New York SBDC Research Network

From the Bureau of Labor Statistics U.S. export prices experienced a major decline in 2015, as evidenced by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) export price index. Prices for U.S. exports, published in dollar terms, decreased 6.6 percent in 2015, the largest calendar-year decline since the index was first published in 1983. However, the large decline in the U.S. dollar export price index did not tell the entire story. When measured in foreign currency terms, export prices were actually higher because of the strong dollar. The value of the dollar strengthened against the euro, Japanese yen, Chinese yuan, and Canadian dollar. Continued slow global economic and trade growth dampened demand for U.S. exports and influenced U.S. export price trends. The meeting of the strong dollar and lackluster demand for U.S. exports was particularly challenging for the U.S. agricultural industry. This Beyond the Numbers article analyzes what impact the strengthening dollar had on certain agricultura

As the popular saying goes, No Farms No Food.  But small farms constantly face difficulty in competing with the big players and in order to compete they need assistance.  They need funding.  The National Agricultural Library of the United States Department of Agriculture has compiled a list of Small Farm Funding Resources .  There is assistance provided on how to write a business plan, financial and planning resources, funding and program assistance, useful organizations and websites, and more.

So you want to export frozen meat to Zimbabwe, but first you need to find a freight forwarder that can handle frozen meet products and goes to Zimbabwe.  Luckily, the United States Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service provides a Directory of Freight Forwarders Serving Agricultural Exporters here , with over 600 freight forwarders listed.  Searches can be limited by Products Shipped, Destination, and Services Offered and results can be exported into an Excel Spreadsheet.

Black Willow joined the Niagara Wine Trail in January of 2011. This fulfilled a longtime dream for the owners. They converted a 35-year-old pole barn into their tasting room and production area. They hired a local winemaker as a consultant to ensure the quality of their wines. Black Willow is open seven days a week and currently offers nine wines. They have several new varieties in development. In addition, they have 500 peach trees and 30 cherry trees. Black Willow has product in the SBDC Wine outlet in China. Cindy joined Jinshui Zhang of the NYS SBDC, and Empire State Development on a trade trip to China in the fall of 2012. She has shared what she has learned with others on the wine trail. The Niagara SBDC (Maureen Henderson) helped the clients put together their loan package/business plan to obtain their start-up funding. Additional assistance included aiding the development of their marketing strategy including a comprehensive branding approach and helping them connect with

Terri Ann Lowenthal’s excellent Census Project Blog has a great post about the bill and its implications : Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC-3) [has] just introduced a bill (H.R. 1638) to cancel the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS), Economic Census, Census of Governments and every other survey the agency conducts, except the once-a-decade population count. Oh, and bye-bye Census of Agriculture (transferred from Census to the Agriculture Department in 1997). Sayonara, adios — no more data.

For more than 90 years, AMS has provided current, unbiased price and sales information to assist in the orderly marketing and distribution of farm commodities. Reports include information on prices, volume, quality, condition, and other market data on farm products in specific markets and marketing areas. Reports cover both domestic and international markets. The data is disseminated within hours of collection via the Internet and made available through electronic means, in printed reports, by telephone recordings and through the news media. In particular, check out the Commodities Area , which provides current prices for COTTON, DAIRY, FRUIT AND VEGETABLE and LIVESTOCK AND SEED.

One of our advisors has a client who is obtaining funding and the lending bank is seeking a USDA guarantee which requires that an independent feasibility study be done. Here is a link to the manual for the USDA’s Business Program Loan Guarantees Lender Guide [PDF] that describes the feasibility study on pages 11-13. Also, here is a 3-page overview of the feasibility study [PDF] . See Considerations When Selecting a Consultant .

From the Department of Agriculture - Economic Research Service Annual estimates of U.S. exports by State and commodity group based on each State's share of U.S. agricultural production.

"Companies that are new to exporting and companies that have previously considered and abandoned an export strategy can use the Basics of Exporting to get up to speed on terminology, processes, common pitfalls and strategies for success." From the Southern United States Trade Association (SUSTA) , "a non-profit agricultural export trade development association comprised of the Departments of Agriculture of the 15 southern states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Since 1973, our programs and services have assisted exporters of high-value food and agricultural products. "SUSTA is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) , its member states and private companies. FAS administers and executes many foreign market development activities."

For the commercial organic farmers or any one else who grows fruit, vegetables or runs a dairy: Cornell's Integrated Pest Management Program has released nine new organic production guides . The new guides provide information on how to produce certified organic apples, blueberries, grapes, lettuce, potatoes, spinach, strawberries and cole crops, including cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and Brussels sprouts. The guides cover integrated pest management techniques, with sections on cover crops, resistant varieties, crop rotation, field selection and soil quality.

State fact sheets provide information on population, employment, income, farm characteristics, farm financial indicators, and top commodities, exports, and counties for each state in the United States.

From the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service In an effort to expand information available to exporters, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) has added country pages to its Web site. Grouped into four regions – Western Hemisphere, Europe, Africa and the Middle East, and Asia and Oceania – these country pages provide essential demographic, economic and political information. The new country pages will allow users to find comprehensive links, all in one place, on import requirements for each country, as well as travel and market information, the status of trade negotiations, trade development and important contacts. In addition, the FAS Web site includes many searchable databases providing export, import, production, supply, and distribution data, as well as export sales reports and market reports from U.S. agricultural trade experts stationed in 97 offices around the world.