Agricultural Commodities, Livestock, & Specialized Crop Prices: Trends and Turnarounds
Prices of commodities, livestock, and specialized crops are important as they impact the economy, food security, rural communities, and the environment. Monitoring and understanding these prices are essential for governments, businesses, and individuals involved in agriculture and for policymakers and researchers studying the economic stability of global food systems.
Commodity, livestock, and crop prices are integral to the agricultural sector, playing a critical role and directly affecting the income and livelihoods of farmers and ranchers. Price changes, especially for necessities like grains and oilseeds, significantly impact inflation rates. High commodity prices can lead to increased production costs and, in turn, higher consumer prices for food and other products. Food prices, particularly those related to staple crops, influence the affordability and accessibility of food for consumers. High and volatile food prices can impact food security, especially for vulnerable populations. In rural areas, where agriculture is a primary source of income, commodity and livestock expenses directly affect the prosperity of communities, price changes that impact labor demand and rural employment rates. Prices of specialized crops influence the crops farmers choose to grow. Livestock prices also affect the scale and methods of livestock farming.
For these reasons, C-FARE has assembled three prominent experts to discuss commodity, livestock, and specialty crop prices and the factors affecting their trends.
Lance Honig – NASS Crop Prices Program
The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is a vital statistical organization within the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and its mission is to provide timely, accurate, and useful statistics and services to the U.S. agriculture industry. NASS covers an extensive range of agricultural data, including over 120 crop commodities, around 40 livestock commodities, as well as economic and demographic statistics. They publish over 400 national reports annually and nearly 10,000 reports across the country every year. This information is made accessible to everyone simultaneously, and they even release a detailed calendar of reports for the upcoming year. NASS is non-political, non-regulatory, and non-policymaking, focusing solely on providing accurate data to support the agriculture sector.
One of the key aspects of NASS's work is its comprehensive crop price program, which offers insights into the prices received by farmers for various commodities. They track prices on a monthly, weekly, and annual basis, providing crucial data for stakeholders in the agricultural industry. Additionally, NASS ensures data privacy and never reveals personal information about individuals who contribute data. Their dedication to equal access and unbiased reporting makes NASS a trusted source for accurate agricultural statistics. They have a nationwide presence with 12 regional field offices and headquarters, allowing them to support local agriculture across the country effectively. Overall, NASS plays a crucial role in supporting and informing the U.S. agricultural industry through its vast array of statistical data and commitment to transparency and accuracy.
Tony Dorn – Environmental, Economics and Demographics Branch
One of the highlights of the USDA NASS's work is the Census of Agriculture, conducted once every five years, with 2022 being a reference year. This census provides essential state and county-level information on land use, ownership, producer characteristics, demographics, production practices, income, expenditures, and more. It offers a valuable snapshot of historical agricultural trends and is an invaluable resource for understanding agriculture at a micro level. The census' definition of a farm and its focus on race and demographic content provide unique insights into the industry.
The USDA NASS's price program covers a wide range of commodities and indices, including commodity prices, prices received, prices paid, and parity prices. These indices help gauge the well-being of farmers by tracking the prices they receive for their products and the costs they incur for inputs. The data from these indices serve as a foundation for various agricultural policies and decisions. The presentation also highlights trends in the Prices Received Index, demonstrating the impact of changes in commodity prices on farmers' economic well-being. Additionally, the farm labor data collected by the USDA NASS is crucial, especially for programs like H-2A, which relies on this data to establish wage rates for farm laborers. Overall, the USDA NASS provides an extensive portfolio of agricultural data and statistics that are essential for the industry's stakeholders, policymakers, and researchers.
Travis Averill – Livestock and Poultry Overview
NASS's Livestock Branch is divided into two sections: the Livestock Section and the Poultry and Specialty Commodities Section. These sections release reports on a range of frequencies, including weekly, monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, and annually. The Livestock Section covers seven commodities, while the Poultry and Specialty Commodities Section covers 12, including organic and census of agriculture commodities.
One of the highlights of the presentation was the insights into the cattle industry. They discussed the cattle inventory, calf crop, and cattle slaughter, showing how changes in inventory impact production and prices over time. Additionally, they highlighted the top cattle-producing states, emphasizing that while some states have remained consistent, rankings have shifted over the years.
The presentation also covered other important agricultural sectors such as hogs and pigs, milk production, egg production, broilers, and turkeys raised. They provided data on production trends, prices, and rankings for these sectors, giving a comprehensive overview of the poultry and livestock industries in the United States. Overall, the webinar offered valuable insights into the role of NASS in providing critical data for the agriculture industry and policymakers.
Additional Q&A
Can one access the price data used to construct the various input indices?
Tony Dorn: The individual input price data are collected annually and are designed for the construction of aggregate prices paid index at a national level, so they are not released. For easier access to the published prices received index, pre-defined queries are available on our website: https://www.nass.usda.gov/Data_and_Statistics/Pre-Defined_Queries/index.php
This program is supported in part by the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association and the US Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service, and the National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Those who register but cannot attend our webinar can always view a recording of it later at the council’s YouTube channel.