New York Crop and Livestock Report March 2003

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NEW YORK CROP
AND LIVESTOCK REPORT

Released: March 2003
Monthly
No. 973-3-03

2001 MILK PRODUCTION

Annual milk production in the Empire State during 2002 totaled 12.2 billion pounds, up 3.7 percent from 11.8 billion in 2001. The annual average number of milk cows, at 678,000, was up 1 percent from a year earlier. Output per cow increased by 489 pounds, or 2.8 percent, to a record high 18,019 pounds per cow.

U.S. milk production for 2002 totaled 169.8 billion pounds, up 2.6 percent from a year earlier. The output per cow, at 18,571 pounds, was 412 pounds above the 2001 rate. The average number of milk cows during 2002 was 9.14 million head, up 0.3 percent from the previous year.

California, with 34.9 billion pounds, remained the leading milk producer in 2002, followed by Wisconsin with 22.1 billion, New York with 12.2 billion, Pennsylvania with 10.8 billion, and Minnesota with 8.5 billion. These five States produced 52 percent of the total U.S. milk output.

NEW YORK TROUT SALES DOWN

New York trout producers sold a total of 144,000 pounds of trout valued at $567,000 during the 12 months ending December 31, 2002. This production, which includes foodsize fish, stockers, and fingerlings, was down 5 percent from the production total of a year earlier. Value of production was down 20 percent from a year ago.

The 2002 output included 90,000 pounds of foodsize trout averaging $3.63 per pound in value, 48,000 pounds of stocker trout averaging $4.13 per pound, and 6,000 pounds of fingerlings. Foodsize fish averaged 1.0 pounds in weight, while stockers averaged .40 pounds. Poundage of foodsize trout sold was up 8 percent from 2001, while stocker poundage was down 27 percent.

Milk Cows and Production, by Months, New York, 2000-2002

Month	Milk Cows on Farms 1/			Milk Production per Cow			Total Milk Production
Month	2000	2001	2002	2000	2001	2002	2000	2001	2002
	1,000			Pounds			Million pounds
January	700	670	675	1,460	1,460	1,530	1,022	978	1,033
February	700	670	672	1,380	1,315	1,405	966	881	944
March	698	670	675	1,510	1,480	1,565	1,054	992	1,056
April	695	670	680	1,470	1,450	1,520	1,022	972	1,034
May	690	670	682	1,530	1,540	1,600	1,056	1,032	1,091
June	688	673	682	1,460	1,485	1,530	1,004	999	1,043
July	685	673	680	1,490	1,510	1,535	1,021	1,016	1,044
August	682	673	676	1,470	1,470	1,505	1,003	989	1,017
September	678	673	675	1,400	1,425	1,455	949	959	982
October	674	673	676	1,430	1,460	1,485	964	983	1,004
November	673	674	678	1,360	1,425	1,410	915	960	956
December	670	675	680	1,410	1,510	1,490	945	1,019	1,013
ANNUAL	686	672	678	17,378	17,530	18,019	11,921	11,780	12,217
1/ Excludes heifers not yet fresh.

U.S. HIRED WORKERS DOWN 1 PERCENT, WAGE RATES UP 4 PERCENT

There were 884,000 hired workers on the Nation's farms and ranches during the week of January 12-18, 2003. There were 724,000 workers hired directly by farm operators. Agricultural service employees on farms and ranches made up the remaining 160,000 workers.

Farm operators paid their hired workers an average wage of $9.32 per hour during the January 2003 survey week, up 35 cents from a year earlier. Field workers received an average of $8.29 per hour, up 4 cents. Livestock workers earned $8.91 per hour compared with $8.20 a year earlier.

Hired Workers on Farms and Wage Rates

Item	Northeast I 1/			United States
Item	Jan. 6-12, 2002	Oct. 6-12, 2002	Jan. 12-18, 2003	Jan. 6-12, 2002 2/	Oct. 6-12, 2002 2/	Jan. 12-18, 2003
	1,000 workers
All hired workers	33	50	32	707	940	724
Worked 150 days or more	31	36	29	584	685	609
Worked less than 150 days	2	14	3	123	255	115
	Hours worked per worker
All hired workers	40.2	41.2	37.3	38.5	40.4	37.8
	Dollars per hour
Field workers	9.58	9.16	10.02	8.25	8.34	8.29
Livestock workers	7.80	7.70	8.36	8.20	8.42	8.91
Field and livestock workers	8.69	8.76	9.12	8.23	8.36	8.50
All hired workers	9.46	9.36	10.03	8.97	8.95	9.32
1/ New York and New England States (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT) are combined into Northeast I region. 2/ Revised.

