B:

B&I: Business and Industry Loan

B20: A mixture of 20% biodiesel and 80% petroleum diesel based on volume.

BA: Budget authority

Babcock test: Traditional method of measuring the butterfat content of milk.

Baby beef: Baby beef and calf are interchangeable terms used to describe young cattle weighing about 700 pounds that have been raised mainly on milk and grass. The meat cuts from baby beef are smaller; the meat is light red and contains less fat than beef. The fat may have a yellow tint due to the vitamin A in grass.

Baby lamb: Animals produced year-round by controlled breeding and marketed at six to ten weeks of age before weaning.

Back months: Usually referring to futures contracts that represent next year’s crop.

Backcross: The mating of a two-breed crossbred offspring back to one of its parental breeds.

Backfire: A blaze set in front of an advancing forest fire in an effort to check the wildfire by cutting off its fuel supply.

Backgrounding: (1) The process of grazing weaned calves to increase their size. (2) The management and feeding period from weaning until moving to a feedlot.

Backyard Conservation Campaign: A Natural Resources Conservation Service campaign to inform urban, suburban, and rural residents of the good conservation work being done by farmers and ranchers. At the same time, it encourages them to adopt miniature versions of the same practices in their own backyards, for example composting, mulching, tree planting, nutrient management, and water conservation.

Backyard poultry: Domesticated fowl, including chickens, turkeys, waterfowl, and game birds, except doves and pigeons, which are maintained for hobby or non-commercial production of eggs and meat.

Bactericide: A pesticide used to control or destroy bacteria.

Bacteriologist: One who studies bacteria.

Bacteriophage(s): Viruses whose hosts are bacterial cells. Bacteriophages infect host cells by delivery of the bacteriophage genome into the cytoplasm of the bacterial host, where it interacts with the cellular machinery to carry the bacteriophage life cycle forward. The result of infection often results in destruction of the cell.

Bag: See Udder.

Bait(s): Pesticide-impregnated material that acts as a food substance attractive to pests.

Baitfish: Golden shiners, fathead minnows, and goldfish used as fishing bait.

Baitfish industry (warmwater): The production in ponds of golden shiners, fathead minnows, and goldfish used as fishing bait.

Baking quality: A term applied to wheat and flour indicating performance when made into bread.

Balance of trade: Comparison of exports versus imports with a specific trading partner or in the aggregate.

Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (P.L. 105-33): Signed into law on August 5, 1997. The Act extended the limits on discretionary spending and the pay-as-you-go procedures for direct spending and receipts and was designed to balance the federal budget by 2002. The Act was to achieve $127 billion in net deficit reduction over the 1998-2002 period (gross savings of $160 billion offset by additional spending of $33 billion) and contained major Medicare reforms. See Budget reconciliation.

Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (P.L. 99-177): Signed into law December 12, 1985. Also known as the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act, the law mandated annual reductions in the federal budget deficit with the goal to eliminate it by October 1, 1990 (FY1991) by bringing expenditures in line with revenues. If Congress and the President could not agree on a targeted budget package for any specific fiscal year, automatic cuts (sequestration) could occur for almost all federal programs. Social Security; interest on the federal debt; veterans compensation; veterans pensions; Medicaid; Aid to Families with Dependent Children; the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children; Supplemental Security Income; the Food Stamp Program; and the child nutrition programs were exempt from the cuts. The original Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act was declared unconstitutional (Bowsher v. Synar, 478 U.S. 714 (1986)) and was amended by the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Reaffirmation Act of 1987.

Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Reaffirmation Act of 1987 (P.L. 100-119): Signed into law September 29, 1987. Also known as Gramm-Rudman-Hollings II. Following the Supreme Court decision that struck down the original Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act as an unconstitutional usurpation of executive power by Congress, (Bowsher v. Synar, 478 U.S. 714 (1986)), Congress enacted a reworked version of the law to meet constitutional scrutiny. Under the Deficit Reduction Procedures of Title I, Congress amended the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act by extending the goal of a balanced budget until FY1993, revising the sequestration process, and requiring the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to determine whether a sequester is necessary.

Balanced ration: For an animal, the daily food allowance containing all the dietary requirements to meet the purpose for which it is being fed, including normal health, growth, production, and well-being.

Balancing: A service, usually provided by cooperative associations of milk producers, to tailor the milk supplied to each handler in a market to meet that handler’s needs. It involves directing milk movements between producers’ farms and handlers’ plants, and diverting supplies in excess of handlers’ needs to alternative outlets such as manufactured dairy product plants.

Bale density: A unit of measurement of weight per unit volume normally expressed as pounds per cubic foot. Density is calculated by dividing the net bale weight by the bale volume in cubic feet. Volume is determined by multiplying bale length, width, and thickness. Thickness is determined by measuring from tie to tie across the crown of the bale. See Compress standard density, and Standard density (SD) (cotton).

Bale lists: Lists, provided to the Commodity Credit Corporation by cotton ginners on behalf of producers, that are the production evidence upon which loan deficiency payments are calculated.

Bale(d) (hay): Both string- (35 to 60 pounds) and wire-baled (up to 180 pounds) hay using a square baler machine. Round bales produced by round baler machines can range from 600 to 2000 pounds with the bales being twine- or net-wrapped, some with plastic sheathing.

Bale(s) (tobacco): For flue-cured tobacco, rectangular packages weighing approximately 750 pounds. For burley tobacco, rectangular packages of either approximately 450 pounds (unitized bale) or approximately 75 pounds (farm bales or traditional bales). See Extruded tobacco.

Bale(s) (wool): Traditionally, uncompressed wool bound in bags of between 240 pounds and 450 pounds.

Bale(s); baled (cotton): Approximately 480 (net) to 500 (gross) pounds of ginned, compressed, and bound cotton. See Flat or modified flat bale; flat/modified flat bale, and Mote bales.

Baling (cotton): After ginning, the cotton lint is compressed into rectangular bales that are sheathed in burlap or plastic bagging and bound with metal bands. The bales are then sent to mills for further manufacturing.

Baling (hay): Following mowing and drying, hay is lifted onto conveyor belts that carry the hay into the baling chamber of a mechanical hay baler. See Bale(d) (hay).

Band application: A method of applying fertilizer in bands near plant rows where the fertilizer will be more efficiently used rather than applying it in an application to the entire soil surface.

Bang’s disease: See Brucellosis.

Bank guarantee (export): An assurance, obtained from a bank by a foreign purchaser, that a bank will pay an exporter up to a given amount for goods shipped if the foreign purchaser defaults. See Letter(s) of credit.

Bank(s) for Cooperatives (BC): A bank, operating under Title III of the Farm Credit Act of 1971, as amended, including CoBank, individual and regional Banks for Cooperatives, and Agricultural Credit Banks, that provides credit to all agricultural and aquacultural cooperatives. The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 5402) provided greater authority to finance the import and export of agricultural supplies. See CoBank, and Farm Credit System (FCS).

Bankhead-Jones Act of 1935 (7 U.S.C. §§ 427 et seq.): Signed into law June 29, 1935. The Act, as amended, sought to promote the interests of agriculture by authorizing the USDA to engage in basic research, including research pursued cooperatively with state agricultural experiment stations. The Act also increased support for land grant universities.

Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act of 1937 (P.L. 75-210) (7 U.S.C. §§ 1010-1012): Signed into law July 22, 1937. The Act authorized federal acquisition of eroded and exhausted farm lands, and required the USDA to develop a program of land conservation and utilization to correct maladjustments in land use and assist in such things as reforestation and the protection of fish, wildlife, and natural resources.

BARC: Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (Beltsville)

BARD: Binational Agricultural Research and Development program

Bargaining association(s): Cooperative organization whose major objective is to improve the economic climate of the producers of a particular commodity as to price, terms of sale, or better markets. Bargaining associations generally fall into five categories: bargaining or sales agent, marketing type, exclusive representative in collective bargaining, market service association, and exclusive agency bargaining. Also Farm bargaining association(s).

Bargaining or sales agent (bargaining association): Under this type of bargaining association, the membership agreements generally provide that, as the exclusive bargaining or selling agent, the bargaining association will bargain or negotiate with buyers the prices and terms of sale on behalf of the members. The members agree that they will not otherwise sell or contract for the sale of their production except under such minimum terms as established or approved by the bargaining association. In most cases, liquidated damages are provided for should the members market the production they have under contract with the bargaining association at prices or terms that are less than those established by the bargaining association.

Barley: A cereal grain that tolerates poorer soils and lower temperatures better than does wheat. It is used as a livestock feed, for malt, and for preparing foods. The roasted grains are a coffee substitute.

Barn (freestall): An on-farm structure that houses dairy cows. It consists of multiple individual stalls arranged in rows with the rows separated by alleys. Freestall barns are open-sided structures with only a roof supported by poles. Cows are free to wander and occupy any open stall when in the barn, as opposed to a stanchion barn in which cows occupy designated stalls.

Barn (herringbone): See Barn (milking).

Barn (milking): An on-farm structure that contains the milking machine. Cows are brought to the milking barn in large groups for milking, usually twice and sometimes three times a day. The barn may be referred to by the arrangement of the milking machine. For example, a herringbone barn is a milking barn that contains a milking machine with parallel stalls at angles, resembling the bones of a fish. A rotary barn describes a milking machine built in a circle that rotates as cows are milked.

Barn (rotary): See Barn (milking).

