AES-77, February 21, 2013
This outlook report offers, on a quarterly basis, the U.S. agricultural import and export outlook, as well as the year-to-date value and volume of U.S. agricultural exports and imports, by commodity and region.
Amber Waves, February 21, 2013
Southeast Asia is the leading source for rice exports and the second-largest importing region in the world. This region’s rice surplus of exports over imports has grown steadily over the past decade. Despite slower production growth, USDA projects that the surplus will remain large over the next dec...
ERR-145, February 20, 2013
Although agricultural productivity remains lower in Sub-Saharan Africa than in other developing regions, it has improved in some Sub-Saharan countries. To determine why, the study examined the roles of agricultural research, policy reorganization, labor force education, the presence of armed conflic...
OCS-13B, February 12, 2013
Each month,the Oil Crops Outlook analyzes the major changes and events in the world market for oilseeds and oilseed products.
OCE-131, February 11, 2013
USDA's 10-year projections for the food and agriculture sector cover major agricultural commodities, agricultural trade, and aggregate indicators of the U.S. farm sector, such as farm income and food prices.
WHS-13A-01, February 04, 2013
During the 2000s, the three major grain-producing countries of the former Soviet Union--Kazakhstan, Russia, and Ukraine (KRU)--became a large grain-exporting region. This report examines why this has happened and also provides the outlook for the region’s production and exports over the next 10 yea...
EIB-106, January 15, 2013
This paper discusses the mechanisms by which water is allocated between agriculture and energy in Central Asia and presents scenario results that simulate the impacts on production and trade.
RCS-13a, January 15, 2013
The January 2013 Rice Situation & Outlook report will contain projections for the 2012/13 U.S. and global rice markets. The report is done 12 times a year and relies on the most current World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates.
RCS-12l-01, December 31, 2012
Southeast Asia dominates the world’s rice trade as the leading source of rice exports and the second-largest importing region. This region’s rice surplus of exports over imports has grown steadily over the past decade and the USDA projects that it will remain large over the next decade.
VGS-352, December 18, 2012
This issue covers basic supply, demand, price, and trade analysis for fresh market vegetables, processing vegetables, dry beans, dry peas and lentils, and sweet potatoes. Features include a discussion how ERS forecasts retail vegetable prices and 2012 vegetable pricing.
AES-76, November 29, 2012
This outlook report offers, on a quarterly basis, the U.S. agricultural import and export outlook, as well as the year-to-date value and volume of U.S. agricultural exports and imports, by commodity and region.
RCS-12K, November 13, 2012
The outlook for both the U.S. and global rice markets are analyzed based on the latest projections contained in the World Agricultural Supply and Uses Estimates report.
CWS-12h01, October 23, 2012
Uzbekistan is one of the world’s largest cotton exporters, but output and exports are in a long-term decline, in part because the government heavily taxes cotton producers.
LDPM-220, October 17, 2012
Ample supplies of pork and poultry moderate prices.
RCS-12J, October 12, 2012
The outlook for both the U.S. and global rice markets are analyzed based on the latest projections contained in the World Agricultural Supply and Uses Estimates report.
VGS-351, September 27, 2012
The farm value of all mushrooms totaled a record $1.1 billion in the 2011/12 crop year.
Amber Waves, September 20, 2012
For many countries in the region, low yields and lagging labor productivity in agriculture present opportunities for improvement.
SSSM-289, September 17, 2012
The Sugar and Sweetener Outlook reviews the sugar and sweetener outlook for the United States and Mexico, emphasizing changes made in the most recent month's edition of the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report.
WHS-12i, September 14, 2012
The outlook for both the U.S. and global wheat markets are analyzed based on the latest projections contained in the World Agricultural Supply and Uses Estimates report.
RCS-12i, September 13, 2012
The outlook for both the U.S. and global rice markets is analyzed based on the latest projections contained in the World Agricultural Supply and Uses Estimates report.
AES-75, August 30, 2012
This outlook report offers, on a quarterly basis, the U.S. agricultural import and export outlook, as well as the year-to-date value and volume of U.S. agricultural exports and imports, by commodity and region.