NEW YORK HONEY PRODUCTION INCREASES

Honey production from beekeepers with five or more hives in New York totaled 5.88 million pounds during 2002. This total is up 58 percent from the 2001 production of 3.71 million pounds.

The 2002 production was extracted from 60,000 colonies, up 13 percent from the 53,000 colonies in 2001. Honey yield per colony averaged 98 pounds, 40 percent above the 2001 yield. Honey stocks on hand across the State as of December 15, 2002 totaled 2.47 million pounds, a increase of 39 percent from the 1.78 million pounds a year earlier.

Prices received by beekeepers in New York averaged 117.0 cents per pound for all methods of sale during 2002, 48 percent more than the 2001 average price of 79.0 cents. Value of honey production for the State in 2002 totaled $6.88 million, compared with $2.93 million in 2001. United States honey production for 2002 for producers with five or more hives totaled 171 million pounds, down 8 percent from 2001. The number of producing colonies is estimated at 2.52 million, a total which contains a limited amount of duplication due to interstate movement of bees by multi-state operators. The yield per colony averaged 67.8 pounds, down 8 percent from the 74.0 pounds in 2001.

Average prices received by beekeepers across the Nation increased to a record level of 128.6 cents per pound, up 83 percent from 70.4 cents in 2001. The value of the 2002 U.S. honey crop is estimated at $221.6 million. Mid-December stocks of honey for sale amounted to 39.0 million pounds, 40 percent less than the 64.6 million pounds on hand December 15, 2001. The 39.0 million pounds represents 18 percent of the 2002 production. Stocks on hand a year earlier amounted to 35 percent of production.

HONEY: Production and Value, 2000-2002 1/

Item	Unit	New York			United States
Item	Unit	2000	2001	2002	2000	2001	2002
Colonies of bees	1,000	58	53	60	2,620	2,506	2,524
Yield per colony	Pounds	80	70	98	84.1	74.0	67.8
Honey production	1,000 lb.	4,640	3,710	5,880	220,339	185,461	171,140
Price per pound	Dollars	.550	.790	1.17	.597	.704	1.29
Total value	1,000 $ dol.	2,552	2,931	6,880	132,742	132,225	221,638
Stocks on December 15	1,000 lb.	2,274	1,781	2,470	85,328	64,556	39,047
1/ For producers with five or more colonies.

FEBRUARY PRICES RECEIVED HIGHER

Prices received by New York farmers during February for selected commodities were mostly higher compared with a month earlier. Prices for corn, oats, barley, hay, potatoes, and eggs increased while prices for wheat, soybeans, apples, and wholesale milk decreased.

Grain corn averaged $3.01 per bushel during February, up 15 cents from January and 68 cents above February 2002. Oats brought $2.18 per bushel, up 7 cents from a month earlier and 25 cents above a year ago. Wheat, at $3.30 per bushel, was down 27 cents from the previous month but 50 cents above February a year ago. Barley prices averaged $2.59 per bushel during February, up 67 cents from January. Soybeans returned an average of $5.55 per bushel, 23 cents below January but $1.91 more than a year earlier. Hay averaged $111.00 per ton baled, up $3.00 from the previous month and $2.00 above February 2002. Potatoes were up 35 cents from a month earlier to $10.20 per hundredweight (cwt.). Apples for fresh market averaged $27.20 per cwt., down 60 cents from January but $9.70 above February 2002.

Empire State dairy farmers received an average of $12.00 per cwt. of milk sold during February, down 50 cents from a month earlier and $1.80 below February a year ago. Poultry producers received an average of 51.0 cents per dozen eggs sold, up 1.0 cent from January and 8.2 cents above February 2002.