Barn (stanchion): An older style, on-farm structure that houses dairy cows. Stanchion barns are typically enclosed on all sides. Cows occupy designated stalls, as opposed to a freestall barn in which cows are free to wander and occupy any open stall.

Barn sour: (1) A horse that objects to being ridden away from the barn. (2) A herd-bound horse that objects to leaving its pasture mates.

Barn(s): A building (other than a dwelling) on a farm, ranch, or other agricultural operation for housing animals, storing or processing crops, storing and maintaining agricultural equipment, or serving an essential or useful purpose related to agricultural activities conducted on the adjacent land. See Historic barn, and Historic barn preservation program.

Barrel cheese; barrel(s): A form of packaging rather than a type of cheese. The barrel is a plastic-lined cardboard container that holds approximately 500 pounds of cheese. Barrel packaging is typically used for bulk cheese that will be further processed. See Block(s).

Barrow(s): A young, castrated male pig.

Barter: Trade in which goods, materials, and services are traded directly for goods, materials, and services, all without the exchange of money.

Basal area (tree): A cross-sectional area of a tree, in square feet, measured at breast height (4.5 feet above the ground level). Used as a method of measuring the volume of timber in a given stand.

Basal cover (area): The area of ground surface covered by the stem or stems of a rangeland plant, usually measured one inch above the soil, in contrast to the full spread of the foliage.

Base: See Base acres (acreage), and Crop acreage base (CAB).

Base acres (acreage): Under Sec. 1101(a) of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, the acreage of a covered commodity and oilseeds eligible to participate in direct payments and counter-cyclical payments. See Alternative calculation methods, Crop acreage base (CAB), and Update; updating.

Base acres (acreage) (peanuts): Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 1302(d)), for direct payments and counter-cyclical payments, the total number of acres assigned to a farm of a historic peanut producer using a four-year (1998-2001) average of acreage planted to peanuts or acreage on which the producer was prevented from planting peanuts.

Base adjustment: (1) Under the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990, the Farm Service Agency was given the authority to adjust a crop acreage base for any program crop on any farm if the crop acreage base was adversely affected by factors beyond the control of that producer. (2) Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 1101(e)), the USDA is directed to provide for an adjustment in base acreage when a Conservation Reserve Program contract expires or is terminated voluntarily. See Update; updating.

Base and yield analyzer: A decision support tool to assist producers in analyzing the economic consequences of selecting various base and yield alternatives under the direct payment program and counter-cyclical program. The analyzer is designed to help producers navigate through the numerous base and yield options, which is especially important since counter-cyclical payments are based on uncertain future crop prices.

Base building: Under the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990, in order to increase crop acreage base for any program crop, every program crop on that farm must have been kept out of the program during the year in which the producer wished to increase the crop acreage base. Crop acreage base for wheat and feedgrains was calculated using a five-year average; a three-year average was used for rice and cotton. Therefore, any wheat and feedgrain farm that remained out of the program for one year could increase its wheat and feedgrain crop acreage base the following year by 20 percent of that acreage planted above the previous crop acreage base; the figure was 33 percent for cotton and rice. See Update; updating.

Base grade (cotton): A selected grade of cotton used by cotton merchants as a basis for contracts, premiums, and discounts.

Base market hog: Under the Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act of 1999, a hog for which no discounts are subtracted and no premiums are added to the base price.

Base mix: A uniform feed mixture of macro-minerals, micro-minerals, vitamins, and a carrier blended together in one product and added to energy and protein sources to make up a complete feed.

Base payment(s): Under the Conservation Security Program, the payment of 5 percent of either the average national rental rate for the 2001 crop year for the specific land use or another appropriate rate that ensures regional equity, up to $5000 for Tier I contracts; 10 percent of either the average national rental rate for the 2001 crop year for the specific land use or another appropriate rate that ensures regional equity, up to $10,500 for Tier II contracts; and 15 percent of either the average national rental rate for the 2001 crop year for the specific land use or another appropriate rate that ensures regional equity, up to $13,500 for Tier III contracts. See Tier I (conservation security) payment(s), Tier II (conservation security) payment(s), and Tier III (conservation security) payment(s).

Base period: (1) The specified time period used as a base for an index. (2) In the Uruguay Round, 1986-88 was the base period for calculating domestic support and market access levels, and the base period for export subsidies was 1986-90. (3) For tobacco, the five calendar years immediately preceding the year for which farm acreage allotments or marketing quotas are currently being established. For burley tobacco marketing quotas established effective for the 1994 and subsequent crop years, the base period shall be the three calendar years immediately preceding the year for which farm marketing quotas are currently being established. For all other kinds of tobacco, the five-year base period shall remain in effect.

Base period price: The average price for an item in a specified time period used as a base for an index, such as 1910-14, 1957-59, and 1967.

Base price: (1) A basic contract price established on minimum quality standards from which premiums or discounts are assessed. (2) See Parity price(s). (3) See Base price (livestock). (4) See Base price (milk). (5) The price used to calculate revenue guarantees for revenue insurance products. Base prices are averages of settlement prices of Chicago Board of Trade futures contracts. See Projected price.

Base price (livestock): The price paid for livestock delivered at the packing plant before application of any premiums or discounts, expressed in dollars per hundred pounds of carcass weight.

Base price (milk): Previously, in federal milk marketing orders the basic formula price served as the Class III price and as the building block, or base price, upon which differentials were placed for both the Class I price for fluid milk and the Class II price for soft, perishable, manufactured dairy products. Under the recent USDA final rule, the base price is now the higher of the Class III price for cheese or the separate Class IV price for butter and dry milk products.

Base programs (Extension): The major, ongoing educational efforts central to the mission of the Cooperative Extension System and common to most System units. The System’s base programs involve Smith-Lever 3(b&c), Payments to 1890 Colleges and Tuskegee University, and D.C. Extension, and include agricultural competitiveness and profitability; community resource and economic development; family development and resource management; 4-H and youth development; leadership and volunteer development; natural resources and environmental management; and nutrition, diet, and health. See Cooperative Extension System (CES).

Base rent plus bonus lease: A flexible lease in which a minimum base rent is established using an expected price and yield. A bonus is paid if the actual price or yield is higher than expected. See Adjustment for price and yield lease, Adjustment for price only lease, Adjustment for yield only lease, and Percentage share lease.

Base updating: See Update; Updating.

Baseline: A projection of the levels of federal spending, revenues, and the resulting budgetary surpluses or deficits for the upcoming and subsequent fiscal years, taking into account laws enacted to date and assuming no new policy decisions. It provides a benchmark for measuring the budgetary effects of proposed changes in federal revenues or spending, assuming certain economic conditions. Baseline projections are prepared by the Congressional Budget Office and used by the Congressional budget committees to develop of the annual budget resolution and reconciliation instructions.

Basic commodity(ies): Six storable commodities designated in the Agricultural Act of 1949 as requiring specific price-support programs (rice, cotton, corn, wheat, peanuts, and tobacco).

Basic conservation system: A combination of conservation practices, including crop rotation and installing conservation structures, that reduces annual soil loss due to erosion to T levels.

Basic food groups: Using the Food Guide Pyramid, the (a) bread, cereals, rice and pasta group; (b) vegetable and fruit group; (c) dairy group; (d) meat, poultry, fish, dry beans, eggs, and nuts group; and (e) fats, oils, and sweets group.

Basic food(s): (1) According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, rice, grains, oilseeds, and meat. (2) According to the U.S. Agency for International Development, the main bulk of rations in emergency operations that provide the majority of energy, protein, and fat required by recipients. These foods include staples such as wheat, corn, grain sorghum, roots, and tubers, as well as vegetable oil and protein-rich foods such as pulses.

Basic formula price (BFP): Under an old dairy pricing formula, the price calculated monthly by the USDA that was the building block for pricing most milk in the nation. In May 1995 the BFP replaced the Minnesota-Wisconsin price as the base price of manufacturing milk. It was based on market prices paid by processors for unregulated Grade B milk in the upper Midwest, and was primarily driven by the price of cheese on the National Cheese Exchange in Wisconsin. The BFP has served as the Class III price and the base price for the Class I price and the Class II price. The USDA issued an interim final rule to replace the BFP with the higher of the new Class III price for cheese or the separate Class IV price for butter and dry milk products in December 2000 to be effective January 1, 2001. These, in turn, were enjoined by the federal District Court of the District of Columbia on January 31, 2001. In October 2001, the USDA issued a recommended decision altering the pricing formulas. A final decision, making some minor changes from the recommended decision, was made November 7, 2002.

Basic loan rate: The loan rate established by the Commodity Credit Corporation for a commodity before any adjustments for premiums and discounts. Also Formula loan rate. See Announced loan rate, Loan rate(s), and Nonrecourse loan(s).

Basic quota (tobacco): The sum of purchase intentions by manufacturers announced on December 1, plus a three-year average of unmanufactured exports, plus an adjustment for the difference between stabilization inventories and the required reserve stock level.

Basic research: (1) Fundamental research on principles of organisms that adds new knowledge without assurances of direct application. (2) Research that tests scientific hypotheses and provides basic knowledge which allows advances in applied research and from which major conceptual breakthroughs can occur.

Basic unit(s): Under crop insurance, producers can designate a basic unit per crop on all tracts of land they own or cash lease combined within a county. Producers also receive a basic unit for all land under a crop-share lease per different landlord. See Enterprise unit(s), Insurance unit(s), Optional unit(s), and Whole farm unit(s).