SSSM-288, August 15, 2012
The Sugar and Sweetener Outlook reviews the sugar and sweetener outlook for the United States and Mexico, emphasizing changes made in the most recent month’s edition of the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report.
WHS-12H, August 14, 2012
The outlook for both the U.S. and global wheat markets are analyzed based on the latest projections contained in the World Agricultural Supply and Uses Estimates report.
RCS-12h, August 13, 2012
The outlook for both the U.S. and global rice markets are analyzed based on the latest projections contained in the World Agricultural Supply and Uses Estimates report.
ERR-138, August 09, 2012
Reciprocal trade agreements (RTAs), which grant special preferences to members, affect the pattern and volume of bilateral trade in global markets. This study uses the gravity framework and panel data depicting annual trade between 69 countries over 31 years to examine how 11 RTAs have shaped U.S. a...
FDS-12G-01, August 09, 2012
Exports to China have become a significant source of demand for U.S. Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS), the primary co-product from corn-based ethanol production.
TB-1933, July 18, 2012
This report documents the updated version of the Partial Equilibrium Agricultural
Trade Simulation (PEATSim) model developed by USDA’s Economic Research Service.
PEATSim is a global model, covering 31 commodities and 27 countries/regions. The
model, consistent with economic theory, provides a flexib...
SSSM-287, July 16, 2012
The Sugar and Sweetener Outlook reviews the sugar and sweetener outlook for the United States and Mexico, emphasizing changes made in the most recent month’s edition of the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report.
RCS-12G, July 12, 2012
There were several major revisions to the 2012/13 U.S. rice balance sheet this month. On the supply side, the 2012/13 carryin was increased 5.0 million cwt to 34.5 million cwt. A higher area estimate raised the 2012/13 production forecast 8.0 million cwt to 191.0 million cwt. In contrast, 2012/13 im...
ERR-137, July 09, 2012
The Brazilian agricultural sector has been transformed from a traditional system of production with low use of modern technologies to a world agricultural leader. That transformation occurred as the country moved away from import-substitution policies—which nurtured domestic
industrial development...
GFA-23, July 09, 2012
Food security is estimated to improve slightly in 2012 as the number of food-insecure people in the 76 countries covered in this report declines from 814 million in 2011 to 802 million in 2012. The share of the population that is food insecure remains at 24 percent. Over the next decade, the share o...
VGS-350, June 28, 2012
Prices at the point of first sale remain low for most fresh-market vegetables and
consumer prices also fell in the first 5 months of 2012. Volumes are strong as mild
winter and early spring temperatures allowed early planting in many areas. Per capita use
of fresh-market vegetables fell less than...
EIB-97, June 20, 2012
Indonesia’s food market has changed in response to a changing and growing economy. The report examines changes in the food consumption pattern and measures the growth of modern food retail chains, packaged food purchases, and food imports in the world’s fourth-most-populous country. The evidence sug...
Amber Waves, June 05, 2012
Changes being considered would affect the market for hired farm labor.
ERR-133, May 30, 2012
This study provides a quantitative assessment of food security using a large household-level expenditure survey conducted by the Government of India during 2004/05. The analysis tests the impact of several key assumptions required to estimate actual calories consumed from the expenditure data. The a...
LDPM-215, May 16, 2012
Improved soil moisture conditions have improved the outlook for corn and
wheat. Despite positive profit margins in other cattle and beef sectors, cattle feeders
continue to endure negative profit margins.
SSSM-285, May 15, 2012
Projected U.S. sugar supply for fiscal year (FY) 2013 is down 2.4 percent from FY 2012, as lower imports more than offset higher production and beginning stocks. Higher beet sugar production reflects higher area and trend yields, while cane sugar production is nearly unchanged from a year earlier. ...
CWS-12a, March 12, 2012
U.S. net textile and apparel fiber imports decreased in calendar year 2011 as a result of the sluggish U.S. economy. Total fiber product imports reached 17.2 billion raw-fiber-equivalent pounds in 2011, 7 percent below 2010 and the second lowest since 2004. Meanwhile, fiber product exports rose fo...
