,286 6,303 1.69 1.63 3,366 2,760 : Fillets 2/ : 16,619 17,709 2.75 2.80 9,286 6,244 : Total Fresh & Frozen : 27,473 29,367 2.34 2.34 14,052 10,263 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Not published to avoid disclosure of individual operations. 1/ Includes all products not already reported including weight of breading and added ingredients. 2/ Includes regular, shank, and strip fillets; excludes any breaded products. Catfish Processing Estimates Survey Procedures: Survey data for catfish processing are collected from approximately 22 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 GAF Fisheries Aqua Farm Catfish Heartland Catfish Carolina Classics Catfish, Inc. Lake's Farm Raised Catfish, Inc Consolidated Catfish Co. LLC. Pride of the Pond Delta Pride Catfish, Inc Pride of the South Catfish Co. Delta Supreme Fish Processing Prime Line Catfish Co. Fish Breeders of Idaho Seabrook Seafood, Inc. Freshwater Farms Products LLC. Simmons Farm-Raised Guidry Catfish Processors, Inc. Southern Pride Harvest Select *Southfresh Farms Haring's Pride Superior Fish Processors * Estimated The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual's income is derived from any public assistance program. (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 USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). 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