Basing point(s): Under federal milk marketing orders, the site used to establish prices based on the distance from the site. See Class I differential(s), and Multiple basing point(s).

Basis: In commodity futures trading, the difference between the futures price and a cash market price. A Chicago futures price usually reflects the Chicago cash price plus the cost of storage, insurance, and interest from today until the delivery date in the future. Local basis differs from basis at the delivery point by roughly the cost of transportation.

Basis contract(s): A grain or cotton marketing contract that allows a producer to lock in a basis that is over or under a specific futures contract. The price received is the futures month price, plus or minus the basis level agreed to in the contract. See Forward contract(s)(ing).

Basis level: The agreed adjustment to a future price to establish the final price paid for livestock.

Basis point: One one-hundredth of one percent.

Basis risk: Risk of varying fluctuations of the spot price and the futures price between the moment at which a position is opened and the moment at which it is closed.

Basted: The industry practice of injecting a specific volume of liquid into raw poultry and poultry parts to improve tenderness, juiciness, or flavor, and to improve cooking time. The basting solution may be broth, butter, or vegetable oil.

Batt: Matted lint cotton.

Battery cage(s): A wire-mesh cage used to house layers during laying season.

BC: Bank for Cooperatives (CoBank)

Beak trimming: See Debeak.

Bed(s): A truncated mound of soil mechanically formed (through plowing or blading) at regular spacing across a field for the purpose of improving temperature and moisture conditions during seed germination and stand establishment. In the humid southern and irrigated western U.S., cotton is usually planted in single-row or double-row beds. Also Seedbed.

Bedding: Typically, straw, sawdust, wood shavings, seed hulls, hay, peat moss, or sand used as flooring in animal facilities for animal comfort and an absorbent for waste collection.

Bedrock: Solid rock that generally underlies soil and other unconsolidated materials. See Horizon(s).

Beef: Meat from cattle (bovine species) other than calves. Meat from calves is called veal.

Beef (carcass) grading: The beef carcass grades identify two separate general characteristics: (a) the expected yield of closely trimmed, boneless retail cuts from the major wholesale cuts (round, sirloin, short loin, rib, and square-cut chuck) of a carcass-referred to as the yield grade, and (b) characteristics of the meat that predict the palatability of the lean-referred to as the quality grade. When officially graded, the grade of a steer, heifer, cow, or bullock carcass may consist of the quality grade only, the yield grade only, or a combination of the quality grade and the yield grade. The grade of a bull carcass consists of the yield grade only. While inspection is mandatory, grading is voluntary, and a plant pays to have its meat graded.

Beef Belt: Area of the U.S. where commercial beef production, slaughtering, and processing are concentrated.

Beef cattle price (index) (BPI): The average annual price for beef cattle in the sixteen contiguous Western states to be utilized in the formula for calculating grazing fees.

Beefalo: A hybrid cattle breed that is 3/8 bison, 3/8 Charolais, and 1/4 Hereford.

Beefy; beefiness: A term used to designate the desirable physical conformation of a beef animal, as contrasted with a dairy animal which is trimmer and more angular.

Beestings: The first milk a cow gives after calving; very high in protein.

Beet sugar: Sugar, whether or not principally of crystalline structure, that is processed directly or indirectly from domestically produced sugarbeets (including sugar produced from sugarbeet molasses).

Beggar-thy-neighbor policy: A course of action through which a country tries to reduce unemployment and increase domestic output by raising tariffs and instituting nontariff trade barriers that impede imports, thereby encouraging retaliation, which worsens the economic difficulties that precipitated the initial protectionist action.

Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program: Authorized by the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 7405), a development program for beginning farmers and ranchers to provide training, education, outreach, and technical assistance initiatives. Matching grants to a state, tribal, local, or regionally based network or partnership of public or private entities are available to implement the program, including providing services such as mentoring, resource referral, model land leasing, business training, risk management, whole-farm planning, diversification and marketing strategies, basic farming practices, curriculum development, and environmental compliance. See Curriculum and Training Clearinghouse.

Beginning; beginning farmer(s) and (or) rancher(s) (qualified): (1) For purposes of Farm Service Agency loans, research, Extension, and conservation programs, a producer who has operated a farm or ranch for no more than ten years. The producer must substantially participate in the operation of the farm. (2) Under the Farm Credit System YBS initiative, a farmer, rancher, producer or harvester of aquatic products, or one who is in the process of establishing an agricultural operation and who has not assumed the full control and risk thereof for longer than ten years. (3) Under the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program authorized by the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 7405), a person who has not operated a farm or ranch, or has not operated a farm or ranch for more than ten years, and who meets other criteria set by the USDA.

Belly wool; bellies: Wool that grows on the belly of the sheep. It is often uneven, tender, and shorter than wool from other parts of the body. It is often coarser, stained, and seedy.

Belt(s): Inclined conveyors for moving grain horizontally. Belts are preferred over legs because they cause less damage to grain and create less dust. Also Inclined belt(s). See Leg, Marine leg, Sampler, and Tripper.

Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (Beltsville) (BARC): Established at Beltsville, Maryland, in 1910 and is the largest ARS laboratory in the country. BARC includes the Beltsville Human Nutrition Center, the Livestock and Poultry Science Laboratory, the Natural Resources Institute, the Plant Sciences Institute, and the National Agricultural Library.

Benchmark: An annual set of strategies and goals established for the purpose of measuring performance.

Beneficial interest(s): For a commodity to be eligible for a loan or loan deficiency payment, the producer must have beneficial interest in the commodity in addition to other eligibility requirements. A producer retains beneficial interest in the commodity if all of the following remain with the producer: (a) control of the commodity, (b) risk of loss, and (c) title to the commodity. For loans, the producer must retain beneficial interest in the commodity from the time of harvest through the date the loan is redeemed or the Commodity Credit Corporation takes title to the commodity. For loan deficiency payments, the producer must retain beneficial interest in the commodity from the time of harvest through the date the LDP is requested. See Good faith exception to beneficial interest requirement.

Beneficials; beneficial insects: Insects of benefit to man because of their useful products such as beeswax, silk, shellac, or honey; their promotion of soil fertility; their use as food for wildlife; their destruction of noxious weeds and injurious insects; their aiding in pollination; and their use in scientific investigations.

Benefit-cost analysis: A process used for economic appraisal of a project or program. It consists of adding up all the benefits and costs of a project to society, adjusting them by using a discount rate to reflect the opportunity cost of the invested funds, and computing the value received from the project. The discount rate reflects (a) the assumptions of the researcher about preferences society has for consumption today over the future, (b) the amount that could be earned if the funds had been invested elsewhere (opportunity cost), or (c) some combination of each.

Best management practice(s) (BMP): A concept describing the set of activities that represent the most effective way to limit environmental impacts on, most generally, surface water. In farming, BMPs include practices designed to lessen water contamination, erosion, and runoff. These practices include ridge-, no-, and reduced-tillage; contour farming; filter strips; strip cropping; irrigation water management; and judicious fertilizer use.

BFP: Basic formula price

Bias: Occurs when problems in research design lead to effects that are not related to the variables being studied.

BICO: Bulk commodities, value-added intermediate agricultural products, and high-value, consumer-oriented foods and beverages

BICO report: Provides U.S. agricultural export data on bulk commodities, value-added intermediate agricultural products, and high-value, consumer-oriented foods and beverages. In addition to these three product categories, the report also includes U.S. export data on forest products and edible fish and seafood products. Within these five product categories, trade data is provided for 46 separate product groups. The report organizes export data by country and by product.

Bid: In commodity futures trading, an expression indicating a desire to buy a commodity at a given price; opposite of offer. See Offer.

Bidding down: (1) Under the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, if the USDA determines that the environmental values of two or more applications for cost-share payments or incentive payments are comparable, the USDA shall not assign a higher priority to an application only because it would present the least cost to the program. (2) Under the Farmland Protection Program, if the USDA determines that two or more applications for the purchase of a conservation easement or other interest in eligible land are comparable in achieving the purposes of the program, the USDA shall not assign a higher priority to any one of those applications solely on the basis of lesser cost to the program.

Biennual (plant): Typically, plants that germinate from seed in the spring and devote the first year’s growing season to developing. During the second spring or summer in the following year, the plants flower, set seed, and then die at the end of that growing season.

BIFAD: Board for International Food and Agricultural Development

Big Three: The three largest beef packers that control three-quarters of the slaughter market share in the U.S. See Concentration.

Bilateral (trade) agreement(s): A trade agreement between any two nations. The agreement may be either preferential (applying only to the two countries involved), or most favored nation (negotiated between the two countries but extending to all or most other countries that comply with the terms of the agreement between the two nations).

Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act (P.L. 104-210): Signed into law October 1, 1996. The Act converts Title IV of the National and Community Service Act of 1990, known as the Model Good Samaritan Food Donation Act, into permanent law, within the Child Nutrition Act of 1966. The Act is designed to encourage the donation of food and grocery products to nonprofit organizations such as homeless shelters, soup kitchens, and churches for distribution to needy individuals. The Act promotes food recovery by limiting the liability of donors to instances of gross negligence or intentional misconduct. The Act further states that, absent gross negligence or intentional misconduct, persons, gleaners, and nonprofit organizations shall not be subject to civil or criminal liability arising from the nature, age, packaging, or condition of apparently wholesome food or apparently fit grocery products received as donations. It also establishes basic nationwide uniform definitions pertaining to donation and distribution of nutritious foods and will help assure that donated foods meet all quality and labeling standards of federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust: The Africa: Seeds of Hope Act of 1998 established a replenishment mechanism to enable the USDA to purchase commodities for overseas emergencies in advance, when prices are low, instead of waiting for emergencies when commodity prices may be high. The Trust enhances the capacity of the U.S. to respond to urgent humanitarian food crises in a timely manner. The Trust was reauthorized through fiscal year 2007 by the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 3202). See Food Security Commodity Reserve.

Bill Emerson Hunger Fellowship: A fellowship program, authorized by the Congressional Hunger Fellows Act of 2002, to address hunger and other humanitarian needs in the U.S. See Mickey Leland Hunger Fellowship.

Bill(s) of lading (B/L): A document issued by a carrier to a shipper (origin of goods, destination, consignor, consignee, description of shipment) that is both a receipt for merchandise and a contract to deliver it as freight. See Waybill (WB).

Binational Agricultural Research and Development program (BARD): An agreement between the U.S. and Israel to establish an endowment fund to help sponsor greater scientific cooperation between the two countries in the area of agricultural research.

Binding(s): See Bound tariff rate(s).

Bio-oil: See Biocrude.

Bioaccumulation: The net accumulation of a substance by an organism as a result of uptake from all environmental sources. As an organism ages, it can accumulate more of these substances, either from its food or directly from the environment. Bioaccumulation of a toxic substance has the potential to cause harm to organisms, particularly to those at the top of the food chain. See Biomagnification.

Bioassay: A method of testing a material for its effects on living organisms.

Bioavailability: The relative ability of nutrients in foods to be properly digested or absorbed.

Biobased: Generally, products which are predominately made from biological materials. Also known as biodegradable. See Biobased product(s).

Biobased (pest) management: The control of pests using one or more of five major tactics: (a) biological control – suppression of pests by using natural enemies (predators, parasites, competitors, and diseases), (b) microbial pesticides, (c) behavior-modifying chemicals, (d) genetic manipulation of pests, and (e) host plant resistance. See Biological control agent(s) (organism) and Biopesticide(s).

Biobased industrial product(s): Fuels, chemicals, building materials, electric power, or heat produced from biomass.

Biobased product(s): Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Title IX, Sec. 9001), a commercial or industrial product (other than food or feed) that is composed, in whole or significant part, of biological products or renewable domestic agricultural materials (including plant, animal, and marine materials) or forestry materials. Examples include polymers, lubricants, solvents, composites, and energy.

Biobased products pilot project: The Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 (Sec. 404) authorized the USDA to enter into cooperative agreements with private entities to use the facilities and expertise of the Agricultural Research Service to develop and commercialize new biobased products and to carry out an ARS-based pilot project. The pilot program was reauthorized by the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 7124).

Biobased Products/Bioenergy Initiative: A Presidential initiative within the Department of Energy to expand markets for agricultural and forestry products, to reduce U.S. dependence on oil imports, expand rural business opportunities, and cut pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

Biochemical conversion: The use of fermentation or anaerobic digestion to produce fuels and chemicals from organic sources.

Biochemical pesticides: Naturally occurring substances that control pests through nontoxic mechanisms. Biochemical pesticides include substances such as pheromones that interfere with the growth or mating of a pest. See Biopesticide(s).

Biochemical(s): Naturally occurring or identical to naturally occurring substances, including hormones, pheromones, and enzymes.

Biochemist: One who studies the chemistry of living organisms.

Biocides: Chemical pesticides that kill microorganisms.

Biocontainment: A process aimed at keeping biological organisms within a limited space or area.

Biocontrol: See Biological control(s) (biocontrol) (of pests).

Biocrude: Oil produced by the thermal decomposition of solid biomass under heat and pressure and in the absence of oxygen. Also Bio-oil and Pyrolysis oil.

Biodefense: The protection of agriculture, food, and water against both natural or unintentional introduction of disease and threats that may be deliberate, multiple, and repetitive. The U.S. program involves threat awareness, prevention and protection, surveillance and detection, and response and recovery.

Biodegradable: See Degradable.

Biodiesel: A clean burning alternative fuel, most commonly produced by transesterification of soybean oil, but also other vegetable oils and animal fats, that can be blended with petroleum diesel.

Biodiesel Fuel Education Program: Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 9004), a program to educate governmental and private entities that operate vehicle fleets, other interested entities, and the public about the benefits of biodiesel fuel use.

Biodiversity: Naturally occurring variety of different organisms in an ecological system.

Biodynamic agriculture; biodynamic farming: A concept and practice of farming that emphasizes working in concert with the forces within “living nature.” Central to the biodynamic method are certain herbal preparations that guide the decomposition processes for manures and compost.

Bioenergy: (1) Useful, renewable energy produced from the conversion of complex carbohydrates in organic matter to energy. Organic matter may either be used directly as a fuel or processed into liquids and gases. (2) Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 9010), both biodiesel and fuel grade ethanol. (3) Biomass-derived energy including biodiesel, ethanol, methane, electricity, and steam.

Bioenergy Feedstock Development programs: The Department of Energy (DOE) programs, assisted by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and funded by the DOE, that provide technical leadership in feedstock research through two integrated programs: Biopower Feedstock Development Program and Biofuels Feedstock Development Program. These programs perform research, development, and analysis to establish that biomass supply systems can be environmentally beneficial and commercially viable. They emphasize developing new, sustainable energy resources based on solar energy captured by living plants. The research is carried out in partnership with universities, other government agencies, and the private sector.

Bioenergy Program: A program established under the authority of the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act (Sec. 5(e)) and amended by the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 9010), to expand industrial consumption of agricultural commodities by promoting their use in production of bioenergy. The CCC will make cash payments to bioenergy producers compensating them for a portion of their increased commodity purchases made to expand existing production of bioenergy and to encourage the construction of new production capacity.

Bioengineering; bioengineered: See Biotechnology, and Genetic engineering; genetically engineered.

Biofilms: Microscopic animals, plants, and bacteria attached to a surface by a slime layer that also offers protection. Some biofilms possess bioremediation properties.

Biofuel(s): Any fuel produced from biomass including ethanol and biodiesel. Agricultural products specifically grown for use as biofuels include corn, soybeans, flaxseed, and rapeseed.

Biofuels: Liquid fuels that are derived from biological materials.

Biofuels Feedstock Development Program: See Bioenergy Feedstock Development programs.

Biogas: The combustible gas (a mixture of carbon dioxide, methane, and small amounts of other gases) produced from the anaerobic digestion of organic material, primarily animal and agricultural waste. The resulting gas may be used as a fuel.

Bioinformatics: The integration of mathematical, statistical, and computer methods to quicken and enhance the understanding of biological data.

Biointensive gardening: A production system that makes it possible for one person to grow all of his or her food using sustainable agriculture methods that maintain the fertility of the soil without relying on nonrenewable resources such as petrochemicals or imported organic matter. Also Mini-farming.

Biointensive IPM: The emphasis on a range of preventive tactics and biological controls to keep a pest population within acceptable limits. Reduced-risk pesticides are used if other tactics have not been adequately effective, as a last resort, and with care to minimize risks. See Integrated pest management (IPM).

Biological agents: Living organisms and their products derived from live organisms that are disseminated with the intention of causing disease in the target population of humans, animals, and plants.

Biological control agent(s) (organism): A natural enemy, antagonist, or competitor, and other self-replicating biotic entity, used to control pests or noxious weeds. See Biopesticide(s).

Biological control(s) (biocontrol) (of pests): (1) Control, but not always a total eradication, of an insect pest achieved by using natural enemies, either indigenous or imported, or diseases to which the pest is susceptible. (2) The use of other organisms to eliminate or severely reducepathogen populations.

Biological farming: A system of crop production in which the producer tries to minimize the use of pesticides for control of crop pests. Typically, biological farming also encompasses various and more specific practices and techniques such as organic farming, biodynamic agriculture, holistic management, and natural farming. Also Ecological farming

Biological oxygen demand (BOD): The presence of oxygen-depleting waste materials in water which threatens aquatic life.

Biological products: All viruses, serums, toxins (excluding substances that are selectively toxic to microorganisms, e.g., antibiotics), or analogous products at any stage of production, shipment, distribution, or sale, that are intended for use in the treatment of animals and that act primarily through the direct stimulation, supplementation, enhancement, or modulation of the immune system or immune response. The term includes, but is not limited to, vaccines, bacterins, allergens, antibodies, antitoxins, toxoids, immunostimulants, certain cytokines, antigenic or immunizing components of live organisms, and diagnostic components, that are of natural or synthetic origin, or that are derived from synthesizing or altering various substances or components of substances such as microorganisms, genes or genetic sequences, carbohydrates, proteins, antigens, allergens, or antibodies.

Biological threat(s): A threat that consists of biological material planned to be deployed to produce casualties in personnel or animals and damage plants or other materiel.

Biologicals: See Biological products.

Biologics: Immunization materials, made from living or “killed” organisms and their products, used for the detection and prevention of diseases; includes serums, vaccines, bacterins, antigens, and antitoxins. See Biological products.

Biomagnification: The process by which the concentration of a substance increases in different organisms at higher levels in the food chain. For example, if an organism is eaten by another organism, these substances move up the food chain and become more concentrated at each step. See Bioaccumulation.