OCE-121, February 13, 2012
This report provides longrun (10-year) projections for the agricultural sector through 2021. Projections cover agricultural commodities, agricultural trade, and aggregate indicators of the sector, such as farm income and food prices.
LDPM-21101, February 07, 2012
China’s pork prices, hog inventories, and pork imports tend to rise and fall in a cyclical pattern in response to various factors that influence supply and demand.
LDPM-211, January 19, 2012
Beef/Cattle: Recent rains have provided some relief in the drought-affected Southern
United States, but La Niña is expected to continue her influence into 2012. Despite the
drought-induced sell-off of cattle in the South and record-high feed prices, prices for all
cattle have held up well in 2011...
WHS-11L-01, January 04, 2012
Given expected increases in demand, imports are likely to grow in coming years even if Afghanistan’s rapid post-1990 production growth is sustained, suggesting growing dependence on supplies from Pakistan and other countries.
ERR-130, December 30, 2011
Meeting growing global demand for food, fiber, and biofuel requires robust investment in agricultural research and development (R&D) from both public and private sectors. This study examines global R&D spending by private industry in seven agricultural input sectors, food manufacturing, and biofuel ...
LDPM-210, December 15, 2011
Disproportionally large cow slaughter has kept average dressed weights
lower during most of 2011 than if steers had constituted half or more of beef slaughter, as they typically do. Packer margins and high feed and feeder cattle prices are exerting downward pressure on fed cattle prices.
Amber Waves, December 09, 2011
The NAFTA governments are seeking more open trading relationships with non-NAFTA countries, such as China, Colombia, Panama, Japan, and South Korea, as well as increased commerce within the North American free-trade area.
Amber Waves, December 01, 2011
Brazil's ethanol industry has been aided by increased capacity to produce sugarcane as an ethanol feedstock, supportive government policies, and improved efficiency in sugarcane production and ethanol conversion.
LDPM-208, October 18, 2011
Drought-induced cow-herd liquidation has reduced average dressed weights and resulted in relatively more ground products but fewer middle cuts. Wheat pasture could be priced at a premium this winter. Cattle feeding margins remain negative despite higher fed cattle prices.
Amber Waves, September 01, 2011
Afghanistan is particularly vulnerable to food and fuel price shocks, which, in 2007/08, led to an increase in household food insecurity.
LDPM-206-01, August 22, 2011
This report characterizes Mexican feeder-calf and fed cattle production systems in the context of the imports of Mexican feeder cattle into the United States. The increase in cattle feeding in Mexico will increasingly affect U.S. feeder cattle imports and U.S. beef exports to Mexico in ambiguous way...
ERR-121, July 12, 2011
To investigate the impact of rising staple food prices on household food security, we use a unique nationally representative household survey from Afghanistan, one of the world’s poorest, most food-insecure countries. The econometric framework allows us to control for household, district, and provin...
ERR-122, July 12, 2011
Over the past few decades, modern grocery retailing has been expanding rapidly in developing countries. The implications for food demand and trade are influenced by the extent to which modern food retailers focus primarily on growing preferences for nonprice characteristics, such as dietary diversit...
BIO-02, June 27, 2011
This report profiles and analyzes Brazil’s ethanol industry, providing information on the policy environment that enabled the development of feedstock and processing sectors, and discusses the various opportunities and challenges to face the industry over the next decade.
CWS-11d-01, June 17, 2011
This report identifies the factors contributing to the cycles in Brazil’s cotton production and exports that have made the country both an important market for U.S. cotton exports and now a competitor with U.S. cotton producers since 1990.
ERR-113, April 12, 2011
The rapid increase in the number of bilateral and regional free-trade agreements since 1995 is a striking development. The proliferation of these agreements has raised questions about whether they have, in fact, opened markets, created trade, promoted economic growth, and/or distorted trade. This st...
