Mink ISSN: 1949-1549 Released July 20, 2018, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Pelt Production Down 4 Percent Mink pelt production in the United States in 2017 totaled 3.31 million pelts, down 4 percent from 2016. Wisconsin, the largest mink producing State, produced 1.09 million pelts. Utah, the second largest producing State, produced 734 thousand pelts. The number of pelts by color class as a percent of the total United States production in 2017 is as follows: Black at 50 percent, Mahogany at 19 percent, White at 7 percent, and Blue Iris and Sapphire at 6 percent. The remaining color classes accounted for 12 percent. Value of pelts produced during the 2017 crop year was $120 million, slightly above a year ago. The average price per pelt for the 2017 crop year was $36.30, up $1.60 from $34.70 in 2016. Female mink bred to produce kits in 2018 totaled 731 thousand, down 5 percent from the previous year. Percent of total females bred to produce kits in 2018 by color class as is follows: Black at 50 percent, Mahogany at 18 percent, White at 7 percent, and Blue Iris and Sapphire at 6 percent. The remaining classes accounted for 13 percent. Mink Pelts Produced and Females Bred by Color Class - United States: 2016-2018 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Pelts produced : Females bred to produce kits :----------------------------------------------------------------------- Color class : 2016 : 2017 : 2017 : 2018 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : number : Black .........: 1,681,450 1,639,150 370,580 368,530 Demi/Wild .....: 108,110 110,010 22,050 24,430 Pastel ........: 99,600 97,810 26,710 22,220 Sapphire ......: 209,080 198,900 48,900 44,310 Blue Iris .....: 225,730 184,120 46,910 40,730 Mahogany ......: 698,320 629,400 152,080 127,980 Pearl .........: 116,640 115,510 25,200 25,600 Lavender ......: 32,640 34,130 9,420 8,000 Violet ........: 43,950 42,730 10,090 14,690 White .........: 223,570 242,230 55,060 52,590 Other .........: 15,320 11,450 3,400 2,350 : Total .........: 3,454,410 3,305,440 770,400 731,430 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mink Pelts Produced, Average Price, and Value - United States: 1998-2017 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ : Pelts :Average marketing: Value of Year : produced : price : mink pelts ------------------------------------------------------------------------ : number dollars dollars : 1998 .............: 2,938,100 24.80 72,864,880 1999 .............: 2,812,500 33.70 94,781,250 2000 .............: 2,666,100 34.00 90,647,400 2001 .............: 2,565,300 33.50 85,937,550 2002 .............: 2,607,300 30.60 79,783,380 2003 .............: 2,549,000 40.10 102,214,900 2004 .............: 2,558,100 47.10 120,486,510 2005 .............: 2,637,800 60.90 160,642,020 2006 .............: 2,858,800 48.40 138,365,920 2007 .............: 2,828,200 65.70 185,812,740 : 2008 .............: 2,820,700 41.60 117,341,120 2009 .............: 2,866,700 65.10 186,622,170 2010 .............: 2,840,200 81.90 232,612,380 2011 .............: 3,091,470 94.30 291,525,621 2012 1/ ..........: (NA) (NA) (NA) 2013 .............: 3,544,610 56.30 199,561,543 2014 .............: 3,741,150 57.70 215,864,355 2015 .............: 3,682,960 32.00 117,854,720 2016 .............: 3,454,410 34.70 119,868,027 2017 .............: 3,305,440 36.30 119,987,472 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ (NA) Not available. 1/ Due to sequestration the "Mink "report was suspended. Pelts Produced by Color Class - Selected States and United States: 2016 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ States : Black :Demi/Wild: Pastel :Sapphire :Blue Iris:Mahogany ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : number : Idaho ............: 112,000 (D) 14,000 12,500 (D) 181,000 Illinois .........: 48,000 - - (D) - (D) Iowa .............: 45,000 - (D) 2,300 (D) 35,000 Michigan .........: 49,000 - 1,000 - (D) 1,000 Minnesota ........