Biomarkers: Also biological markers. Molecular indicators or compounds that indicate an unambiguous link with a natural product or condition.

Biomass: Any organic matter that is available on a renewable or recurring basis. Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Title IX, Sec. 9001), biomass includes agricultural crops, trees grown for energy production, wood waste and wood residues, plants (including aquatic plants and grasses), residues, fibers, animals wastes and other waste materials, and fats, oils, and greases (including recycled fats, oils, and greases), but not recycled paper or unsegregated solid waste.

Biomass (energy): Liquid fuels produced from renewable resources.

Biomass fuel: Liquid, solid, or gaseous fuel produced by conversion of biomass including ethanol from sugar cane or corn, charcoal, or woodchips, and biogas from anaerobic decomposition of wastes. See Biofuel(s).

Biomass industrial product: Fuels, chemicals, building materials, or electric power or heat produced from biomass.

Biomass Research and Development Act of 2000 (Title III of the Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000): The Act establishes a biomass research and development initiative. Because biomass is in the national interest, Congress determined it is appropriate to provide pre-commercial investment in fundamental research and research-driven innovation in the biomass processing area. The USDA and Department of Energy (DOE) were directed to cooperate and coordinate policies and procedures that promote research and development leading to the production of biobased industrial products. The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 9008) extended the termination of authority from December 31, 2005, to September 30, 2007.

Biometrics: Technologies that utilize behavioral or physiological characteristics to determine or verify identity, including finger-scans, retina-scans, and iris-scans.

Biopesticide(s): Pesticides derived from such natural materials as animals, plants, bacteria, and certain minerals, as opposed to synthetic pesticides. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, biopesticides are thought to be advantageous because they are usually less harmful than conventional pesticides, generally affect only the target pest and closely related organisms, are often effective in small quantities that decompose quickly, and can greatly decrease the use of conventional pesticides without crop yield loss when used as a component of integrated pest management programs. There are three major classes of biopesticides: microbial pesticides, plant pesticides, and biochemical pesticides. See Bt corn, and Bt cotton.

Biopharming: The production of pharmaceuticals or specialty chemicals in genetically modified plants.

Biopower: Renewal energy produced through the use of plant materials. See Energy crops.

Biopower Feedstock Development Program: See Bioenergy Feedstock Development programs.

Biopower; biomass power: The direct burning of biomass, or conversion into gaseous or liquid fuels that burn more efficiently, to generate electricity.

Bioproduct: Products made from converting biomass into chemicals that traditionally are made from petroleum. Bioproducts made from sugars include antifreeze, plastics, glues, artificial sweeteners, and gel for toothpaste. Bioproducts made from carbon monoxide and hydrogen of syngas include plastics and acids used to make photographic films, textiles, and synthetic fabrics. Bioproducts made from phenol include wood adhesives, molded plastic, and foam insulation.

Biorefinery: (1) Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 9003(b)(2)), equipment and processes that convert biomass into fuels and chemicals and may produce electricity. (2) An operation that uses biomass to produce energy and other value-added products such as steam, electricity, and alternative fermentation chemicals.

Biorefinery Development Grants: Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 9003), grants used to assist in the development of new and emerging technologies using biomass including developing transportation and other fuels, chemicals, and energy from renewable resources; increasing the energy independence of the U.S.; providing beneficial effects on conservation, public health, and the environment; diversifying markets for raw agricultural and forestry products; and creating jobs and enhancing the economic development of the rural economy.

Bioremediation: The process by which living organisms act to degrade or transform hazardous organic contaminants.

Biosafety Level (BSL): According to the CDC, four levels of precautions for use of biological agents: (a) Biosafety Level 1 – work involving well-characterized agents not known to consistently cause disease in healthy adult humans, and of minimal potential hazard to laboratory personnel and the environment; (b) Biosafety Level 2 – work involving agents of moderate potential hazard to personnel and the environment; (c) Biosafety Level 3 – applicable to clinical, diagnostic, teaching, research, or production facilities in which work is done with indigenous or exotic agents which may cause serious or potentially lethal disease as a result of exposure by the inhalation route, and (d) Biosafety Level 4 – applicable to work with dangerous and exotic agentsthat pose a high individual risk of aerosol-transmitted laboratory infections and life-threatening disease; work is done in completely isolated facilities. See Plum Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC).

Biosecurity: (1) A practice designed to prevent the spread of disease on farms. It is accomplished by maintaining the farm in such a way that there is minimal traffic of biological organisms (e.g., viruses, bacteria, rodents) across its borders. Biosecurity has three major components: isolation, traffic control, and sanitation. (2) Securing a nation’s food supply from accidental and deliberate threats. See Bioterrorism.

Biosolid(s): The soil-like residue of materials removed from waste during the treatment process. During treatment, bacteria and other tiny organisms break waste down into simpler, harmless organic matter. The organic matter, combined with bacterial cell masses, settles out to form biosolids.

Biosphere: The zone where all living things are located.

Biosyngas: See Synthesis gas; syngas.

Biota; biotic: The animal and plant life of a particular region considered as a total ecological entity.

Biotechnology: Use of microorganisms, plant cells, animal cells, or parts of cells to produce new products or to carry out life processes.

Biotechnology and Agricultural Trade Program: The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 3204) required the USDA to establish a program to remove, resolve, or mitigate nontariff trade barriers to U.S. exports through quick response intervention or developing protocols as part of bilateral agreements on food safety, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, and disease issues.

Bioterrorism: (1) Terrorism directed at a nation’s food supply. (2) The use of biological agents such as microorganisms or toxins to cause fear and/or to sicken or kill plants, animals, and humans. See Biosecurity.

Biotic (communities): The assemblage of native and exotic plants and animals associated with a particular site or landscape, including microorganisms, fungi, algae, vascular and herbaceous plants, invertebrates, and vertebrates.

Biotrophs: Parasitic fungi that need a living host to complete their life cycles.

Bipartisan Trade Promotion Authority Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-210): Division B of the Trade Act of 2002 that contains the reauthorization of trade promotion authority.

Bird-by-bird inspection: See Continuous inspection.

Birds, rats, and mice: See Animal Welfare Act (AWA).

Birth litter (swine): Total born pigs produced by one breeding female at one farrowing. See Nurse litter (swine), and Wean litter (swine).

Black cutters: See Dark-cutting beef.

Black light test: A common test for the presence of aflatoxin that is also known as the BGYF (bright greenish yellow fluorescence) test. Corn is inspected under the UV lamp (long-wave ultraviolet light) for a characteristic bright greenish yellow fluorescence in broken and damaged kernels. The characteristic fluorescence is associated with the presence of kojic acid produced from the aflatoxin-producing fungi.

Black-out (pullet) house: The housing used for light (either artificial or natural) management to stimulate the final elements of pullet sexual maturity for efficient egg production. The properly sensitized bird will come into production on time, an essential element to managing breeder flock placement times. One by-product of a good black-out program is better control of growth and feed consumption.

Blackleg: Clostridium bacterial infection of cattle that causes swelling of legs and is often fatal.

Blair House Agreement: See 1992 Blair House Memorandum of Understanding on Oilseeds (Blair House Agreement).

Blanching: Except for tree nuts and peanuts, a prepackaging heat treatment of foodstuffs for a sufficient time and at a sufficient temperature to partially or completely inactivate the naturally occurring enzymes and to effect other physical or biochemical changes in the food.

Blast: A rice disease caused by the fungus Pyricularia grisea. The disease can have different forms: leaf blast, node blast, or neck blast. Lesions on panicle neck nodes may result in empty panicles.

Bleached; bleached grains: Grains treated with sulfurous acid or any other bleaching agent.

Blend price: The price paid to producers for Grade A milk when classified pricing is used in an individual handler pool. The blend price is an average of class prices weighted by the quantity of milk utilized in each class. Producers participating in a pool receive its blend price with adjustments for butterfat content and farm location, if so specified. See Marketwide pool(ing), and Total value of producer milk.

Blend(s): (1) The combination of different classes and types of tobacco to produce a desired flavor, aroma, or burn. The blend of most cigarettes and smoking tobaccos is kept secret. (2) Combining grains with different moisture or other content in order to meet contract specifications. (3) Wools from several different lots that are blended and mechanically mixed to achieve uniform quality and color. (4) A textile containing two or more different fibers, variants of the same fiber, or different colors and grades of the same fiber.

Blended credit: A former financing plan for export sales in which government credit guarantees or government credit at lower interest rates was blended with regular commercial credit to provide lower interest rates and more favorable terms for foreign buyers. For example, blended credit included a combination of GSM-5 funds at zero percent interest with GSM-102 funds at commercial rates for terms up to three years.

Blended foods: PL 480 foods consisting of finely granulated precooked cereal flour, soy flour, and grains fortified with vitamins and minerals. These have a shorter cooking time, easier digestibility, higher donor cost, and shorter shelf life.

Blending: See Blend(s).

Blight(s): Fungal disease with symptoms of very rapid browning of leaves and stems of plants, resulting in death.

Blind experiment: See Double-blind experiment, and Single-blind experiment.

BLM: Bureau of Land Management

Block cheese: See Block(s).

Block grant(s): Typically regarded as mandatory grants to states, some block grants consist of smaller, specific-purpose grants consolidated into one “block.” Block grants provide greater flexibility of use, and place fewer federal administrative restrictions on grantees. See Grant(s).