TB-1929, March 22, 2011
In a 2003 report, International Evidence on Food Consumption Patterns, ERS economists estimated income and price elasticities of demand for broad consumption categories and food categories across 114 countries using 1996 International Comparison Program (ICP) data. This report updates that analysis ...
FTS-345-01, December 16, 2010
This report provides an overview of performance, advantages, and challenges of the Peruvian fruits and vegetables export industry. Three commodity case studies—asparagus, processed artichokes, and table grapes—highlight different degrees of competition with U.S. industries and impacts on U.S. grower...
VGS-341-01, December 01, 2010
This report examines the significance of dry bean trade to the member countries of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), provides a detailed understanding of supply, demand, and policy in the U.S. and Mexican dry bean sectors, and considers the outlook for these industries.
LDPM-194-01, August 30, 2010
This report provides a broad overview of the beef market in Japan, including consumer’s preferences, domestic production practices, domestic and trade policies, and market outlook.
GFA-21, July 08, 2010
Food security in 70 developing countries is estimated to have improved between 2009 and 2010, in part due to economic recovery in many of these countries. The number of food-insecure people in the developing countries analyzed by ERS researchers is estimated to decrease about 7.5 percent from 2009 t...
FTS-341-01, April 21, 2010
This report reviews Japanese government programs to support domestic fruit production and how these policies affect fruit consumption in one of the largest markets for U.S. fruits. Production targets and subsidies aim to bolster the supply of domestic fruit, while phytosanitary measures and tariffs ...
ERR-89, December 17, 2009
Agriculture is the largest source of employment in India, and food accounts for about half of consumer expenditures. Moving agricultural products from the farm to consumers more efficiently could result in large gains to producers, consumers, and India’s overall economy. This analysis uses a computa...
FDS-09k-01, December 14, 2009
China’s corn imports are minimal, even though it is using a growing proportion of its corn to produce starch, ethanol, and other industrial products. The corn-processing industry’s growth was encouraged by Chinese government policy, but the industry now has excess capacity. Many of the corn-based in...
ERR-81, September 16, 2009
The United States bans imports of certain agricultural and wildlife goods that can carry pathogens or diseases or whose harvest can threaten wildlife stocks or endanger species. Despite these bans, contraband is regularly uncovered in inspections of cargo containers and in domestic markets. This stu...
ERR-80, September 09, 2009
This report analyzes recent structural changes in the world cotton industry and develops a statistical model that reflects current drivers of U.S. cotton prices. Legislative changes in 2008 authorized USDA to resume publishing cotton price forecasts for the first time in nearly 80 years. Systematic ...
WRS-09-05, August 20, 2009
The global economic crisis that started in late 2008 has led to a sharp curtailment of international trade, including a short-term decline in the value of global agricultural trade of around 20 percent. After slowing, global agricultural trade will continue to grow in the future. The crisis is leadi...
ERR-77, July 30, 2009
Developing countries, particularly those that depend heavily on a small number of agricultural exports, are vulnerable to domestic and international shocks. These countries often have difficulty achieving sustained economic growth. This analysis uses Malawi, a country that earns most of its foreign ...
EIB-52, July 07, 2009
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) increased attention to food imports from China is an indicator of safety concerns as imported food becomes more common in the United States. U.S. food imports from China more than tripled in value between 2001 and 2008. Addressing safety risks associated...
GFA-20, June 30, 2009
Food security in 70 developing countries is projected to deteriorate over the next decade, according to USDA’s Economic Research Service. After rising nearly 11 percent from 2007 to 2008, the number of food-insecure people in the developing countries analyzed by ERS researchers is estimated to rise ...
WRS-0904, May 15, 2009
During the 2000s, Russian agricultural imports have grown considerably, from $7 billion in 2000 to $33 billion in 2008. This import growth has made Russia the second largest agricultural importer among emerging markets, after China. The main reasons for the import rise are macroeconomic—high growth ...
EIB-51, April 07, 2009
Thirty years ago China began implementing a series of reforms to improve efficiency in agricultural production. Since then reforms have reshaped China’s agriculture and elevated its position in the world economy. This report provides an overview of current issues in China’s agricultural development,...