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) 61,000 Montana ..........: (D) (D) (D) - - (D) Ohio .............: (D) (D) - (D) (D) (D) Oregon ...........: 215,000 - (D) 6,500 56,000 (D) Pennsylvania .....: 28,000 (D) (D) 8,500 11,500 (D) Utah .............: 275,000 (D) 32,000 50,000 (D) 290,000 Washington .......: 39,000 - - (D) (D) (D) Wisconsin ........: 710,000 (D) 34,000 44,000 101,000 77,000 : Other States 1/ ..: 160,450 108,110 18,600 85,280 57,230 53,320 : United States ....:1,681,450 108,110 99,600 209,080 225,730 698,320 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ - Represents zero. (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ States : Pearl :Lavender : Violet : White : Other :Total 2/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : number : Idaho ............: - (D) (D) (D) (D) 349,500 Illinois .........: (D) - - (D) - 81,100 Iowa .............: - - - (D) - 88,070 Michigan .........: - 1,500 (D) 6,500 - 64,500 Minnesota ........: - - (D) 27,000 (D) 210,580 Montana ..........: - - - (D) (D) 11,900 Ohio .............: (D) (D) - (D) (D) (D) Oregon ...........: - (D) (D) - - 306,170 Pennsylvania .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) 67,540 Utah .............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) 731,660 Washington .......: - - - - - 55,080 Wisconsin ........: - 21,000 (D) 133,000 5,000 1,147,310 : Other States 1/ ..: 116,640 10,140 43,950 57,070 10,320 341,000 : United States ....: 116,640 32,640 43,950 223,570 15,320 3,454,410 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ - Represents zero. (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. 1/ Other States include New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, and some pelts from the above listed States that were not published to avoid disclosing individual operations. 2/ Published color classes may not add to the State total to avoid disclosing individual operations. Pelts Produced by Color Class - Selected States and United States: 2017 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ States : Black :Demi/Wild: Pastel :Sapphire :Blue Iris:Mahogany ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : number : Idaho ............: 94,000 (D) 14,000 11,500 (D) 165,000 Illinois .........: 51,000 - - (D) - (D) Iowa .............: 44,000 - (D) 2,900 (D) 36,000 Michigan .........: 59,000 - 500 200 (D) 1,200 Minnesota ........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) 37,000 Montana ..........: (D) (D) - - - - Ohio .............: (D) (D) - (D) - (D) Oregon ...........: 210,000 - - (D) 44,000 (D) Pennsylvania .....: 33,000 (D) 5,500 11,500 (D) (D) Utah .............: 280,000 24,000 33,000 45,000 (D) 285,000 Washington .......: 27,000 - - - (D) (D) Wisconsin ........: 690,000 (D) 33,000 39,000 86,000 49,000 : Other States 1/ ..: 151,150 86,010 11,810 88,800 54,120 56,200 : United States ....:1,639,150 110,010 97,810 198,900 184,120 629,400 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ States : Pearl :Lavender : Violet : White : Other :Total 2/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : number : Idaho ............: - (D) (D) (D) (D) 313,500 Illinois .........: (D) - - (D) - 81,100 Iowa .............: - - - (D) - 88,210 Michigan .........: - 3,500 (D) 7,500 - 77,700 Minnesota ........: - - (D) 31,000 (D) 180,580 Montana ..........: - - - - - (D) Ohio .............: (D) (D) (D) (D) - (D) Oregon ...........: - (D) (D) - - 283,670 Pennsylvania .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) 68,130 Utah .............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) 734,260 Washington .......: - - - - - 44,000 Wisconsin ........: - 20,000 (D) 151,000 (D) 1,091,180 : Other States 1/ ..: 115,510 10,630 42,730 52,730 11,450 343,110 : United States ....: 115,510 34,130 42,730 242,230 11,450 3,305,440 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ - Represents zero. (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. 1/ Other States include New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Dakota, and some pelts from the above listed States that were not published to avoid disclosing individual operations. 2/ Published color classes may not add to the State total to avoid disclosing individual operations. Female Mink Bred to Produce Kits by Color Class - Selected States and United States: 2017 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ States : Black :Demi/Wild: Pastel :Sapphire :Blue Iris:Mahogany ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : number : Idaho ............: 24,000 (D) 2,900 3,100 (D) 39,000 Illinois .........: 15,000 - - (D) - (D) Iowa .............: 12,500 - (D) (D) (D) 11,500 Michigan .........: 14,500 - - - (D) 300 Minnesota ........