HDR1012000150010404971500Egg Products                                           
                                                                                
Released April 4, 1997, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service         
(NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture.  For     
information on "Egg Products" call Tom Kruchten at (202) 690-4870, office       
hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET.                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                  Shell Eggs Broken Up 6 Percent                                
                                                                                
Shell eggs broken totaled 115 million dozen during February 1997, up            
6 percent from February a year ago.  Regional percentage changes were: North    
Atlantic, up 8; North Central, up 6; South Atlantic, up 5; South Central, up    
12; and Western, up 3.                                                          
                                                                                
February 1997 contained 20 weekdays (including one holiday) and four            
Saturdays, compared to February 1996 which contained 21 weekdays (including     
one holiday) and four Saturdays.                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
Inspected liquid egg products used in processing amounted to 226 million        
pounds during February 1997, up 6 percent from February the previous year.      
Ingredients added in processing totaled 7.81 million pounds, up 6 percent from  
a year ago.                                                                     
                                                                                
                                                                                
Inspected liquid egg production for immediate consumption and processing        
during February totaled 160 million pounds, up 6 percent from the February      
1996                                                                            
production of 151 million pounds.                                               
                                                                                
                                                                                
Inspected frozen egg production during February, at 26.7 million pounds, was    
down 5 percent from the 28.1 million pounds produced during February 1996.      
                                                                                
                                                                                
Inspected dried egg production during February was 10.4 million pounds, an      
increase of 5 percent from a year ago.                                          
                                                                                
Data presented in this report were compiled from inspection reports of the      
Food Safety and Inspection Service.  The best available data at time of         
publication was used.                                                           
               Shell Eggs Broken:  Federally Inspected, by Region               
                       and United States, February 1996-97                      
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                   :           :         Form in Which Broken         :         
                   :           :--------------------------------------:         
     Month and     :   Eggs    :             Edible Liquid            :Inedible 
      Region       :  Broken   :--------------------------------------: Liquid  
                   :           :  Whole  :  White  :  Yolk   : Total  :         
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                   :1,000 Dozen  ---------------- 1,000 Pounds ---------------- 
 February 1997     :                                                            
   N Atlantic      :   21,046    19,635     5,088     2,510    27,233     1,840 
   N Central       :   74,673    53,570    28,293    15,376    97,239     7,430 
   S Atlantic      :    6,885     4,326     2,581     1,513     8,420       752 
   S Central       :    6,262     3,655     2,669     1,534     7,858       915 
   West            :    6,004     4,113     2,041     1,174     7,328       629 
                   :                                                            
   US              :  114,870    85,299    40,672    22,107   148,078    11,566 
                   :                                                            
 February 1996     :                                                            
   N Atlantic      :   19,490    17,952     4,935     2,114    25,001     1,658 
   N Central       :   70,669    52,118    25,640    13,529    91,287     6,972 
   S Atlantic      :    6,558     4,252     2,524     1,410     8,186       818 
   S Central       :    5,608     3,537     2,393     1,066     6,996       621 
   West            :    5,832     3,901     1,939     1,051     6,891       558 
                   :                                                            
   US              :  108,157    81,760    37,431    19,170   138,361    10,627 
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                
              Inspected Liquid Eggs:  Usage and Ingredients Added               
               in Processing, United States, February 1996-97 1/                
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Month and     :  Whole  :  Whole  :         :  Yolk   :  Yolk   :         
        Item        :  Plain  :  Blends :  White  :  Plain  :  Blends :  Total  
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    :                       1,000 Pounds                        
 February 1997      :                                                           
   Liquid Eggs      :  92,892    49,736    54,427    12,322    16,409   225,786 
   Ingredients Added:       0     6,164        92         0     1,551     7,807 
                    :                                                           
 February 1996      :                                                           
   Liquid Eggs      :  87,415    47,549    51,910    11,061    15,403   213,338 
   Ingredients Added:       0     5,753       156         0     1,437     7,346 
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                
                                                                                