OCE-2009-1, February 12, 2009
This report provides longrun (10-year) projections for the agricultural sector through 2018. Projections cover agricultural commodities, agricultural trade, and aggregate indicators of the sector, such as farm income and food prices.
ERR-71, February 05, 2009
Japan is a leading market for U.S. oranges. Since 1995, orange consumption in Japan has declined. This report summarizes an analysis of household survey data to assess various factors that may be related to the decline. Consumption of oranges in Japan differs markedly across generations, with younge...
WRS-0901, January 01, 2009
Colombia's sugarcane-based ethanol industry, after operating for only 3 years, is the second most developed in the Western Hemisphere. Most Colombian ethanol plants are energy self-sufficient and even generate surplus power that is sold to the national electric grid. Colombia's sugarcane-based ethan...
EIB-39, September 09, 2008
This report examines U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) data on refusals of food offered for importation into the United States from 1998 to 2004. Although the data do not necessarily reflect the distribution of risk in foods, the study found that import refusals highlight food safety problems ...
ERR-59, July 16, 2008
The European Union’s sugar policy, in place since 1968, underwent its first major reform in 2005 in response to mounting and unsustainable imbalances in supply and demand. The reform, however, targeted only a few policy instruments (intervention price cut, voluntary production quota buyout, and rest...
EIB-37, July 09, 2008
Despite strong overall economic growth and strengthening food demand, investment in Indian agriculture and agribusiness has remained sluggish, and growth in farm output has slowed, since the early 1990s. An array of policies and regulations affecting agricultural production, marketing, and food proc...
GFA-19, July 03, 2008
The number of food insecure people in the 70 lower income countries covered in this report rose between 2006 and 2007, from 849 million to 982 million. Food insecure people are those consuming less than the nutritional target of 2,100 calories per day. The food security situation of these countries ...
FTS-330-01, March 12, 2008
Japan is a large market for U.S. orange exports, and most of Japan’s orange consumption is supplied by U.S. exports. Orange consumption and imports grew until 1994, but have declined since. Demographic shifts are linked to changing orange consumption: older birth cohorts eat more oranges, and younge...
OCE-2008-1, February 12, 2008
This report provides longrun (10-year) projections for the agricultural sector through 2017. Projections cover agricultural commodities, agricultural trade, and aggregate indicators of the sector, such as farm income and food prices.
CWS-07I-01, November 06, 2007
USDA has developed a new approach for estimating cotton consumption in China based on textile import and export data, supplementing the traditional methodology that uses yarn production data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics. This analysis suggests USDA’s historical estimates of China’s cot...
LDPM-15902, October 05, 2007
In 2003, outbreaks of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 virus had a major negative impact on the global poultry industry. Initially, import demand for both uncooked and cooked poultry declined substantially, due to consumers’ fear of contracting avian influenza by eating poultry meat...
LDPM-15901, September 24, 2007
Argentina and Uruguay (A/U) are significant beef exporters and among the world’s greatest consumers of beef on a per capita basis. Between 13 and 20 percent of U.S. beef imports, on a tonnage basis, come from these two countries annually, and it is mostly grass-fed beef. Currently, only 10-20 percen...
FTS-32801, September 10, 2007
U.S. imports of fresh fruit and vegetables have increased substantially, particularly since the 1990s. Dominant suppliers are the North American Free Trade Agreement region for fresh vegetables, the Southern Hemisphere countries for off-season fresh fruit, and equatorial countries for bananas. The s...
ERR-46, September 04, 2007
After a decade of uneven export growth and rapidly growing imports, U.S. agriculture has begun to reassert its position in global trade markets. Rising exports and signs of moderating import demand are in marked contrast to previous trends. This report places recent changes in perspective by highlig...
WRS-0703, August 22, 2007
U.S. exports of soybeans and cotton to China have boomed in recent years, but the undervalued exchange rate for the Chinese yuan keeps prices of most other U.S. food and agricultural products more expensive than Chinese products. On average, Chinese retail food prices are about a fourth of U.S. pric...
