Overview

• Recent ERS publications related to vegetables and pulses

The U.S. vegetables and pulses sector comprises hundreds of independent markets within the food-marketing system. During 2017-19, U.S. farm cash receipts from the sale of vegetables and pulses (including potatoes and mushrooms) averaged $19.4 billion—10 percent of U.S. crop cash receipts. This amount was generated on less than 2 percent of all U.S. harvested acreage. Annual per capita availability (a proxy for consumption) of vegetables and pulses over the same period averaged 404 pounds—down 4 percent from a decade earlier.

ERS provides a range of data products and reports on vegetable and pulse markets including domestic supply, demand, trade, and prices. 

Periodic, Scheduled Outputs 

• Outlook reports are published two times a year and provide current intelligence and forecasts on changing conditions in the U.S. vegetable and pulses sector. Interactive charts and highlights of the most recent Outlook report are available on the Market Outlook. Historical Vegetables and Pulses Outlook reports are available from the Mann Library under historical titles: The Vegetable Situation, Vegetables and Melons Outlook, and Vegetable and Pulses Outlook.
• Vegetables and Pulses Data are updated monthly and provide prices, price indexes and trade for the sector and for individual commodities.
• Vegetables and Pulses Yearbook Tables updated annually and contain Excel spreadsheets detailing a 40 year time series of supply, availability (including per capita use), and price for a range of U.S. fresh and processing vegetables.

Recent ERS Reports Relating to Vegetables and Pulses

In addition to the periodic Outlook reports and data products, ERS disseminates reports covering issues important to vegetable and pulse crop markets in the United States and around the world. Recent ERS reports relating to vegetable and pulse crops include: 

• Estimated Costs for Fruit and Vegetable Producers To Comply With the Food Safety Modernization Act's Produce Rule This study estimates farm-level costs to comply with the Food Safety Modernization Act's Produce Safety Rule by commodity, State, and farm size. Across commodities and States, differences in costs are driven by differences in farm size and range from 0.3 percent of annual produce sales for the largest farms to 6.8 percent for the smallest.
• Before Implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act's Produce Rule: A Survey of U.S. Produce Growers The "Produce Rule" (PR), which began its phased implementation in January 2018, is an on-farm Food and Drug Administration regulation that sets specific disease-preventive requirements for produce that is sold and consumed raw in the United States. The report presents results of a 2015 and 2016 survey of produce growers about their microbial food safety practices before the PR’s implementation.
• Food Safety Practices and Costs Under the California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement Using information from firms participating in the voluntary California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement, this report provides information on the relative costs that U.S. firms could incur under similar provisions of the Produce Rule under the Food Safety Modernization Act.
• Changes to the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program Under the Agricultural Act of 2014: Their Potential Risk Reduction Impacts ERS examines impacts of the Buy-Up coverage addition to the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) on expected payments, producers’ risk reduction, and NAP enrollment by type of producer and crops.
• The Influence of Income and Prices on Global Dietary Patterns by Country, Age, and Gender Worldwide changes in eating habits are contributing to a global rise in obesity and related noncommunicable diseases (diabetes, heart disease, and stroke) across all countries, including low- and middle-income. To address this issue, this report investigates how income and prices influence dietary habits globally. 
• Estimating the Effects of Selected Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures and Technical Barriers to Trade on U.S.-EU Agricultural Trade This study investigates the effects of non-tariff measures (NTM)—specifically, sanitary and phytosanitary measures and technical barriers to trade—on agricultural trade between the United States and the European Union (EU). Along with tariff reduction, the removal of NTMs has emerged as a key focus of negotiations in the U.S.-EU Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.
• Agriculture in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: Tariffs, Tariff-Rate Quotas, and Non-Tariff Measures This study assesses the potential effects of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership between the United States and the European Union on agriculture under three broad scenarios: complete removal of tariffs and tariff-rate quotas; elimination of non-tariff measures along with tariffs and tariff-rate quotas; and a lowering of the willingness of consumers to purchase imported goods previously limited by non-tariff measures.