            Inspected Product:  By Form as Distributed in Commerce,             
                     United States, February 1996-97 1/ 2/                      
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Month and     :  Whole  :  Whole  :         :  Yolk   : Yolk    :         
        Item        :  Plain  :  Blends :  White  :  Plain  : Blends  :  Total  
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    :                       1,000 Pounds                        
 February 1997      :                                                           
   Liquid           :                                                           
     For Immediate  :                                                           
      Consumption   :  36,087    31,759    10,591    2,054    8,329      88,820 
     For Processing :  38,789     6,473    18,682    5,902    1,802      71,648 
     Total          :  74,876    38,232    29,273    7,956   10,131     160,468 
                    :                                                           
   Frozen           :   8,764     9,542     3,022      426    4,979      26,733 
                    :                                                           
   Dried            :   2,395     2,522     2,665    1,729    1,085      10,396 
                    :                                                           
 February 1996      :                                                           
   Liquid           :                                                           
     For Immediate  :                                                           
      Consumption   :  31,115    29,552    11,408    2,035    7,696      81,806 
     For Processing :  38,833     5,660    17,275    5,566    1,809      69,143 
     Total          :  69,948    35,212    28,683    7,601    9,505     150,949 
                    :                                                           
   Frozen           :  10,553     9,402     3,853       76    4,242      28,126 
                    :                                                           
   Dried            :   1,804     2,750     2,366    1,515    1,480       9,915 
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1/  Includes reinspections of egg products.                                    
 2/  Includes all non-egg ingredients added.                                    
       Egg Products Inspected:  Shell Eggs Broken and Products Produced,        
                United States, October 1 - February 28, 1996-97                 
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                         :                 Period               
                                         :--------------------------------------
                    Item                 :   Oct 1, 1995-    :   Oct 1, 1996-   
                                         :   Feb 28, 1996    :   Feb 28, 1997   
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                         :              1,000 Dozen             
                                         :                                      
 Shell Eggs Broken                       :      577,000             632,827     
                                         :                                      
                                         :              1,000 Pounds            
 Edible Liquid from Shell Eggs Broken    :                                      
   Whole                                 :      439,438             471,648     
   White                                 :      198,566             226,322     
   Yolk                                  :      100,080             118,146     
                                         :                                      
   Total                                 :      738,084             816,116     
                                         :                                      
 Inedible Liquid from Shell Eggs Broken  :       57,511              61,894     
                                         :                                      
 During Processing                       :                                      
   Liquid Eggs Inspected 1/              :    1,125,663           1,250,835     
   Ingredients Added in Processing       :       37,066              42,717     
                                         :                                      
 Product Produced for Immediate          :                                      
  Consumption and Processing 1/ 2/       :                                      
   Liquid Product Produced               :                                      
     Whole Plain                         :      373,743             417,524     
     Whole Blends                        :      182,333             200,894     
     White                               :      152,444             158,786     
     Yolk Plain                          :       39,566              44,937     
     Yolk Blends                         :       50,771              59,184     
                                         :                                      
     Total                               :      798,857             881,325     
                                         :                                      
   Frozen Product Produced               :                                      
     Whole Plain                         :       67,013              62,346     
     Whole Blends                        :       54,560              52,696     
     White                               :       18,683              20,557     
     Yolk Plain                          :          525                 959     
     Yolk Blends                         :       22,066              22,896     
                                         :                                      
     Total                               :      162,847             159,454     
                                         :                                      
   Dried Product Produced                :                                      
     Whole Plain                         :        9,323              11,830     
     Whole Blends                        :       11,818              12,908     
     White                               :       12,632              15,540     
     Yolk Plain                          :        7,299               7,959     
     Yolk Blends                         :        5,136               7,911     
                                         :                                      
     Total                               :       46,208              56,148     
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1/  Includes reinspections of egg products.                                    
 2/  Includes all non-egg ingredients added.                                    
Data Sources:  Data for the "Egg Products" report are obtained from Grading     
               Volume Reports (Form PY-240) completed by inspectors of the Egg  
Products Inspection Division, Food Safety and Inspection  Service (FSIS),       
USDA.  FSIS is responsible for administering a mandatory inspection program     
for egg products under the authority of the Egg Products Inspection Act of      
1970.  The Act and its associated Regulations require that all commercial egg   
breaking and processing plants operate under continuous USDA supervision.       
Reports are currently received from approximately 75 plants.  Plant management  
provides monthly volume data to the resident USDA inspector at the applicable   
plant.                                                                          
                                                                                
                                                                                
Procedures and Reliability:  FSIS reviews plant data for accuracy and           
                             completeness and provides NASS a data file.  NASS  
reviews the data for unusual values.  The egg products estimates are based on   
a census of all commercial egg breaking and processing plants, therefore,       
there are no statistical estimation and sampling errors.                        
                                                                                
Liquid eggs transported from one official plant to another for reprocessing     
must be reinspected by the USDA inspector at the receiving plant.  Since the    
volume is reported for each inspection performed, the total liquid eggs         
inspected may exceed the actual total of liquid eggs produced.                  
                                                                                
Data in the "Inspected Product:" table are finished products available for      
distribution in commerce.  The finished egg products (packaged for              
distribution) may have been processed in a subsequent reporting period          
following the period in which the eggs were reported as broken.  Therefore,     
the data may not be comparable in any given month.                              
                                                                                
                                                                                
Regional Listing:                                                               
                                                                                
North Atlantic = CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT.                            
North Central  = IA, IL, IN, KS, MI, MN, MO, NE, ND, OH, SD, WI.                
South Atlantic = DE, FL, GA, MD, NC, PR, SC, VA, WV.                            
South Central  = AL, AR, KY, LA, MS, OK, TN, TX.                                
West           = AK, AZ, CA, CO, HI, ID, MT, NM, NV, OR, UT, WA, WY.            
                                                                                
                                                                                
The next "Egg Products" report will be released at 3 P.M. ET on May 2, 1997.    
                                                                                
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its programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age,  
disability, political beliefs, and marital or familial status.  Persons with    
disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program         
information (braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact the USDA     
Office of Communications at (202) 720-2791.                                     
                                                                                
To file a complaint, write the Secretary of Agriculture, USDA, Washington,      
D.C., 20250, or call 1-800-245-6340 (voice) or (202) 720-1127 (TDD).  USDA is   
an equal employment opportunity employer.                                       
                                                                                
                                                                                
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