The Mandatory Price Reporting System: Five Years Old and Counting?

The reports required by the Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act of 1999 (LMRA) are designed to capture a wide array of information about the market for hogs in the United States. They differ markedly from the reports issued by USDAAMS under the voluntary price reporting system and their sheer breadth is rather daunting to potential users. This paper summarizes the reports that are available, the information each includes and how they fit together into a whole to provide better, more complete, more transparent market information to all market participants.