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AGRICULTURAL NEWS OF .THE WEEK FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF DALLAS Number 731 Wednesday, January 1, 1964 WINTER WHEAT The acreage seeded to 1964-crop winter wheat in the Nation is placed. at 43.0 million acres, or 2% more than the plantings for the 1963 crop and 1% above the 5-year (1958-62) average, according to the Statistical Reporting Service. On the basis of December 1, 1963, conditions, the 1964 winter wheat output is indicated at 959.1 million bushels. An outturn of this size would be 6% larger than the 1963 production but 6% smaller than the 5-year average. The table below shows the acreage seeded for and. indicated production of 1964-crop winter wheat for the states of the Eleventh Federal Reserve District and comparable data for the crops of 1963 and 1958-62. WINTER WHEAT Five Southwestern States ACREAGE SEEDED (In thousands of acres) Crop Crop Crops of of of 1964 1963 1958-62 PRODUCTION (In thousands of bushels) Crop Crop Crops of of of 19641/ 1963 1958-62 Arizona ........... Louisiana .......•. New Mexico ........ Oklahoma .......... Texas .........••.. 34 110 293 4,835 4,079 31 97 284 4,740 3,848 63 69 268 4,754 3,888 1,326 1,210 4,102 82,195 1-~4, 869 1,188 1,484 3,800 75,411 40,618 Five states ..... 9,351 9,000 9,042 133,702 122,501 Area 2,154 782 4,892 101,84~- 66,334 176,006 1/ Indicated December 1, 1963. SOURCE: U. S. Department of Agriculture. P I G CR0 P RE P 0 RT The number of hogs and pigs on U. S. farms as of December 1, 1963, totaled 61.3 million head, representing a 4% decrease from a year earlier, points out the SRS. The June-November 1963 pig crop of 42.8 million head was 4% below the 1962 figure. The June-November 1963 crop combined with the December 1962-May 1963 crop makes a 1963 U. S. total pig crop of 93.0 million head, or 1% less than the 1962 total pig crop. Indications are that 6.6 million sows will farrow during the December 1963-May 1964 period, or 6% fewer than in the corresponding period a year ago. The 1963 total pig crop for the Eleventh District states is estimated at 2.2 million, or 14% below the 1962 crop. This publication was digitized and made available by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas’ Historical Library (FedHistory@dal.frb.org). FEDERAL CROP INSURANCE Nearly $500 million in farm crops in the United. States were protected. by Federal Crop Insurance in 1963, reports the U. S. Department of Agriculture. The figure is the highest in the 25-year history of Federal Crop Insurance and is more than 30% above 1962. Approximately 25,000 additional farmers became Federal Crop Insurance policyholders in 1963, and both the acreage and the number of crops protected by Federal Crop Insurance advanced sharply. TEXAS CROP OUTPUT LARGER The 1963 Texas crop production index, which includes 14 important crops, is placed at 130% of the 194'b-55 average,--a:ccording to the SRS. The index is 2% above that in 1962 but is substantially below the all-time high of 145 attained in the favorable 1949 crop season. Outturns of sorghum grain, rice, flax, and soybeans were above 1962, while production decreases were reported. for cotton, wheat, corn, peanuts, broomcorn, and hay. The combined value of the principal Texas crops in 1963 amounted to $1.5 billion, compared with ~billion in the previous year. The value of cotton lint and cottonseed, at an estimated $822 million, accounted for 55% of the total. Sorghum grain ranked second, comprising 17%; followed by rice, which accounted for 6% of the total crop value. R E C 0 R D W0 R L D R I C E CR0 P F 0 RE CAS T World rice production in 1963-64 (August-July), excluding Communist Asia, is forecast at a record 154.3 million metric tons of rough rice, or 3% above the 1962-63 output, according to the first estimate of the Foreign Agricultural Service. The previous record world rice outturn, excluding Communist areas, was 152.4 million tons in 1961-62. POULTRY Texas commercial broiler-fryer markets were relatively quiet in the week ended Friday, December 27, 1963, as the Christmas holidays dominated the perio~ according to the State Department of Agriculture. The south Texas market was about steady on Thursday, and the east Texas market was slightly stronger as compared with the last published report on Friday, December 20. At the close on December 27, the market in east Texas was slightly stronger, while that in south Texas remained about steady. The undertone was steady in south Texas but was unsettled in east Texas. Closing prices in south Texas were 12¢ to 13¢ per lb., and those in east Texas ranged from 11.8¢ to 13¢. For the corresponding period in 1962, closing quotations in soutb Texas were 13.3¢ to 13.5¢, and east Texas prices ranged from 12.8¢ to 13.3¢. BROILER CHICK PLACEMENTS Percent change from Comparable Previous week, 1962 week Area Week ended December 21, 1963 Texas .•.... Louisiana .. 2,854,ooo 546,ooo -5 13 4 11 22 states .. 38,815,000 0 7
