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Mandatory Price Reporting Gives Producers Transparency, Accuracy
Published Friday, May 16, 2008 at 05:27 AM
WASHINGTON, D.C., May 15, 2008 —The American Farm Bureau Federation today hailed a final rule issued by the Agriculture Department that requires meat packers to report prices paid to producers for food animals. Farm Bureau has been an ardent supporter of the livestock mandatory price reporting (LMPR) law and has worked tirelessly toward its implementation.

“The implementation of LMPR will allow for more accurate and timely reporting of most wholesale and retail meat prices and increase transparency in the reporting of livestock sales,” said AFBF President Bob Stallman. “The LMPR also offers new market information on pricing, contracting and demand conditions, which will greatly benefit livestock producers.”

Under the LMPR law, packers are required to report all transactions involving the purchase of livestock, as well as details of domestic and export sales of boxed beef and lamb cuts. Packers that annually slaughter 125,000 cattle or 100,000 swine are required to report under LMPR. Packers or processors of 75,000 lambs annually are required to report under the law, as well as importers of 5,000 metric tons of lamb meat.

The LMPR will provide the basis for newly published market news reports, including reports that cover the prior day swine market; forward contract and formula marketing arrangement cattle purchases; packer-owned cattle and sheep information; sales of imported boxed lamb cuts and live lamb premiums and discounts.

AFBF welcomed the implementing rule at a time when pork producers are being financially hard hit.

“We are optimistic that LMPR will help the pork industry with prices at this critical time,” continued Stallman, who said live market hog prices had plunged to levels not seen in nearly a decade, while wholesale pork prices recently hit their lowest in four years.

The new implementing rule of the LMPR will take effect July 15, 2008.

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