ERR-41, May 03, 2007
During 1998-2002, India experienced record public surpluses of wheat and rice, sharply higher Government subsidy outlays, and declining per capita consumption. By 2006, despite continued high subsidies and sluggish domestic consumption, India developed a large wheat deficit. The pronounced market cy...
OCE-2007-1, February 14, 2007
This report provides longrun (10-year) projections for the agricultural sector through 2016. Projections cover agricultural commodities, agricultural trade, and aggregate indicators of the sector, such as farm income and food prices.
ERR-32, January 04, 2007
As their incomes rise, Chinese consumers are changing their diets and demanding greater quality, convenience, and safety in food. Food expenditures grow faster than quantities purchased as income rises, suggesting that consumers with higher incomes purchase more expensive foods. The top-earning Chin...
ERR-17, April 19, 2006
This report reviews recent developments in India's oilseed sector and assesses the implications of current and potential future policy reforms for the oilseed sector. Extensive policy intervention continues to affect oilseed production, trade, and processing in India. Findings suggest that India's c...
ERR-16, February 22, 2006
This report examines issues related to modeling complex policy regimes that affect international dairy markets using a partial equilibrium, multiple-commodity, multiregion model of agricultural policy and trade. Average bound tariffs for dairy remain among the highest of all agricultural commodities...
AIB-794, February 01, 2005
This report describes how consumer preferences are driving changes in global food supply chains, including growth in private label sales and expansion of multinational retailers and manufacturers in developing countries.
WRS-0406, June 01, 2004
International trade in fruits and vegetables has expanded at a higher rate than trade in other agricultural commodities, particularly since the 1980s. Not only has world trade in fruits and vegetables gained prominence, but the variety of commodities has expanded. Over the years, three regions—the E...
WRS-04-03, February 02, 2004
Poultry meat is the fastest growing component of global meat demand, and India, the world's second largest developing country, is experiencing rapid growth in its poultry sector. In India, poultry sector growth is being driven by rising incomes and a rapidly expanding middle class, together with the...
AER-828, November 07, 2003
This report examines the conceptual relationships between food safety and international trade and analyzes empirical examples from the meat and poultry, produce, food and animal feed crop, and seafood sectors.
TB-1904, October 06, 2003
This report analyzes expenditures on major consumption categories including food and different food subcategories across 114 countries. It also presents estimated expenditure responsiveness or elasticities with price and income changes for each of the major consumption categories and food subcategor...
AER-809, April 18, 2002
The economic development of South Korea is often considered a model for developing countries. We use 1975 and 1990 data in a general equilibrium framework with a highly disaggregated sector specification to evaluate the opportunity cost of its agricultural protection. We show that although agricultu...
AIB-775, April 01, 2002
Assessment of issues that will affect China's future trends in consumption, production, import, and export of food and agricultural commodities. A series of 13 articles cover China's food consumption, marketing, international trade, agricultural policy, transportation infrastructure, regional divers...
WRS-013, December 28, 2001
This report identifies key factors underlying the agricultural productivity growth and enhanced international competitiveness of Brazil and Argentina in the past decade. Economic and policy reforms, infrastructure development, and enhanced use of agricultural inputs that drove output growth during t...
WRS-01-1, May 30, 2001
Higher income, urbanization, other demographic shifts, improved transportation, and consumer perceptions regarding quality and safety are changing global food consumption patterns. Shifts in food consumption have led to increased trade and changes in the composition of world agricultural trade. Give...
AER-802, May 15, 2001
Agricultural trade barriers and producer subsidies inflict real costs, both on the countries that use these policies and on their trade partners. This report quantifies the costs of global agricultural distortions and the potential benefits of their full elimination. The report concludes that elimin...
AIB-765, April 23, 2001
Included here are a number of short multidisciplinary issue papers that address how food security in the United States and throughout the world is affected by issues like trade liberalization, income distribution, and natural resources. ERS research shows that more than 800 million people are hungry...