Block(s): The most common packaging or style of cheese produced for wholesale distribution before it is further processed for distribution and sale. This style of natural cheese is aged in 20-, 40-, 60-, or 640-pound blocks that, like the packaging for barrel cheese, is typically used for bulk cheese. See Barrel cheese; barrel(s).

Blood: An indication of fineness of wool. To have “more blood” means to have finer wool.

Blood meal: Meal prepared from animal blood; contains 80 to 86 percent crude protein and is an excellent source of lysine.

Blue Box policies: A popular expression to represent the set of provisions in the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture that exempts from reduction commitments those payments from production control programs, such as diversion payments on set-aside land.

Blue tongue: Viral disease of cattle and sheep that is transmitted by flies and mosquitos and is characterized by the swelling of the tongue.

BLV: Bovine leukemia virus

BMP: Best management practice

Boar(s): Male pig of breeding age.

Board foot: A volume measurement used in the estimation of lumber production; one-foot long multiplied by one-foot wide multiplied by one-inch thick.

Board for International Food and Agricultural Development (BIFAD): An organization created by the federal government to advise officials managing foreign assistance programs regarding the use of U.S. land grant and other qualified universities to support agricultural development abroad.

Board mill: A lumber mill that produces lumber boards or sheets of chipboard and plywood.

Board of trade: Any exchange or association, whether incorporated or unincorporated, of persons who are engaged in the business of buying or selling any commodity or receiving the same for sale on consignment.

BOD: Biological oxygen demand

Body condition: The body reserves of fat in an animal at specific stages of its production cycle.

Boll Weevil Eradication: See National Boll Weevil Eradication Program.

Boll Weevil Eradication Loan Program: Authorized by the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1997 (P.L. 104-180, 7 U.S.C. § 1989), and administered by the Farm Service Agency to provide assistance to producers and state government agencies to eradicate boll weevils.

Boll weevil(s): Imported from Mexico, this weevil feeds on cotton bolls and is the greatest insect pest to cotton, having caused the abandonment of cotton production areas and immense disruption of economic activity. Adult boll weevils puncture cotton squares and bolls, feeding on the tissue inside, and laying their eggs in the holes. The grubs that hatch feed on the squares and bolls causing destruction or the reduced ability to develop fibers.

Boll(s): The fruit of the cotton plant in which the linted seeds are produced.

Bollworm: A caterpillar that attacks cotton squares causing the squares to drop or fail to open. Bollworms also feed on corn ears, tobacco, beans, alfalfa, and flowers. Also Pink bollworm and Corn earworm.

Bombers: An overweight carcass. Such carcasses produce primal cuts that do not fit the box.

Bone dry: Having zero percent moisture content.

Bone meal: Animal bones that are steamed under pressure and then ground. It contains 1.5 to 2.5 percent nitrogen, 12 to 15 percent phosphorus, and 20 to 34 percent calcium. It is used as a fertilizer and as a mineral supplement for feeding farm animals.

Bonus foods; bonus commodities: Commodities offered to child nutrition programs participants over and above entitlement foods. Bonus foods are offered periodically as they become available through agricultural surpluses. Entitlement foods.

Book of business: The aggregation of all eligible crop insurance contracts in force between the reinsured company and its policyholders that have a sales closing date within the year and are eligible to be reinsured.

Booting stage: The reproductive phase of rice growth and development.

Border 21 Program: A binational effort between the U.S. and Mexico to work cooperatively toward sustainable development through protection of human health and the environment as well as proper management of natural resources in each country.

Border irrigation: A cross between flood and furrow irrigation that best fits straight levee rice fields or fields with no side slope. It is a flush irrigation system that moves water down the slope in a shallow flush between two small levees or dikes (borders). The border spacing is based on the well’s flow rate and the length of the field.

Border price: The cost, insurance, and freight (c.i.f.) price of a commodity, with specific characteristics, at the main port of entry of an importing country. See World price(s).

Border protection: Any measure that acts to restrain imports at point of entry.

Border(s): See Field border(s).

Borer: An insect larva pest that makes tunnels or burrows inside a plant stem.

Borrower training (certification) (program): Under the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act, as amended (Sec. 359), the USDA shall make provisions for an educational training program on financial and farm management concepts for borrowers of Farm Service Agency direct loans. To be eligible to obtain a direct loan, a borrower must obtain management assistance under this section, appropriate to the management ability of the borrower. The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 5316) continues to allow waivers to borrowers who demonstrate adequate knowledge of financial and farm management, but removes liberal waiver authority previously given to county committees and requires the USDA to establish nationwide standards on waiver applicability.

Boston price: Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 1502(c)), the monthly benchmark price, under the applicable federal milk marketing order, used to establish the availability of dairy counter-cyclical payments. Eligible producers will receive a payment equal to 45 percent of the difference between $16.94 per hundredweight and the lower Boston price.

Botanical pesticides: Natural pesticides derived from plants.

Botulism: A serious foodborne illness caused by bacteria commonly found in soil, and often attributable to improper home-canning. Botulism can cause paralysis, respiratory failure, and death. See Foodborne illness(es).

Bound tariff rate(s): Tariff rates resulting from the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade negotiations incorporated as part of a country’s schedule of concessions. Bound rates are enforceable under Article II of GATT. If a World Trade Organization member raises a tariff above the bound rate, the affected countries have the right to retaliate against an equivalent value of the offending country’s exports or receive compensation, usually in the form of reduced tariffs on other products they export to the offending country. Also Tariff binding(s).

Bovine: Refers to a general family grouping of cattle.

Bovine growth hormone (bST): Bovine somatotropin. See Growth hormones; growth promotants.

Bovine leukemia virus (BLV): An exogenous retrovirus that is associated with the development of malignant lymphoma in cattle.

Bovine respiratory disease: Complex collection of viruses that attack cattle under stress causing severe damage to the lungs. This opens the way for invasion by pasteurella bacteria causing pneumonia. A major cause of death in transported cattle.

Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE): Also known as Mad Cow Disease. A chronic, degenerative, fatal disease affecting the central nervous system of cattle. See Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy (TSE).

Bovine tuberculosis: A highly contagious bacterial disease of livestock, other animals and birds, and humans. It is a slow, debilitating disease with a long incubation period affecting the respiratory system. Animals that become infected may live and potentially spread the disease for years. Infected animals may not show symptoms until they have reached the terminal stage.

Boxed beef: Processed, individually packaged beef products shipped from packers to retailers. These primal cuts (round, loins, ribs, and chuck) and subprimal cuts are intermediate cuts between the carcass and retail cuts.

BPI: Beef (cattle) price index

Bran: The outer layers of a cereal grain which are removed in milling.

Brand inspection entity: State brand inspection agencies or other brand inspection organizations authorized by either by a state or the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration.

Brand(ing): Typically, the use of a hot iron brand for marking cattle so as to establish proof of ownership. See Ear notching, Ear tag, Freeze brand(ing), and Wattle(s) (cattle).

Brand(s)(ing): (1) Typically, the use of a hot iron brand for marking cattle so as to establish proof of ownership. (2) Branded commodities. See Ear notching, Ear tag(s), Freeze brand(ing), and Wattle(s) (cattle).

Branded beef: See Branded commodity(ies) (beef, pork, lamb).

Branded commodity(ies) (beef, pork, lamb): A specifically labeled product that is differentiated from commodity items by its brand name.

Branded commodity(ies) (beef, pork, lamb): A specifically labeled product that is differentiated from commodity items by its brand name.

Branded commodity(ies) (beef, pork, lamb): A specifically labeled product that is differentiated from commodity items by its brand name.

Breakdown: (1) To perform the series of steps involved in skillfully cutting, boning, and trimming a whole carcass into retail cuts. (2) The results of a transformation of a chemical product, such as a pesticide, after it is applied.

Breakdown product(s): See Pesticide degradate(s).

Breaker: A person, firm, or other business unit that breaks shell eggs to produce egg products.

Breaking stock: Shell eggs designated for breaking to produce egg products.

Breast height (timber): 4.5 feet above ground level.

Bred female swine: Any female swine, whether a sow or gilt, that has been mated or inseminated and is assumed, or has been confirmed, to be pregnant.

Bred heifer: A pregnant heifer with her first unborn offspring.

Breed registry: An official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known to ensure that the animal is a purebred member of the breed or conforms to breed standards. Also known as a stud book or register (male animals). See Grade animal.

Breed(s): Animals having common origins and characteristics that distinguish them from other groups within the same species.

Breeder seed: Seed of the highest genetic purity produced for maintaining purity of a variety. It is used to produce foundation seed.

Breeder(s): (1) An animal raised and maintained for breeding purposes. (2) One who raises plants or animals for breeding purposes.

Breeding: (1) Generally, the producing of offspring. (2) More particularly, the applied science and art of systematic genetic improvement of a species or population.

Breeding finisher pig(s): A pig in the finishing production stage intended for sale or transfer for breeding purposes.

Breeding herd: The total inventory of breeding females and boars or bulls in a herd.

Breeding soundness examination (bulls) (BSE): Inspection of bulls for physical conformation and soundness through measuring scrotal circumference and semen motility and morphology.

Breeding unit index: A measure of a breeding herd, including the total number of female animals capable of giving birth, weighed by the production per head, in a base period.

