C-FARE Info

The Consumer Data and Information Program: Sowing the Seeds of Research

“In response to the growing need for improved data collection related to food consumption, the Economic Research Service began implementing the Consumer Data and Information Program (CDIP) in ERS Fiscal Year 2005.” They recently released this report, which states that the “CDIP investments provide data to help understand price changes, market demand, and consumer reactions to unforeseen events and disruptions. In addition, the data indicate how market developments and consumer knowledge shape diet quality and health outcomes, thus helping policy officials assess performance of the U.S. food and agriculture system." Visit the USDA ERS website to view the report entitled, "The Consumer Data and Information Program: Sowing the Seeds of Research."

Recent USDA ERS DatelinERS Newsletter

The DatelinERS newsletter offers concise summaries of ERS reports and events with links to areas within their website.

New USDA Study Helps Identify Strategies to Improve Nutrition of School Meals

On December 2, USDA's Economic Research Service (ERS) released a study Meeting Total Fat Requirements for School Lunches, which finds that many school policies and practices are associated with the fat content of meals they serve through the National School Lunch Program. An earlier USDA report had found that while most schools met requirements for vitamins, protein, calcium, and iron, only one in five schools serve lunches that met the USDA standard for total fat (constituting 30 percent or less of the calories). View the USDA press release.

Farm Household Economics Well-Being and Farm Income Data

USDA ERS recently released estimates of farm sector income with component accounts for the United States, 1910-2009; and for States, 1949-2008.

USDA ERS also recently released new information in the Farm Household Economics and Well-Being briefing room. The briefing room focuses on indicators of the economic well-being of the households of the principal operators of family farms. It includes USDA's latest forecast for 2009. Indicators of well-being include household income and wealth (from both farm and off-farm sources), and indicators of health insurance coverage. The briefing room compares the financial well-being of farm households relative to all U.S. households, identifies the contributions of off-farm employment, non-farm self-employment, transfer payments, and financial market investments in household income, and discusses how taxes influence both income and wealth. The briefing room also describes the demographic characteristics of the principal farm operator households and how members of these households allocate their time to farm and off-farm work.

Ethanol and a Changing Agricultural Landscape

On November 18 USDA ERS Released a report on "Ethanol and a Changing Agricultural Landscape."  Their notice states, "The Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 established specific targets for the production of biofuel in the United States. Until advanced technologies become commercially viable, meeting these targets will increase demand for traditional agricultural commodities used to produce ethanol, resulting in land-use, production, and price changes throughout the farm sector. This report summarizes the estimated effects of meeting the EISA targets for 2015 on regional agricultural production and the environment. Meeting EISA targets for ethanol production is estimated to expand U.S. cropped acreage by nearly 5 million acres by 2015, an increase of 1.6 percent over what would otherwise be expected. Much of the growth comes from corn acreage, which increases by 3.5 percent over baseline projections. Water quality and soil carbon will also be affected, in some cases by greater percentages than suggested by changes in the amount of cropped land. The economic and environmental implications of displacing a portion of cornethanol production with ethanol produced from crop residues are also estimated."

Amber Waves, December 2009

Amber Waves presents the broad scope of USDA ERS’s research and analysis. The magazine covers the economics of agriculture, food and nutrition, the food industry, trade, rural America, and farm-related environmental topics. The internet edition, or “eZine,” includes links to web- only resources, such as podcasts and additional articles.

Report on US Food Security

A USDA press release announced that the, “Economic Research Service's (ERS) today released its annual report on Household Food Security in the U.S., which revealed that in 2008, 17 million households, or 14.6 percent, were food insecure and families had difficulty putting enough food on the table at times during the year. This is an increase from 13 million households, or 11.1 percent, in 2007. The 2008 figures represent the highest level observed since nationally representative food security surveys were initiated in 1995."

World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates

WASDE is issued monthly and provides the most current USDA forecasts of U.S. and world supply-use balances for major grains, soybeans and products, and cotton, and U.S. supply and use data for sugar and livestock products. View the November release.

DatelinERS Newsletter

USDA ERS recently released the latest DatelinERS Newsletter. This newsletter offers concise summaries of ERS reports and events with links to areas within their website.

Rural America at a Glance, 2009 Edition

Update of an annual series, the 2009 edition of Rural America At A Glance deals with effects of the major recession on rural America.