A novel approach to boxed beef market reports

Abstract

Boxed beef market reports published by USDA AMS provide current US beef supply and demand information and are the foremost data source for private, government, and academic analysis of the US wholesale beef market. Boxed beef market reporting, in its current form, began in 2001 and the structure has remained largely unchanged. Over the same time, beef commerce has undergone substantial shifts in the types of products and product mix produced by beef packers. As a result, trade of many economically important beef products does not inform published composite values and prices. Weekly USDA published composite prices and values commonly rely on less than half the volume of boxed beef traded. To better inform stakeholders, boxed beef reports need to evolve to match modern beef commerce and leverage the rich data already collected by USDA AMS. This study develops and demonstrates a method whereby USDA AMS could produce novel beef market reports. Specifically, we use boxed beef transaction data collected by AMS to specify hedonic models to estimate implicit market premiums for antibiotic-free ribeye and retail-ready strip loin. The technique can be expanded and adapted to enhance boxed beef market reporting. We conclude with guidance for policy makers involved with ongoing policy discussions that structure USDA AMS data collection and public reports.