Catfish Processing ISSN: 1948-2701 Released March 20, 2012, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Catfish Processing Down 3 Percent from Last Year Farm-raised catfish processed during February 2012 totaled 27.0 million pounds round weight, down 3 percent from February 2011. The average price paid to producers was $1.23 per pound for February 2012, down 1.9 cents from last month but 22.6 cents above a year ago. Net pounds of processed fish sold during February 2012 totaled 14.4 million pounds, down 7 percent from the comparable month in 2011. Sales of fresh fish, at 5.19 million pounds, were down 1 percent from February 2011 and represented 36 percent of total sales. Frozen fish sales, at 9.26 million pounds, were down 10 percent from a year ago and accounted for the remaining 64 percent of total fish sales. Sales of whole fish represented 20 percent of the total fish sold, fillets accounted for 58 percent, and the remaining 22 percent were mostly steaks, nuggets, and value added products. The total end of the month inventory decreased 6 percent from last month but was up 31 percent from a year ago. The total fresh and frozen average price for February 2012 was $3.50, up 47 cents from a year ago. The February 2012 average price received by processors for total fresh fish was $3.42 per pound, up 51 cents from last year. Prices for fresh whole fish were $2.44 per pound, up 38 cents from February 2011. Prices for fresh fillets were up 93 cents from a year ago at $4.68 per pound. Total frozen fish averaged $3.54 per pound, up 45 cents from February 2011. Prices for frozen whole dressed fish were up 35 cents at $2.94 and frozen fillets at $4.25 per pound were up 69 cents from a year ago. Imports for consumption of Ictalurus spp., Pangasius spp., and other catfish of the order Siluriformes for January 2012 totaled 25.6 million pounds, up 57 percent from the amount imported in January 2011. Imports were from Cambodia, China, Thailand, and Vietnam. The Ictalurus spp. imports totaled 2.03 million pounds, which were from China. Fresh catfish fillet exports totaled 85.2 thousand pounds, with 38.7 thousand pounds going to Canada and the rest going to the Bahamas, Barbados, Jordan, and Poland. Exports of frozen catfish fillets reported for January 2012 totaled 2.7 thousand pounds, going to the Bahamas. Import and export data are compiled by the United States Census Bureau. Farm-Raised Catfish Processed and Prices Paid to Producers by Month - United States: 2011-2012 [Blank cells indicate estimation period has not yet begun.] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Round weight processed :------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Monthly : Cumulative : Price per pound 1/ :------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : :2012 as: : :2012 as: : :Change : : :percent: : :percent: : : from Month : 2011 : 2012 :of 2011: 2011 : 2012 :of 2011: 2011 : 2012 : 2011 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 pounds percent 1,000 pounds percent ------ dollars ------ : January ...:35,076 25,843 74 35,076 25,843 74 0.931 1.248 0.317 February ..:27,782 26,950 97 62,858 52,793 84 1.003 1.229 0.226 March .....:30,372 93,230 1.075 April .....:23,605 116,835 1.141 May .......:24,749 141,584 1.169 June ......:24,337 165,921 1.231 July ......:26,595 192,516 1.252 August ....:30,680 223,196 1.277 September .:30,271 253,467 1.275 October ...:32,264 285,731 1.262 November ..:25,814 311,545 1.257 December ..:22,598 334,143 1.251 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Quantity processed by major processors and the prices paid for fish delivered to the processing plant's door. Price includes charges for any services provided by the processing plant, such as seining and hauling. Price also includes any discounts or premiums for size or quality, but does not include adjustments based on year-end settlements. Processed Farm-Raised Catfish Sales Volume and Average Price by Month - United States: 2011 and 2012 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Sales volume : Average price 2/ Item 1/ :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : February : January : February : February : January : February : 2011 : 2012 : 2012 : 2011 : 2012 : 2012 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : ------------ 1,000 pounds ------------ ------------- dollars per pound ------------ : Fresh fish : Whole : Round and gutted ...........: 943 1,189 1,136 1.60 1.87 1.80 Whole dressed ..............: 1,103 1,030 1,187 2.37 2.98 2.94 Total ......................: 2,046 2,219 2,323 2.06 2.44 2.44 : Other : Steaks .....................: 78 45 45 2.75 3.60 3.54 Nuggets ....................: 