Breeding value: Value of an animal as a parent.

Brewers rice: The smallest size of broken rice fragments used for making pet foods and as a carbohydrate source in brewing. See 2nd heads, Broken(s), and Screenings.

Bridge loan: Typically, a short-term loan provided by a commercial or cooperative lender to a borrower approved for a Farm Service Agency direct loan to cover that period when funding for the approved direct loan was not yet available.

Bright line: A theory of risk regulation. Agencies, in regulating cancer risk, typically ban a product if the risk to the maximally exposed individual exceeds some threshold, referred to as the de manifestos risk. If the risk to the maximally exposed individual falls below some low level (de minimis), no attempt is made to regulate the product. The costs of regulation are weighed against the benefits of regulation if the product’s risk falls between the two thresholds.

Brimmer decision: In Public Lands Council v. Babbitt, a federal district court struck down the Bureau of Land Management regulations that (a) eliminated priority preferences from grazing preferences (leaving just the permitted use), (b) required the titling of permanent structural range improvements in the name of the U.S. only, (c) eliminated the requirement that a permittee be engaged in the livestock business, and (d) allowed conservation use that excluded livestock grazing for the full term of a grazing permit. An appellate court reversed the district court except for the striking down of the conservation use regulation. The Supreme Court, in a decision handed down May 15, 2000, upheld the appellate court and ruled that the regulatory changes do not exceed the Interior Department’s Taylor Grazing Act authority.

Britch or breech wool: Wool from the hindquarters of the sheep, usually the coarsest on the body, often approaching hair in its characteristics.

British breeds: The common name for breeds of cattle originating in Great Britain such as Angus, Hereford, and Shorthorn.

British thermal unit (Btu): A standard unit for measuring heat energy. One Btu represents the amount of heat required to raise one pound of water one degree Fahrenheit (at sea level).

Brix: A unit used to express the concentration of solids in aqueous sugar solutions. For example, 60 degrees Brix sugar solution contains 60 percent by weight of sugar.

Broad-spectrum pesticide: A pesticide that kills a large number of unrelated species.

Broadband service: According to the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 6103), any technology identified by the USDA as having the capacity to transmit data to enable a subscriber to the service to originate and receive high-quality voice, data, graphics, and video. See Rural Broadband Loan and Loan Guarantee Program.

Broadband telecommunication services: See Broadband service.

Broadcast: Broad-area application of pesticides, fertilizer, or seed.

Broadcast burn: Controlled fire used as a silvicultural treatment to burn a designated area within well-defined boundaries for the purpose of reducing fuel hazards.

Broadleaf; broadleaved: (1) A conventional term applied to trees and shrubs of the botanical group Angiospermea, in loose contrast to the (generally) needleleaved Gymnospermae; the timber of the two groups is likewise conventionally distinguished in commerce ashardwood and softwood, respectively. In the U.S., a broadleaved tree may also be termed a leaf tree. (2) Sometimes applied, more literally, to trees of tree communitities having leaves of relatively large area, in contrast to those with small narrow leaves.

Broiler(s): Meat-type chickens that are typically six to eight weeks, to as old as 12 weeks, in age. Also fryer.

Broken(s): (1) Grain that has broken into two or more pieces during milling. (2) Small rice fragments broken during the milling process. The largest size of brokens, called 2nd heads, is used for rice flour, as is the next largest size called screenings. The smallest size of brokens is called brewers rice, which is used in pet foods and as a carbohydrate source in beer brewing. See Rice classes.

Broker(s); brokerage: (1) A person or firm who is engaged for others, on a commission basis, in negotiating contracts relative to property of which he has no actual or constructive custody. (2) See Floor broker(s).

Brood animal: Females used for breeding and raising young.

Brood cow: A female cow that is part of the breeding herd for raising beef cattle.

Brood fish: In channel catfish, adult spawners kept as a source of seed stock.

Brood mare: A mare used for breeding purposes.

Brooder house: Poultry house.

Broom snakeweed: A shrub-like, perennial weed, in the same family as sunflowers, that is poisonous to livestock.

Brown citrus aphid: A major pest to citrus production around the world, this aphid damages trees through its feeding and through the introduction of a severe tree disease-citrus tristeza virus.

Brown rice: Edible rice with only the hull removed. Its light brown color is due to the presence of the rice germ and seven bran layers. Because of this color and a relatively long cooking period of 45 to 60 minutes, this highly nutritious rice has remained a specialty food.

Brown-bagging: A form of seed piracy in which seed saved after harvest is repackaged and sold commercially. The seeds are repackaged to disguise their protected proprietary nature in order to avoid the payment of royalties. See Saved seed(s).

Browse species: Shrubs, woody vines, and trees that provide edible growth.

Brucellosis: A contagious disease in beef and dairy cattle that results in abortion. The same disease in humans is known as undulant fever. Also Bang’s disease.

BSE: Bovine spongiform encelphalopathy

BSE: Breeding soundness examination

BSE: Breeding soundness examination

BSL: Biosafety Level

bST: Bovine growth hormone

Bt: Bacillus thuringiensis

Bt: Bacillus thuringiensis

Bt corn: Genetically engineered corn that has had a bacillus thuringiensis gene inserted that produces an insecticidal endotoxin that kills insects when ingested, specifically the corn borer. These toxins have little or no effect on humans, livestock, most beneficial insects, and other nontarget organisms.

Bt cotton: Genetically engineered cotton that has had a bacillus thuringiensis gene inserted that produces an insecticidal endotoxin that kills insects when ingested, specifically the bollworm. These toxins have little or no effect on humans, livestock, most beneficial insects, and other nontarget organisms.

Bt resistance: Natural development of insect resistance to Bt endotoxins. Since bacillus thuringiensis and insects have coexisted in nature, genes for resistance to Bt already exist in some insect populations. Resistance management plans are utilized in an attempt to keep the occurrence of resistant genes rare.

BTU: British Thermal Unit

Buck: An uncastrated male sheep or goat. Also Ram.

Buck(ing) (timber): After felling a tree, the further cutting into suitable lengths (logs).

Bucket elevator: See Leg.

Buckshot: Soil with a clay-like, sticky, and plastic nature. Also gumbo.

Buckwheat: A pseudocereal produced primarily for use as flour. It is inexpensive to grow because it traditionally requires no pesticides, little fertilizer, and little attention during the growing season. The flattened hulls are used for mulch or as filling for pillows.

Budget (federal): The detailed statement of actual or anticipated revenues and expenditures during the federal fiscal year (October 1- September 30). The budget usually refers to the President’s budget submission to Congress early each calendar year that estimates federal government income and spending for the upcoming fiscal year and contains detailed recommendations for appropriations, revenue, and other legislation. Congress is not required to accept or even vote directly on the President’s proposals, and it often revises the President’s budget extensively.

Budget Act: See Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (CBA).

Budget authority (BA): Authority to enter into obligations that will result in outlays of federal funds. The basic forms of budget authority are appropriations, contract authority, and borrowing authority.

Budget Enforcement Act of 1990 (BEA) (P.L. 101-508): Title XIII of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990. The Act, a successor to the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act, was designed to enforce the 5-year deficit reduction agreement reached between the President and the Congress. The Act shifted the focus away from the deficit targets of the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act to spending controls. Annual deficit targets were essentially eliminated, limits on the level of discretionary spending were established though FY1995, and a newpay-as-you-go enforcement process was set up in order to ensure that any tax or mandatory spending changes were deficit neutral.

Budget function(s): Within the budget resolution process, 20 broad funding categories, arrayed by budget authority, outlays, and other budget data according to the major purpose served – agriculture; national defense; international affairs; general science, space, and technology; energy; natural resources and environment; commerce and housing credit; transportation; community and regional development; education, training, employment, and social services; health; Medicare; income security; Social Security; veterans benefits and services; administration of justice; general government; net interest; allowances; and undistributed offsetting receipts. A function must be of continuing national importance, and the amounts attributable to it must be significant. Most are further divided into subfunctions, for example, the agriculture function comprises the subfunctions Farm Income Stabilization and Agricultural Research and Services. Accounts are placed into the function that best represents their major purpose; consequently, functions do not necessarily correspond with appropriations acts or with the budgets of individual agencies.

Budget outlays: See Outlay(s).

Budget reconciliation: The process by which Congressional committees adjust existing tax or entitlement law with the new tax or mandatory spending targets called for in the budget resolution.

Budget resolution: A concurrent resolution, adopted by both Houses of Congress, that sets forth a Congressional budget plan for the budget year and at least four out-years. The plan consists of spending and revenue targets with which subsequent appropriation acts and authorization acts that affect revenues and direct spending are expected to comply. The targets established in the budget resolution are enforced in each House of Congress through procedural mechanisms set out in law and the rules of each House. A budget resolution does not become law and is not binding on the executive branch.

Budget year: The fiscal year for which the budget is being considered; in relation to a session of Congress, it is the fiscal year that starts on October 1 of the calendar year in which that session of Congress begins.

Budgetary resources: All sources of authority provided to federal agencies that permit them to incur financial obligations, including new budget authority, unobligated balances, direct spending authority, and obligation limitations.

Buffer stock(s): Supplies of a product, stored on farms or in commercial elevators or warehouses, that moderate the extreme price fluctuations by assuring a more stable supply. Buffer stocks are usually controlled by the government, while total stocks include both government and privately held stock.