At the National level, the preliminary All Farm Products Index of Prices Received by Farmers in February is 99, based on 1990-92=100, unchanged from the January index. Higher prices for cattle, hogs, corn, and soybeans offset lower prices for tomatoes, broilers, wheat, and eggs. The seasonal change in the mix of commodities farmers sell also affects the overall index. Increased marketings of cattle, broilers, eggs, and strawberries offset decreased marketings of corn, soybeans, wheat, and oranges. The Index is also unchanged from February 2002. Higher prices for corn, soybeans, cattle, and cotton more than offset lower prices for lettuce, hogs, broccoli, and potatoes.

Prices Received by Farmers 1/

Commodity Unit New York United States

Feb
2002 Jan
2003 Feb
2003 Feb
2002 Jan
2003 Feb
2003

Dollars Dollars

Corn bu. 2.33 2.86 3.01 1.93 2.33 2.35

Oats bu. 1.93 2.11 2.18 1.91 2.05 2.02

Wheat bu. 2.80 3.57 3.30 2.83 3.89 3.71

Barley 2/ bu. - 1.92 2.59 2.17 2.85 2.85

Soybeans bu. 3.64 5.78 5.55 4.22 5.52 5.57

Hay, baled ton 109.00 108.00 111.00 91.70 92.90 91.80

Potatoes cwt. 9.30 9.85 10.20 7.34 6.67 6.53

Apples, fresh market 3/ cwt. 17.50 27.80 27.20 21.60 25.80 24.60

Milk, wholesale cwt. 13.80 12.50 12.00 13.10 11.70 11.50

Milk cows 4/ head - 1,300.00 - - 1,370.00 -

Eggs, table market doz. 0.428 0.500 0.510 0.366 0.529 0.466

Slaughter cows> cwt.> 38.80 36.20 5/ 40.60 36.90 38.10

> Steers and heifers cwt. 57.30 63.70 5/ 73.50 77.80 78.90

All slaughter cattle cwt. 39.90 37.60 5/ 70.00 73.20 74.60

Calves cwt. 121.00 83.80 5/ 105.00 96.80 97.60

Hogs cwt. - - - 38.50 33.00 34.40

Lambs cwt. - - - 67.80 92.00 -

Index (1990-92=100)

Prices received 99 99 99

Prices paid 123 127 127

Ratio prices received to prices paid 80 78 78

1/ Mid-month price for current month. Average price for entire month shown for previous periods.
2/ Estimates began July 2002.
3/ New York price is equivalent packinghouse door.
4/ Milk cow prices published quarterly.
5/ Price available next month.

Commercial Livestock Slaughter, January 1/

Species	Number Slaughtered				Total Live Weight
	New York		United States		New York		United States
	2002	2003	2002	2003	2002	2003	2002	2003
	1,000 Head		1,000 Head		Million Pounds		Million Pounds
Cattle	4.6	4.7	3,055.8	3,007.0	5.1	5.1	3,851.5	3,814.3
Calves	13.9	12.6	87.4	93.8	1.2	1.2	28.1	29.8
Hogs	2.5	2.7	8,657.8	8,787.5	.5	.5	2,317.1	2,353.5
Sheep and lambs	1.1	1.9	154.9	238.8	.1	.2	35.6	31.9
1/ Slaughter in federal and non-federal inspected plants. Excludes farm slaughter.

FEBRUARY MILK PRODUCTION UP

New York dairy herds produced 948 million pounds of milk during February, up less than 1 percent from the February 2002 level. The increase was the result of more milk cows. The number of milk cows totaled 682,000 head, 10,000 above February of the previous year. Milk per cow averaged 1,390 pounds, 15 pounds less than February 2002.

Milk production in the 20 major states during February totaled 11.6 billion pounds, up 1.7 percent from production in these same states during February 2002. Production per cow averaged 1,485 pounds for February, 13 pounds above February 2002. The number of cows on farms in the 20 major states was 7.81 million head, 66,000 head more than February 2002, and 3,000 head more than January 2003.

