Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook provides monthly analysis of current developments in the livestock and poultry industry, providing data on animal numbers, meat and egg production, prices, trade, and net returns.

Annual summaries of the forces that shaped the animal products industries during the previous year and how those forces are expected to affect the current year's outlook are available from the Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook page. Instead of providing a separate report covering all the commodities once a year, we will release summaries for the various commodities in the newsletter as information becomes available.

U.S. 2003 and 2004 Livestock and Poultry Trade Influenced by Animal Disease and Trade Restrictions discusses how animal diseases and disease-related trade restrictions have influenced trade in animal products in the past few years, with an emphasis on 2003 and forecasts for 2004. Disease outbreaks and related trade restrictions have slowed previously expected high growth in many U.S. animal product exports, with U.S. beef exports most affected.

Savvy Buyers Spur Food Safety Innovations in Meat Processing finds that the market incentives that motivate private firms to invest in food safety innovation seem to be fairly weak. Results from an ERS survey of U.S. meat and poultry slaughter and processing plants and two case studies of innovation in the U.S. beef industry reveal development of a number of mechanisms to overcome that weakness and to stimulate investment in food safety innovation. For the full report, see Food Safety Innovation in the United States: Evidence from the Meat Industry.

India's Poultry Sector: Development and Prospects assess the supply, demand, structure, and policy factors affecting the growth of the Indian poultry industry, including the rise of integrated producers who are fostering improved productivity and reduced marketing costs.

The Poultry Sector in Middle-Income Countries and Its Feed Requirements: the Case of Egypt examines the interaction between domestic feed and animal production and meat and feed imports. Egypt, a country with little potential for growing feed, illustrates the issues facing many middle-income countries.

International Trade of Meat/Poultry Products and Food Safety Issues uses case studies to evaluate the international trade implications of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE or mad cow disease), foodborne pathogens (e.g., salmonella), and certain production practices (e.g., drug use for growth promotion) in exporting countries.

Many factors determine the Structure of the Global Markets for Meat, including the relative availability of resources for raising and processing animals for meat. Preferences for various cuts of meat among countries provide opportunities for international trade.

Manure Management for Water Quality evaluates the costs of spreading manure on cropland at the farm, regional, and national levels. EPA regulations enacted in February 2003 require concentrated animal feeding operations (generally the largest producers of hogs, chicken, dairy, and beef cattle) to meet nutrient application standards when spreading their manure on cropland in order to preserve water resources from nitrogen and phosphorus runoff. USDA is encouraging all animal feeding operations to do the same. If all operations meet the new standards, increases in production costs could be felt throughout the food and agricultural system.

Implications of Russia's New Poultry Import Quotas examines the impact of new quotas on livestock imports imposed by Russia in April 2003. One of the quotas is an absolute quota on poultry meat imports. Because Russia is one of the largest destinations for U.S. poultry products, the quota could significantly affect U.S. poultry exports and prices.

U.S.-Mexico Broiler Trade: A Bird's Eye View examines sanitary requirements and regulations currently governing the U.S.-Mexico broiler trade. A sensitivity analysis, using a cost-minimization mathematical programming model, detects minimal economic impact on the U.S. broiler market if Mexico is allowed to ship fresh, chilled, and frozen poultry to the United States.

Growth in Broiler Production Likely to Slow in 2001 examines factors influencing the short-term outlook for U.S. broiler production and looks at the influence of trade on domestic prices.

Confined Animal Production Poses Manure Management Problems discusses the challenge of handling manure disposal to avoid polluting water resources, a challenge compounded by the growth in large specialized livestock growout operations.

User-Fee Financing of USDA's Meat and Poultry Inspection examines user fees as a method of financing meat and poultry inspection systems in other countries and offers suggestions for structuring a program in the United States.

Food Consumption, Prices, and Expenditures, 1970-1997 contains data on per-capita consumption for meats and livestock products, supply and demand, and wholesale and retail prices.

An Economic Assessment of Food Safety Regulations: The New Approach to Meat and Poultry Inspection evaluates the benefits and costs of reducing microbial pathogens and preventing foodborne illness using the inspection system called Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP).

Broiler Farms' Organization, Management, and Performance describes the organization, management, and financial performance of U.S. broiler farms and considers factors such as farm size, financial structure, household income, management practices, and spousal participation in decision making.

for more information, contact: David J. Harvey
web administration: webadmin@ers.usda.gov
page updated: July 12, 2004