While dairy industry leaders across the country seem to be uniting behind the need for daily electronic reporting of product sale prices and volume, the beef industry has been disappointed with it's results.
As reported here in April 26, daily electronic reporting plus quarterly audits of about 100 dairy production plants are already authorized under the 2007 Farm Bill. But USDA has not put it in place in part because of the projected $600,000 startup costs, and a required $1 to $2 million per year to fund it.
Currently, the CME is the only reporting vehicle for pricing dairy commodities. Daily reporting is already done regarding wholesale value of beef and hog retail cuts, as well as hide and offal values. The same system is used for daily livestock purchases by packers on a pricing "grid". USDA reports daily market value of cattle and hogs on a live basis.
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