This total is the lowest reported October round weight processed since October 1996 when 42.1 million pounds were processed. The average price paid to producers was 68.2 cents per pound for October 2007, down 1.5 cents from last month and 15.4 cents below a year ago.
Net pounds of processed fish sold during October 2007 totaled 22.5 million pounds, up slightly from the comparable month in 2006. The total end of the month inventory increased 3 percent from last month but was down 16 percent from a year ago. Sales of fresh fish, at 8.23 million pounds, were up 4 percent from October 2006 and represented 37 percent of total sales. Frozen fish sales, at 14.3 million pounds, were down 2 percent from a year ago and accounted for the remaining 63 percent of total fish sales. Sales of whole fish represented 18 percent of the total fish sold, fillets accounted for 61 percent, and the remaining 21 percent were mostly steaks, nuggets, and value added products.
The October 2007 average price received by processors for total fresh fish was $2.33 per pound, down 25 cents from last year. Prices for fresh whole fish were $1.59 per pound, down 22 cents from October 2006. Prices for fresh fillets were down 27 cents from a year ago at $2.96 per pound. Total frozen fish averaged $2.30 per pound, down 26 cents from October 2006. Prices for frozen whole dressed fish were down 21 cents at $2.06 and frozen fillets at $2.74 per pound were down 32 cents from a year ago.
Freshwater imports for consumption of Ictalurus spp., Pangasius spp., and other catfish of the order Siluriformes for September 2007 totaled 6.74 million pounds, down 26 percent from the amount imported in September 2006. Imports were from Cambodia, Canada, China, Indonesia, Spain, Thailand, and Vietnam. The Ictalurus spp. imports totaled 607 thousand pounds, which were from Canada and China.
Fresh boneless catfish fillet exports totaled 99.0 thousand pounds, with 62.3 thousand pounds going to Canada and the rest going to the Bahamas, Mexico, and the Netherlands. Exports of frozen, boneless catfish fillets reported for September 2007 totaled 43.2 thousands pounds, which went to Germany, Iceland, and Mexico.
Import and export data are compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau.
United States 2005-2007
Average Grower Price
United States 2005-2007
Further Reading
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