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Today, the USDA continues to be a valuable source of information on farm and agriculture production. Combined with the many state agencies that track local and regional production, USDA provides excellent perspective on the variety of factors that affect farm production, crop performance, and commodity markets.
There are four major services within the USDA that provide analysis and forecasting on crop performance. They are:
- The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is the major source of continuous information on U.S. agriculture. NASS conducts ongoing research in a variety of areas - some examples include production and supplies, prices paid and received by farmers, farm labor and wages, farm finances, and the use of chemicals. NASS data is collected through both surveys and scientific analysis.
- The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) covers six commodity programs: Cotton, Dairy, Fruit & Vegetable, Livestock, Seed and Poultry & Tobacco. Within the Fruit & Vegetable program, specialists provide market news services for the industry. AMS as a whole also runs two broad programs. The Science & Technology Program provides scientific analysis and laboratory services, and runs a specific program on pesticides. The Transportation & Marketing Program focuses on the food marketing and distribution system as products move from farm to table.
- The Economic Research Service (ERS) focuses on the economic and policy issues that affect food, farming, natural resources, and rural development. ERS provides analysis of food and commodity markets. In addition, ERS analyzes consumer spending on food, rural economic development, resource consumption, and other factors that affect the supply, demand, and price of agricultural products.
- The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) provides analysis on international production, imports and exports of commodity products, and their impact on domestic production and consumption. FAS has a primary mission to promote the export of U.S. agriculture production.
The following are highlights from recently produced reports from the different USDA services. Due to the comprehensive nature of USDA's analysis, there is often a significant time lag between the production of the report, and the timeliness of the data included.
The USDA Vegetable Market report covers 24 different crops. Kingston's products included in this report are broccoli, lettuce (leaf and romaine), onions, spinach, and tomatoes. The 2007 report examines changes from 2005 to 2006. Overall, the total vegetable crop in the U.S. was stable, with 1% decreases in production weight and acreage offset by a 3% increase in total value. The largest vegetable crops produced in the U.S. are onions, head lettuce, and watermelons, which represented 37% of the total production. The most valuable crops were tomatoes, head lettuce, and onions, which were 34% of the total market value. Approximately half of the vegetable crop comes from California, which was 44% of the acreage, 48% of produced volume, and 51% of the value.
The following table summarizes changes in price/cwt for major crops in the USDA Vegetable Market report:
| Item |
2006 Price |
Change Vs. 2005 |
Head Lettuce
Leaf Lettuce
Romaine Lettuce
Onions
Tomatoes
Broccoli
|
$16.60
$34.90
$21.60
$13.10
$43.30
$32.30
|
+7%
+4%
+11%
+6%
+4%
+13% |
The following chart shows monthly changes in the overall price of these four major crops as measured by USDA. This covers the last six months of each year from 2004 through 2006.
The USDA prepares a separate report on the Potato market. The 2007 report on the U.S. potato market examines 2006 production and changes versus 2005. Production in 2006 was up 4%, based on a 3% increase in acreage and 1% increase in yield. The mix of production shifted, as winter production fell by 8%, and spring production increased by 6%.
Total value of the potato crop increased 8% to just under $3 billion, with an average price of $7.33 per cwt (a 4% increase). Utilization for sales of the crop remains very high, at 92%. The remaining 8% includes shrinkage and loss, and farm use for seed, livestock feed, and consumption on the farm where produced.
The following chart shows the volume and value of the U.S. potato crop since 1996:
Idaho is the major source of potatoes, with 34% of the crop produced in the Gem State. The yield on Idaho potato production was 16% higher than the U.S. average.
The following chart shows monthly changes in the price per cwt of potatoes in the U.S., as measured by the USDA.
The price of domestic commodities is influenced by multiple factors which are incorporated into USDA analysis and modeling. Some of these factors include weather, acreage productivity, estimates for demand, and the availability of substitute products. The USDA pricing data is used for market analysis, and also to evaluate different policy and trade initiatives that affect domestic agriculture.
Pricing is also influenced by foreign supply, particularly in fruit and vegetable crops that rely on Mexico and other Central and South American growing regions. While the FAS primarily focuses on improving access to foreign markets for domestic production, they also track the impact of product availability and purchasing from foreign markets.
Overall, the USDA creates robust and reliable data sources about agricultural production and other issues. As a government agency, their information is not intended to help with daily or monthly pricing issues, but rather helps the industry to understand and react to trends in pricing, volume, and production over time.
Sources: Agricultural Marketing Service, National Agricultural Statistics Service, Economic Research Service, Foreign Agricultural Service
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Leafy Lettuce
Currently, leafy items - Boston, romaine, and green leaf lettuce - are in the middle of the transition to the Southern California and Western Arizona growing regions. These regions will be the main source of supply during the winter. As the transition happens, we will experience shortages of product as operations commence, but before they are running at full capacity. Additionally, quality issues will be more common, as supply from the end of the fall harvest and the beginning of the winter harvest will be less consistent. This means lighter weights, smaller head size, and slightly more burn than usual.
By the middle of December, all products will be coming from the southern districts, and quality will steadily improve. One additional concern we are monitoring is an expected labor shortage, although this has not affected supply or quality yet.