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) 15,500 Montana ..........: (D) (D) (D) - (D) - Ohio .............: (D) (D) - (D) - (D) Oregon ...........: 42,000 - (D) 1,700 13,500 (D) Pennsylvania .....: 5,500 (D) (D) 3,600 1,600 (D) Utah .............: 69,000 (D) 8,000 10,500 (D) 64,000 Washington .......: 6,000 - - - (D) (D) Wisconsin ........: 151,000 (D) 9,500 10,500 19,500 10,000 : Other States 1/ ..: 31,080 22,050 6,310 19,500 12,310 11,780 : United States ....: 370,580 22,050 26,710 48,900 46,910 152,080 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ - Represents zero. (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ States : Pearl :Lavender : Violet : White : Other :Total 2/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : number : Idaho ............: - (D) (D) (D) (D) 75,350 Illinois .........: (D) - - (D) - 23,900 Iowa .............: - - - (D) (D) 26,730 Michigan .........: - 900 (D) 2,100 - 19,900 Minnesota ........: - - (D) 7,000 (D) 50,520 Montana ..........: - - - - - 2,870 Ohio .............: (D) (D) - (D) (D) (D) Oregon ...........: - (D) (D) - - 63,210 Pennsylvania .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) 15,340 Utah .............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) 172,980 Washington .......: - - - - - 10,100 Wisconsin ........: - 5,500 (D) 35,000 640 246,620 : Other States 1/ ..: 25,200 3,020 10,090 10,960 2,760 62,880 : United States ....: 25,200 9,420 10,090 55,060 3,400 770,400 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ - Represents zero. (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. 1/ Other States include New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, and some pelts from the above listed States that were not published to avoid disclosing individual operations. 2/ Published color classes may not add to the State total to avoid disclosing individual operations. Female Mink Bred to Produce Kits by Color Class - Selected States and United States: 2018 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ States : Black :Demi/Wild: Pastel :Sapphire :Blue Iris:Mahogany ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : number : Idaho ............: 21,000 (D) 3,500 3,000 (D) 34,000 Illinois .........: 16,000 - - - - (D) Iowa .............: 15,000 - (D) (D) (D) 12,000 Michigan .........: 12,500 - 100 1,000 - - Minnesota ........: (D) 3,300 1,500 (D) (D) 10,000 Montana ..........: (D) (D) - - - - Ohio .............: (D) (D) - (D) - (D) Oregon ...........: 36,000 - - (D) 11,500 (D) Pennsylvania .....: 9,000 (D) (D) 480 1,600 (D) Utah .............: 63,000 6,500 (D) 11,500 710 56,000 Washington .......: (D) - - - - (D) Wisconsin ........: 157,000 (D) (D) 11,000 22,000 8,500 : Other States 1/ ..: 39,030 14,630 17,120 17,330 4,920 7,480 : United States ....: 368,530 24,430 22,220 44,310 40,730 127,980 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ - Represents zero. (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ States : Pearl :Lavender : Violet : White : Other :Total 2/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : number : Idaho ............: - (D) 2,800 - (D) 67,580 Illinois .........: (D) - - (D) - 24,300 Iowa .............: - - - (D) (D) 30,770 Michigan .........: - 500 (D) 730 - 15,530 Minnesota ........: - - (D) 7,000 (D) 43,820 Montana ..........: - - - - - (D) Ohio .............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Oregon ...........: - (D) (D) - - 50,060 Pennsylvania .....: - (D) (D) (D) (D) 14,250 Utah .............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) 161,900 Washington .......: - - - - - 10,100 Wisconsin ........: - 5,500 (D) 35,000 520 252,120 : Other States 1/ ..: 25,600 2,000 11,890 9,860 1,830 61,000 : United States ....: 25,600 8,000 14,690 52,590 2,350 731,430 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ - Represents zero. (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. 1/ Other States include New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Dakota, and some pelts from the above listed States that were not published to avoid disclosing individual operations. 