Dairy Briefs

Item	Unit	New York			20 Major States
Item	Unit	Feb 2002	Jan 2003	Feb 2003	Feb 2002	Jan 2003	Feb 2003
Milk Production	Mil. lb.	944	1,023	948	11,401	12,548	11,596
Milk per cow	Lb.	1,405	1,505	1,390	1,472	1,607	1,485
No. of milk cows	Thou. hd.	672	680	682	7,744	7,807	7,810

Dairy Products Manufactured

Item	Unit	New York			United States
Item	Unit	Jan 2002	Dec 2002	Jan 2003	Jan 2002	Dec 2002	Jan 2003
Butter	Thou. lb.	2,147	2,664	3,126	140,687	127,496	142,446
American cheese	Thou. lb.	9,230	7,549	9,031	315,166	315,989	319,186
Mozzarella cheese	Thou. lb.	17,813	17,570	18,187	231,799	244,968	238,287
Yogurt, plain and flavored	Thou. lb.	19,071	18,833	20,577	153,156	152,174	160,620
Ice cream, hard	Thou. gal.	2,100	1,900	2,200	70,004	58,320	67,156

JANUARY EGG PRODUCTION DOWN 7 PERCENT

Egg production on New York farms, totaled 87 million eggs in January 2003, 7 percent less than the same month a year earlier. The decrease was the result of fewer layers and a lower rate of lay. The number of hens and pullets of laying age, at 3.61 million, was down 7 percent from January 2002, while the rate of lay was down slightly to 24.09 eggs per layer.

Laying flocks in the United States produced 7.34 billion eggs during January 2003, up 1 percent from the previous January. An indication of future egg supply, chicks hatched in the U.S. during January for the purpose of egg production totaled 33.5 million, down 6 percent from January 2002. Eggs in incubators on February 1, 2003 totaled 27.5 million, down 14 percent from the February 1, 2003 total.

Poultry Briefs

Item Unit Jan 2002 Dec 2002 Jan 2003 Jan 2002 Dec 2002 Jan 2003

New York United States

Number of layers Thou. 3,884 3,648 3,611 338,966 337,473 338,122

Eggs per layer No. 24.20 24.67 24.09 21.43 21.87 21.70

Eggs produced Mil. 94 90 87 7,264 7,381 7,337

North and South Atlantic States United States

Chicks hatched, egg-type Thou. 2/ 2/ 2/ 35,533 32,153 33,499

Chicks hatched, broiler type Thou. 2/ 2/ 2/ 775,669 753,633 759,773

Chicken eggs in incubators 1/

Egg-type Thou. 8,820 7,250 6,720 31,117 30,117 30,117

Broiler-type Thou. 248,530 241,512 244,483 637,582 623,171 629,525

1/ First day of following month. 2/ Data not published to avoid disclosing individual operations.

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Commodity	Unit	New York			United States
Commodity	Unit	Feb 2002	Jan 2003	Feb 2003	Feb 2002	Jan 2003	Feb 2003
		Dollars			Dollars
Corn	bu.	2.33	2.86	3.01	1.93	2.33	2.35
Oats	bu.	1.93	2.11	2.18	1.91	2.05	2.02
Wheat	bu.	2.80	3.57	3.30	2.83	3.89	3.71
Barley 2/	bu.	-	1.92	2.59	2.17	2.85	2.85
Soybeans	bu.	3.64	5.78	5.55	4.22	5.52	5.57
Hay, baled	ton	109.00	108.00	111.00	91.70	92.90	91.80
Potatoes	cwt.	9.30	9.85	10.20	7.34	6.67	6.53
Apples, fresh market 3/	cwt.	17.50	27.80	27.20	21.60	25.80	24.60
Milk, wholesale	cwt.	13.80	12.50	12.00	13.10	11.70	11.50
Milk cows 4/	head	-	1,300.00	-	-	1,370.00	-
Eggs, table market	doz.	0.428	0.500	0.510	0.366	0.529	0.466
Slaughter cows>	cwt.>	38.80	36.20	5/	40.60	36.90	38.10
> Steers and heifers	cwt.	57.30	63.70	5/	73.50	77.80	78.90
All slaughter cattle	cwt.	39.90	37.60	5/	70.00	73.20	74.60
Calves	cwt.	121.00	83.80	5/	105.00	96.80	97.60
Hogs	cwt.	-	-	-	38.50	33.00	34.40
Lambs	cwt.	-	-	-	67.80	92.00	-
Index (1990-92=100)
Prices received					99	99	99
Prices paid					123	127	127
Ratio prices received to prices paid					80	78	78
1/ Mid-month price for current month. Average price for entire month shown for previous periods. 2/ Estimates began July 2002. 3/ New York price is equivalent packinghouse door. 4/ Milk cow prices published quarterly. 5/ Price available next month.