For more information, please contact your Customer Service Representative or Jeb Johnson.
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Rail Information
DECEMBER UPRR RAIL FUEL SURCHARGE IS 18.5%
JANUARY UPRR RAIL FUEL SURCHARGE WILL BE .26 CENTS PER MILE
Union Pacific Rail Rates To Change
January 1, 2008
Effective January 1, 2008 Union Pacific will implement a PER MILEAGE fuel surcharge, the 2008 base rates have increased, however they will be offset by a reduced fuel surcharge. Simply put, the new 2008 rates will remain very similar to the 2007 rail rates, and will increase or decrease monthly, depending on the DOE On-Highway Diesel Fuel prices. The new surcharge is per mile, so there will be some minor rate variances, depending on which location the railcar originates from. The mileage surcharge will be calculated using Union Pacific's Fuel Surcharge Mileage Calculator Wizard listed on their website: http://www.uprr.com/customers/surcharge/index.shtml, click on ALK PC*Miler, Rail Fuel Surcharge Mileage Calculator.
2008 UPDS One-Plus rates will also change, but will be calculated differently. We will have information on 2008 UPDS rates by December 15th.
The change to a mileage based fuel surcharge occurred in April 2007 as a result of a Surface Transportation Board decision, which said that railroad fuel surcharges must be based on the shipment miles moved over the railroad. At that time, this decision did not apply to potatoes and onions. Union Pacific decided to apply this too all commodities in 2008.
For more information, please contact your Customer Service Representative or Chris Doore-Taylor.
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The DiRoNA Award
One of the most prestigious awards for a fine dining restaurant is the DiRoNA Award, given by the Distinguished Restaurants of North America. DiRoNA is a non-profit organization which was founded in 1990. Its mission is to promote and recognize excellence in fine dining in North America, including the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The original founding sponsors of the DiRoNA Awards Program in 1992 were American Express and Allied Domecq Spirits USA. The Awards were originally recognized mostly within the restaurant industry, and have more recently become part of the consumer marketing of the fine dining segment.
The Award is given to a restaurant after an anonymous inspection as part of the DiRoNA Quality Assurance Program. This is the only independent, anonymous restaurant inspection program that operates across North America. There is an extensive list of criteria that a restaurant is evaluated on during the inspection, which includes all aspects of the dining experience. Inspectors are specially trained in the DiRoNA standards, and are generally experienced fine dining authorities. The 75-point evaluation was developed by food and hospitality experts at Cornell University.
The scope of the DiRoNA inspection includes the food, beverages, service, environment, physical property, and décor. DiRoNA Award winners are expected to provide exceptional quality, good value for the dollar, and a memorable experience. Restaurants are selected for inspection by the Distinguished Dining Advisory Council (DDAC), which is a group of industry professionals, food critics, and industry magazine publishers. Restaurateurs may request an inspection of their own restaurant. To be eligible, the restaurant must be in continuous operation under the same ownership and theme for at least three years. To ensure impartiality, while the DDAC develops the list of restaurants to be evaluated, the evaluations are conducted by the Quality Assurance Committee, a completely separate group within DiRoNA.
Membership in DiRoNA includes restaurants, industry professionals, suppliers, manufacturers, and consumers. To join, a restaurant must pass the DiRoNA inspection program. In addition to the Award, DiRoNA offers programs for education, networking, marketing, and advertising in the fine dining segment.
DiRoNA has also partnered with Share Our Strength to raise money to fight childhood hunger. Participating restaurants offer a price fixed menu with a percentage of proceeds to the charity.
The DiRoNA Award is a coveted accomplishment that only 800 restaurants in the United States display this year. California has the most DiRoNA Award winners, with 98, followed by Florida and New York with 79 each. Other high-Award winning states include Illinois (33), Texas (31), Massachusetts (26), Nevada (26), and Georgia (26). Here in Idaho, there is only one DiRoNA Award winner - Beverly's in Coeur D'Alene.
To learn more about the DiRoNA Award or to find a DiRoNA Award winner near you, visit their website at www.dirona.com.
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Kingston Service Anniversaries
Join us in congratulating our team members on their many years of service.
Jody Boline - 21 years
Andrea Dopp - 11 years
Christie Sommers - 10 years
We are thrilled to congratulate Jody Boline on his 21st anniversary with Kingston. Jody has been a huge part of the growth of Kingston and our continued success in serving our customers.
Recently, Jody shared a story from his first day on the job in 1986. "On the sales side, we didn't have offices back then. My "desk" was actually an old typewriter table. It had just enough room for a phone and a notepad, and that's how I got started taking orders and talking to customers."
Jody is originally from South Dakota, and worked for Apple Truck Lines and Austin Trucking before joining Kingston. Currently, Jody manages sales, procurement, transportation, customer service, and food safety for Kingston.
"My favorite thing about working at Kingston is all the great people I get to work with here in the office, and all of our customers all across the country," he said.
In his free time, Jody enjoys golfing and skiing. He is a devoted dad to his daughter Caddie (11) and son Avery (9). Jody has also competed in sprint triathlons, and loves the outdoors.
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If you see something you would like more information on, or if you have any ideas for next month's issue, please call or email April Barnes.
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