421 404 446 1.62 1.83 1.82 Other ......................: 36 24 24 4.07 4.85 4.77 Total ......................: 535 473 515 1.95 2.15 2.11 : Fillets ......................: 2,650 2,231 2,349 3.75 4.73 4.68 : Total fresh ..................: 5,231 4,923 5,187 2.91 3.45 3.42 : Frozen fish : Whole dressed ................: 762 526 634 2.59 3.04 2.94 : Other : Steaks .....................: 51 44 56 2.69 3.24 3.15 Nuggets ....................: 1,773 2,160 1,943 1.43 1.33 1.39 Other ......................: 914 626 645 3.26 4.00 4.09 Total ......................: 2,738 2,830 2,644 2.06 1.95 2.09 : Fillets ......................: 6,833 5,148 5,982 3.56 4.26 4.25 : Total frozen .................: 10,333 8,504 9,260 3.09 3.42 3.54 : Fresh and frozen fish : Whole : Round and gutted ...........: 943 1,189 1,136 1.60 1.87 1.80 Whole dressed ..............: 1,865 1,556 1,821 2.46 3.00 2.94 Total ......................: 2,808 2,745 2,957 2.20 2.56 2.54 : Other : Steaks .....................: 129 89 101 2.73 3.42 3.32 Nuggets ....................: 2,194 2,564 2,389 1.47 1.41 1.47 Other ......................: 950 650 669 3.29 4.03 4.11 Total ......................: 3,273 3,303 3,159 2.05 1.98 2.09 : Fillets ......................: 9,483 7,379 8,331 3.61 4.40 4.37 : Total fresh and frozen fish ..: 15,564 13,427 14,447 3.03 3.43 3.50 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1/ For further detail, please refer to the terms and definitions section of this report. 2/ Gross value FOB plant. Processed Farm-Raised Catfish Ending Inventory by Month - United States: 2011 and 2012 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Ending inventory Item 1/ :----------------------------------------------------- : February 2011 : January 2012 : February 2012 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 pounds : Fresh fish : Whole : Round and gutted .............: (D) (D) (D) Whole dressed ................: (D) (D) (D) Total ........................: 139 131 155 : Other : Steaks .......................: (D) (D) (D) Nuggets ......................: 86 86 48 Other ........................: (D) (D) (D) Total ........................: 95 92 56 : Fillets ........................: 362 382 316 : Total fresh ....................: 596 605 527 : Frozen fish : Whole dressed ..................: 830 407 372 : Other : Steaks .......................: (D) (D) (D) Nuggets ......................: 2,120 1,477 1,274 Other ........................: (D) (D) (D) Total ........................: 2,842 1,859 1,684 : Fillets ........................: 4,772 9,807 9,298 : Total frozen ...................: 8,444 12,073 11,354 : Fresh and frozen fish : Whole : Round and gutted .............: (D) (D) (D) Whole dressed ................: (D) (D) (D) Total ........................: 969 538 527 : Other : Steaks .......................: (D) (D) (D) Nuggets ......................: 2,206 1,563 1,322 Other ........................: (D) (D) (D) Total ........................: 2,937 1,951 1,740 : Fillets ........................: 5,134 10,189 9,614 : Total fresh and frozen fish ....: 9,040 12,678 11,881 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. 1/ For further detail, please refer to the terms and definitions section of this report. Catfish Imports by Month - United States: 2011-2012 [Data compiled by the United States Census Bureau. Blank data cells indicate estimation period has not yet begun] --------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Imports :----------------------------------------------------------- : Ictalurus spp. : Total 1/ :----------------------------------------------------------- : : : 2012 as : : : 2012 as : : : percent : : : percent Month : 2011 : 2012 : of 2011 : 2011 : 2012 : of 2011 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 pounds percent 1,000 pounds percent : January .......: 1,301 2,028 156 16,276 25,551 157 February ......: 1,015 13,790 March .........: 211 9,133 April .........: 216 13,325 May ...........: 113 16,314 June ..........: 11 14,643 July ..........: 19 18,034 August ........: 39 18,383 September .....: 171 18,576 October .......: 838 20,335 November ......: 1,372 22,262 December ......: 2,113 22,608 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Includes freshwater imports for consumption of "Ictalurus" spp., "Pangasius" spp., and other catfish of the order Siluriformes. Catfish Exports by Month - United States: 2011-2012 [Data compiled by the United States Census Bureau. Blank data cells indicate estimation period has not yet begun] --------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Exports :----------------------------------------------------------- : Fresh : Frozen :----------------------------------------------------------- : : : 2012 as : : : 2012 as : : : percent : : : percent Month : 2011 : 2012 : of 2011 : 2011 : 2012 : of 2011 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 pounds percent 1,000 pounds percent : January .......: 53.9 85.2 158 10.2 2.7 26 February ......: 56.7 13.2 March .........: 42.3 2.2 April .........: 38.7 - May ...........: 41.0 3.0 June ..........: 38.0 1.8 July ..........: 150.0 7.8 August ........: 72.7 - September .....: 29.4 1.1 October .......: 55.9 3.6 November ......: 42.7 2.7 December ......: 51.4 3.6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Represents zero. Statistical Methodology Survey Procedures: Survey data for catfish processing are collected from approximately 18 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 National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) Headquarters staff in Washington, D.C. However, NASS field offices are responsible for informing Headquarters staff of any new processing operations in their state to ensure complete survey coverage. Processors are contacted either by mail, telephone, fax or internet. Diligent effort is made to ensure that all operations are accounted for in the estimate. Estimating 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 a 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 6 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, prorating 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. 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 catfish, which are compiled by the United States Census Bureau, are also included in this report. Revision Policy: Revisions may be necessary in the previous month's publication based on late reports received from plants. These revisions are made to improve month to month relationships. In February, all monthly estimates for the previous year are reviewed and subject to revision. This review is primarily based on data that may have been received after the original estimates were published. Reliability: 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. Processing data were compiled in cooperation with the following processors: America's Catch, Inc. Harvest Select Catfish, Inc. Carolina Classics Catfish, LLC Heartland Catfish Consolidated Catfish Producers, LLC Lake's Farm Raised Catfish, Inc. Delta Supreme Fish Processors Pride of the Pond Fish Breeders of Idaho, Inc. Prime Line, Inc. Farm Catch Catfish Processors, Inc. Seabrook Seafood, Inc. Freshwater Farms Products, LLC Simmons Farm Raised Catfish, Inc. Guidry Catfish, Inc. SouthFresh Farms Harings Pride Catfish Superior Fish Products Terms and Definitions Used for Catfish Processing Estimates 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. Includes regular, shank, and strip fillets; excludes any breaded products. 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. Ictalurus spp.: All species under this genus, which includes channel catfish, blue catfish, and other catfish species. Nuggets: Small fillets cuts from below the rib section of the fish and usually includes weight of breading and added ingredients. Other Products: Includes steaks, nuggets, and all other products not separately reported including the weight of breading and added ingredients. Pangasius spp.: All species under this genus, which includes basa, tra, stuchi catfish, and other catfish species. Round & Gutted Only: Fish with no processing done or viscera only removed. Round Weight: The term for a fish's live weight. Siluriformes: The scientific order which contains all families of catfish. Steaks: Cross-section cuts from larger dressed fish. Strips: Finger size pieces of fish cut from fillets and 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. Information Contacts Listed below are the commodity specialists in the Livestock Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to contact for additional information. E-mail inquiries may be sent to nass@nass.usda.gov Dan Kerestes, Chief, Livestock Branch ................................... (202) 720-3570 Bruce Boess, Head, Poultry and Specialty Commodities Section ............ (202) 720-4447 Cody Brokmeyer - Poultry Slaughter, Turkey Hatchery, Turkeys Raised .. (202) 690-3237 David Colwell - Cold Storage ......................................... (202) 720-8784 LaKeya Jones - Catfish Processing, Catfish Production, Trout Production, Census of Aquaculture, Honey, Egg Products, Mink .............. (202) 720-0585 Kim Linonis - Layers, Eggs ........................................... (202) 690-8632 Miste Salmon - Broiler Hatchery, Chicken Hatchery .................... 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