Buffer strip(s); buffer acreage: (1) A strip of vegetation near waterways intended to slow runoff and capture pollutants. (2) Strip of uncut timber left between cutting units or adjacent to another resource. Also known as a green strip, leave strip, or streamside management zone. (3) Strip of land, varying in size and shape, preserving or enhancing aesthetic values around recreation sites and along roads, trails, or water. (4) Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 2101), for the Conservation Reserve Program, up to three times the size of a wetland or 150 feet on either size of the wetland in a CRP contract. See Conservation buffer(s) strip(s), and Filter strip(s). Also Buffer zone.

Buffer zone: (1) See Buffer strip(s); buffer acreage. (2) An area where pesticides are not directly applied, thereby providing protection to a defined area. Buffer zones are usually adjacent to sensitive or protected areas and can be contingent upon regulation of pesticide product labels, weather conditions, and product sensitivity.

Buffering capacity: In forages, the degree to which forage material resists changes in pH. The buffering capacity of forages has an influence on the ease with which the forage can be ensiled. Forages with a low buffering capacity will be less resistant to a reduction in pH, which is favorable for good preservation.

Bug: See Official inspection legend.

Building on a Time to Act: The report issued in November 2001, by the Advisory Committee on Small Farms, that was to be a guide to developers of the farm bill in 2002. The report provided recommendations in six target areas to assist small farmers and ranchers: (a) conservation and environmental enhancement, (b) lending and income supplements, (c) marketing and labeling, (d) working conditions for farmers and farm workers, (e) training and assistance for beginning and returning farmers, and (f) policies to support and assist small farmers. See Assisting America’s Small Farmers and Ranchers in the 21st Century, Small farm(s), Small Farm Coordinators, Small Farm Council, and Small farms policy(ies) (USDA).

Bulgur: Whole wheat grains that are boiled, dried, and cracked, either between stones or in a hand mill. It is very popular in the Middle East.

Bulk: See Bulk commodity(ies).

Bulk cargo: Unbound, fungible cargo that is without count or mark.

Bulk carrier: A vessel carrying dry cargo.

Bulk commodity(ies): (1) Quantities of fungible, raw commodities that are not processed, fortified, or bagged. (2) For the BICO report, agricultural products that have received little or no processing, such as wheat, corn, soybeans, and cotton. Tropical products, such as green coffee, cocoa, raw sugar, and natural rubber, are also included in this category.

Bulk curing: A curing process for flue-cured tobacco. Tobacco leaf is suspended in the curing atmosphere. Humidity and temperature control are made precise through the use of forced draft, which passes the heated air in a vertical plane through the tightly packed leaves in a completely closed system.

Bulk milk: Milk from a dairy farm that is stored in a bulk tank.

Bulk tank unit: An administrative entity used as a means of identifying pool bulk delivered by groups of producers in some marketing orders. The bulk tank unit is an accounting device that should not be confused with a bulk tank.

Bulk tank(s): The on-farm equipment that holds milk until it is picked up by a milk hauler.

Bulk-blended milk: A mixture of milk from the bulk tanks of more than one producer.

Bull(s): An uncastrated male bovine of any age.

Bulling: A cow in heat (estrus).

Bullock: A young bull typically less than 20 months old. For purposes of beef carcass grading, the distinction between bullock and bull carcasses is based solely on the evidence of skeletal maturity.

Bunt: Caused by fungi, bunt affects plants by stunting growth and by destroying the contents of infected kernels, as in the case of wheat, and replacing the contents with fungus spores. Bunt emits foul odors and causes discoloration, and can increase the possibility of grain explosions in combines and elevators because of the combustible oil on bunt spores. Karnal bunt of wheat causes only slight reductions in production, but its presence severely impacts quality due to its odor; it inhibits exporting to countries in which Karnal bunt is not present. See Smut.

Bur; burr: The rough casing of the cotton boll that is often referred to as the hull after separation from the cotton.

Bureau of Land Management (BLM): Formed in 1946 as a result of the merger of two agencies in the Department of the Interior-the General Land Office and the U.S. Grazing Service. The BLM manages approximately 268 million acres, predominately in the western states. About one-third of these lands (89 million acres) are in Alaska.

Bureau of Reclamation: The federal agency responsible for building dams and canals and for providing water to local water districts. The districts then sell the water to agricultural producers.

Burley tobacco: The major type of air-cured tobacco, accounting for roughly one-third of all tobacco in supply. This light-colored tobacco is used primarily for cigarettes.

Bushel(s): One bushel of wheat, soybeans, or potatoes weighs 60 pounds, or 27.216 kilograms, or 0.0272155 metric tons; one bushel of corn, grain sorghum, or rye weighs 60 pounds, or 25.4016 kilograms, or 0.0254 metric tons; one bushel of barley, buckwheat, or apples weighs 48 pounds, or 15.4224 kilograms, or 0.021772 metric tons; and one bushel of oats weighs 32 pounds, or 14.5152 kilograms, or 0.014515 metric tons. A standard bushel in the U.S. contains 2,150.42 cubic inches. Large-sized products such as potatoes that are sold on the basis of the heaped bushel may exceed the 2,150.42 cubic inches standard. See Heaped bushel, Level bushel, Struck bushel, Weights, measures, and conversion factors, and Winchester bushel.

Business and Industry loan program (B&I): Rural Business-Cooperative Service-guaranteed or direct loans for rural industrialization and rural community facilities. Business and industry loans are made to public, private, or cooperative organizations organized for profit or nonprofit; to certain Indian tribal groups; or to individuals for the purpose of improving, developing, or financing business, industry, or employment, or improving the economic and environmental climate in rural areas. Loans may not be made for operations to be established within or adjacent to a city of 50,000 or more. Special consideration is to be given to rural areas and cities having a population of 25,000 or less. Under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 6017), loans can be made to cooperatives for a facility that is not located in a rural area if the primary purpose of the loan is to provide value-added processing to agricultural producers located within 80 miles of the facility.

Butcher cows/bulls: Cows and bulls sold for slaughter.

Butcher hog(s): Farrowed or purchased as feeder pigs at a weight of 40 to 50 pounds and raised until 5 to 6 months old. Their normal selling weight is 200 to 280 pounds. Also market hogs.

Butter-powder tilt: Under the dairy price-support program, the USDA sets purchase prices for butter and nonfat dry milk. The two products are assumed to be jointly produced; the sum of the value of butter and nonfat dry milk that can be produced from a hundredweight of milk, less the make allowance, must equal the support price for milk. The purchase prices for butter and nonfat dry milk can be altered relative to each other as long as the combined value stays the same. Thus, if one price goes up the other must compensate by going down. The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Sec. 1501(d)) authorizes the USDA to tilt the butter and nonfat dry milk purchase prices up to twice a year in order to minimize Commodity Credit Corporation purchases.

Butterfat: The natural fatty particles in milk consisting largely of a mixture of glycerides.

Butterfat at the farm: 3.5 pounds of butterfat per hundredweight of milk. See Protein at the farm.

Butterfat price: Per pound, the U.S. average National Agricultural Statistics Service Grade AA Butter survey price, reported by the USDA for the month, less 11.5 cents, with the result multiplied by 1.20.

Buttermilk: The liquid that remains after churning butter from cultured cream. The liquid remaining after churning sweet cream is sweet cream buttermilk.

Buy-back: (1) A form of countertrade where the seller of a product (such as machinery, equipment, or technology), used as an input in the production of another product, agrees to accept the resulting products as full or partial payment. (2) See Market loan repayment (provision) (MLR).

Buy-back (peanuts): Under former programs, the contract option arranged by peanut shellers to buy-back additional peanuts for use in the domestic market. Historically, peanut producers either contracted to sell additional peanuts into the export market prior to a contracting deadline or placed their additionals under an additionals loan at time of harvest. Under a variation, shellers holding export contracts could either opt to turn in executed export contracts to the Farm Service Agency by the contract deadline or hold onto the contracts and place the additionals under loan themselves. The sheller could then buy the additionals back from the Commodity Credit Corporation at the quota loan rate and use the peanuts in the domestic market. The sheller advanced to the peanut producer the difference between the loan on additionals and the export contract price. See Additionals; additional peanuts, and Peanut (price-support) program.

Buy-back contract: A transaction whereby an exporter, having sold a commodity for export to a foreign buyer, liquidates the export sale contract by making an offsetting purchase of the same kind of commodity from the same foreign buyer.

Buy-up (crop) insurance (coverage): See Additional coverage.

Buyer in the ordinary course of business: Under 7 U.S.C.§§ 1630, any person who, in the ordinary course of business, buys farm products from a person engaged in farming operations who is in the business of selling farm products.

BXN cotton: Transgenic cotton resistant to the herbicide Buctril(r), thus allowing for the use of Buctril for broadleaf weed control.

Bxx: A representation for the biodiesel to petroleum content in a diesel mixture. For example, B20 refers to 20% biodiesel in the mixture.

Byproduct(s): (1) A product, other than the intended or primary product, generated as a result of an industrial process. (2) See Meat byproducts.

Byrd Rule: The Senate rule, named after Senator Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia, that prohibits attaching extraneous (lacking direct fiscal implications) amendments to a reconciliation bill unless at least 60 Senators vote in favor of waiving the rule. In addition, the rule bars any entitlement increases or tax cuts beyond the five or more years covered by the reconciliation directive unless these out-year costs are fully offset by other provisions in the bill.