Posted Oct. 18, 2013

The United States Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) yesterday resumed publishing its Market News reports on various commodities, including pork.

The reports help producers, processors, consumers and distributors in the sale and purchase of agricultural commodities, “providing current and unbiased, price and sales information to assist in [their] orderly marketing and distribution.”

The just-ended partial shutdown of the federal government prompted USDA to suspend from Oct. 1 through Oct. 16 publication of the reports, which for livestock are required under the Livestock Mandatory Price Reporting Act.

Yesterday’s and today’s reports were missing some of the information normally contained in a report. AMS is working to have its system operating normally on Monday. In addition, it is working on a general recap of the markets for the shutdown period.