Skip to page content
Schreyer Business Library Header
industry definition databases data library collections trade associations careers periodicals industry guides home page
tab menu
Photo of apples
Photo courtesy of USDA

 Agribusiness Industry

NAICS Code 11 Scope of This Guide:

The Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting sector comprises establishments primarily engaged in growing crops, raising animals, harvesting timber, and harvesting fish and other animals from a farm, ranch, or their natural habitats. In the United States, the establishments in this sector are often described as farms, ranches, dairies, greenhouses, nurseries, orchards, or hatcheries.

The sector distinguishes two basic activities: agricultural production and agricultural support activities. Agricultural production includes establishments performing the complete farm or ranch operation, such as farm owner-operators, tenant farm operators, and sharecroppers. Agricultural support activities include establishments that perform one or more activities associated with farm operation, such as soil preparation, planting, harvesting, and management, on a contract or fee basis.
( 2002 NAICS Definitions , U.S. Census Bureau)

Resources available for research in this industry sector include:

Industry Definitions

Code NAICS Sector ( WHAT is NAICS? )
11 Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting
111 Crop Production
112 Animal Production
113 Forestry and Logging
114 Fishing, Hunting and Trapping
115 Support Activities for Agriculture and Forestry

Databases for Industry Research

Standard & Poor's NetAdvantage

  1. - Industry surveys
  2. - Bond ratings
  3. - Company profiles and corporation records
  4. - Stock, bond and fund research
Plunkett Research Online (Industry Information)
  1. - Industry sector analysis and research
  2. - Industry trends and statistics
  3. - Market research and trends
  4. - Company profiles
Reuters Research On-Demand
  1. - Real-time full-text investment research
  2. - Reports cover companies and industries
  3. - Over 750 contributing firms
ValueLine
  1. - Aggregate data and analysis on industries
  2. - Reports, articles, and company highlights

ABI/Inform (via ProQuest)

  1. - Indexes over 1000 business periodicals
  2. - Trade journals, business magazines, academic journals and other news sources
  3. - Most articles full text

IBISWorld

  1. - Over 700 full-text industry reports
  2. - Over 700 US industry risk rating reports
  3. - Information on over 8000 Publicly Traded Companies
  4. - Hundreds of economic and demographic profiles

For additional database choices, see:

  1. Database Descriptions
  2. Database Comparison Chart

Industry Data

U.S.Data

Agricultural Marketing Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture
  • Marketing and distribution of farm commodities
  • Supplies, demand and prices
  • Movement and location
  • Quality, condition, and other market data


Agricultural Statistics
U.S. Department of Agriculture
  • Agricultural production
  • Supplies
  • Consumption
  • Facilities
  • Costs
  • Returns

Agriculture Fact Book
  • Current topics
  • Food consumption
  • Characteristics of American farms
  • Rural communities and development
  • USDA Programs

Census of Agriculture
National Agricultural Statistics Service
  • National summaries
  • State
  • County

Commodity Exchanges

Economic Research Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agriculture Statistics Service

Export.gov
U.S. Department of Commerce
Fisheries Statistics Division
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Forest Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture
National Agriculture Statistics Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture
World Agricultural Outlook Board (U.S. Department of Agriculture)
  • Conducts commodity forecasting program
  • Assesses global weather and its impact on agriculture

World Data

Eurostat
European Union

  • General statistics
  • Economy and finance
  • Population and social conditions
  • Industry, trade and services
  • Agriculture and fisheries
  • External trade
  • Environment and energy

Food and Agriculture Organization
United Nations
  • FAOSTAT - FAO's overall statistical database
  • FISHERS - employment in aquaculture
  • FISHSTAT - fishery statistics
  • FORIS - forests and forestry statistics
  • GLIPHA - Global Livestock Production and Health Atlas

International Trade Statistics Yearbook
United Nations
Business Library, Reference: HF91.U47301

  • Import/export values and quantities by country for commodities (v. 1)
  • Import/export values by commodity for countries (v. 2)
  • Commodities are reported by SITC instead of than NAICS
SourceOECD
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
  • International economic policy and statistics
  • International trade data
    • Choose "Statistics "
    • Choose "ITCS "
    • Choose an OECD country
  • Economic indicators

UN Comtrade
United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database
Commodity trade data for all available countries and areas since 1962.