2/ Published color classes may not add to the State total to avoid disclosing individual operations. Statistical Methodology Survey Procedures: Mink production data are collected from early May through late May from all known producers. Individual NASS Regional Field Offices maintain a list of all known mink producers and use known sources of producers to update their lists. All known mink producers are mailed a questionnaire and given adequate time to respond by mail. Those who do not respond by mail are telephoned or enumerated in person. Care is exercised to account for all operations. Pelt market price data is obtained in June. Prices are collected at the point of first sale, before marketing costs are deducted. Estimation Procedures: All data are analyzed for unusual values. Data from each operation are compared to their own past operating profile and to trends from similar operations. Data for missing operations are estimated based on similar operations or historical data. NASS headquarters prepare these estimates by using a combination of survey indications and historic trends. Individual State and US estimates are reviewed by the Agricultural Statistics Board for reasonableness. Revision Policy: Revisions to previous estimates are made to improve year-to- year and item-to-item relationships. Estimates for the previous year are subject to revision when current estimates are made. Reliability: Mink production estimates are based on a census of all known active producers and therefore, have no sampling variability. However, estimates are subject to errors such as omissions, duplication, mistakes in reporting, recording, and processing data. While these errors cannot be measured directly, they are minimized through strict quality control in the data collection process and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness. To assist in evaluating the reliability of the estimates in this report, the "Root Mean Square Error" is shown for selected items in the following table. The "Root Mean Square Error" is a statistical measure based on past performance and is computed using the differences between first and final estimates. The "Root Mean Square Error" for mink pelts produced over the past 10 years is 1.5 percent. This means that chances are 2 out of 3 that the final estimate will not be above or below the current estimate of 3.31 million pelts by more than 1.5 percent. Chances are 9 out of 10 that the difference will not exceed 2.7 percent. Reliability of Mink Estimates [Based on data for the past ten years] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Root mean : 90 percent : Difference between first and latest estimate : square error : confidence : : : : : : : level :------------------------------------------------------------- Item : : : : : : Years : : : : : :------------------------------- : : : Average :Smallest : Largest : Below latest : Above latest -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : percent percent -------- 1,000 -------- ----- number ---- : : Pelts produced ...............: 1.5 2.7 29 0 137 6 2 : Females bred .................: 1.5 2.8 7 0 30 5 2 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Information Contacts Listed below are the commodity specialists in the Livestock Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to contact for additional information. E-mail inquiries may be sent to nass@nass.usda.gov Travis Averill, Chief, Livestock Branch ...................................... (202) 720-3570 Tony Dorn, Head, Poultry and Specialty Commodities Section ................... (202) 690-3223 Holly Brenize - Poultry Slaughter.......................................... (202) 720-0585 Aaron Cosgrove - Turkey Hatchery, Turkeys Raised .......................... (202) 690-3237 Alissa Cowell-Mytar - Cold Storage, Capacity of Refrigerated Warehouses ... (202) 720-4751 Liana Cuffman - Catfish Production, Trout Production, Egg Products, Mink .. (202) 720-8784 Fatema Haque - Broiler Hatchery, Chicken Hatchery ......................... (202) 720-3244 Kim Linonis - Layers, Eggs ................................................ (202) 690-3676 Miste Salmon - Census of Agriculture, Census of Aquaculture ............... (202) 690-8632 Erica Sadler - Cost of Pollination, Honey, Honey Bee Colonies ............. 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