World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates
U.S. Department of Agriculture
  • USDA forecasts
  • U.S. and world supply-use balances
  • major grains
  • soybeans and products
  • cotton
  • U.S. supply and use of sugar
  • U.S. supply and use of livestock products.

World Development Indicators
World Bank
  • Nearly 800 statistical indicators
  • Social and economic development.
  • World View
  • People
  • Environment
  • Economy
  • States and Markets
  • Global Links

SELECTED Companies

Resources for Identifying Companies in the Industry

Hoover’s Online

  1. - Proprietary company overviews
  2. - Industry breakdowns and explanations
  3. - Competitor listings
  4. - Financial synopses

Lexis/Nexis Corporate Affiliations
Business Library, Reference: HG4057.A219

  1. - U.S. corporate directory
  2. - Holding company directory

Mergent Online

  1. - Information on 11,000 U.S. public companies and 17,000 non-U.S. Public companies
  2. - Detailed, standardized financial statements
  3. - Searchable by company name, industry codes, revenue levels, and other characteristics
  4. - Comparative analysis among companies
  5. - Access to SEC reports

Ward’s Business Directory of U.S. Private and Public Companies
Business Library, Reference: HG4057.A56

  1. - Listings organized by NAICS code
  2. - Ranks public and private companies by revenues/sales

Library Collections

Selected Reference Titles

For additional materials, contact the Schreyer Business Library.

Almanac of Business and Industrial Financial Ratios *
Business Library, Reference: HF5681.R25T68

The CRB Commodity Yearbook ( Knight-Ridder Financial/Commodity Research Bureau)
Life Sciences Library, Reference: HF1041.C5601

Encyclopedia of Global Industries
Business Library, Reference: HC102.E333

Industry Norms and Key Business Ratios *
Business Library, Reference: HF5681.R2515

RMA Annual Statement Studies *
Business Library, Reference: HF5667.R701

* Resources marked with an asterik (*) report industry norms for common financial ratios, often used to compare one company's performance against the industry.

Call # Ranges

Business and industrial aspects of agriculture
3rd Floor Paterno: HD1401-2210

Scientific and technical aspects of agriculture
4th Floor Paterno: S1-SH691


Trade Associations

Agribusiness, Food Industry and Forest Industry Associations on the Internet

Examples:

International Dairy Foods Association

National Cattlemen's Beef Association

National Pork Board

Organic Trade Association

Career Information

Careers in Agriculture (Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services)

Careers in the Food, Agricultural, and Natural Resource Sciences (Penn State College of Agriculture)

National Agri-Marketing Association

Vault Online Career Library (Currently, Vault Guides are facing problems opening in Adobe Reader 8.x. Please see here for using FREE Adobe Digital Editions to access these guides)

  1. - Vault provides full-text career and industry guides
  2. - Includes company profiles, occupation descriptions, and career-related articles

Career Guide to Industries  (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Business Library, Reference: HF5382.5.U5 C3162

Occupational Outlook Handbook  (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
CAT record for print copies
Business Library, Reference: HD8051.A623

Career Resources Page

 

Return To Top

Economics Department | School of Hospitality Management | Department of Recreation, Park & Tourism Management | The Smeal College of Business | Text-only Version

Contact Business Library Webmaster.
Penn State is committed to affirmative action, equal opportunity, and the diversity of its workforce.
©2003 The Pennsylvania State University
Privacy and legal statements
last updated 12/5/04
U.Ed.LIB 04-67