BACT — Best available control technology.

Balance of payments — An accounting statement measuring the value of goods, services and capital exchanged between a country and all foreign countries. A nation is said to have either: (1) a balance of payments deficit if it sends abroad less in goods, services, and capital than it receives from foreigners; or (2) a balance of payments surplus if it sends abroad more in goods, services, and capital than it receives.

Balance of trade — The difference in value between a country’s merchandise imports and exports in a specified period. A country’s balance of trade is only one factor — though an important one — in its balance of payments.

Band application — The spreading of chemicals over, or next to, each row of plants in a field, as opposed to broadcast application.

Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act of 1937 — P.L. 75-210 authorized acquisition by the federal government of damaged lands to rehabilitate and use them for various purposes. Both the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management manage some Bankhead-Jones lands. Some Forest Service Bankhead Jones lands are National Grasslands.

Bank for Cooperatives (BC) — Lending institution within the Farm Credit System that provides credit to agricultural cooperatives and rural utility cooperatives nationwide. Nationally chartered CoBank Agricultural Bank (Denver) has the authority to finance U.S. agricultural exports and to provide international banking services to farmer-owned cooperatives.

Bargaining association — A farmer cooperative intended primarily to influence farm prices or other terms of trade between the members and the buyers of the commodities they produce.

Barrows and gilts — A barrow is a young castrated male hog; a gilt is a young female hog. Both are raised for pork. Market news reports of prices paid for "barrows and gilts" are of keen interest to producers and packers alike.

Barter — A form of countertrade in which goods having comparable values are exchanged under a single contract, within a specified period of time, and without any flow of money taking place. The U.S. government ran a barter program from 1950 to 1973, exchanging surplus agricultural commodities for strategic materials and for goods and services it otherwise would have purchased. In addition, barter agreements between the United States and Jamaica were signed in 1982 and 1983.

Base (or contract) acreage — A farm’s crop-specific acreage of wheat, feed grains, upland cotton, or rice eligible to enroll in commodity programs under previous legislation, and subsequently eligible for production flexibility contracts under the FAIR Act of 1996. Base acreage equaled land planted for harvest to the crop, plus any land enrolled in Acreage Reduction Programs, plus land considered planted to the crop in zero, 50/85-92 or under permitted normal flex or optional flex acreage during a specified period of time. A farmer’s crop acreage base was reduced by the portion of land placed in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), but increased by CRP base acreage leaving the CRP.

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, 1967, 1977, or 1982. Time series of data are often deflated to a base period price. Such deflated time series are referred to as constant dollar values (versus nominal dollar values).

Base property — For the Bureau of Land Management: land or water resources, owned or controlled by a holder of a grazing permit or lease, that are suitable to support livestock for a part of the year. For the Forest Service: lands and improvements owned and used by a permittee for a farm or ranch and designated by the permitted to qualify for a grazing permit. One must own or control base property to be eligible for permits or leases to graze private livestock on federal lands.

Base rates — The minimum cash price for national forest timber to be cut and removed.

Basic commodities — Six agricultural crops (corn, cotton, peanuts, rice, tobacco, and wheat) declared by permanent law as requiring federal price support.

Basic formula price (BFP) — Calculated monthly by USDA, the BFP is the base price for all milk regulated by federal milk marketing orders. Currently, the BFP is based on the preceding month’s average price of Grade B milk paid by processors in Minnesota and Wisconsin, adjusted by current-month changes in the value of certain manufactured dairy products.

Basing point — A geographical site used to establish fixed rates and/or prices for federal milk marketing orders. Generally, rates or prices increase according to the distance from the basing point. The FAIR Act of 1996 authorizes USDA to consider the use of multiple basing points for pricing milk under federal milk orders.

Basis — The difference between the current spot price (or cash price) of a commodity and the price of the nearest futures contract for the same or a related commodity. Basis is usually computed in relation to the futures contract next to expire and may reflect different time periods, product forms, qualities, or locations.

Basis risk — The possibility of unexpected variation in basis and a resulting loss of expected revenue when a futures contract is liquidated and the commodity sold on the cash market.

BAT — Best available technology.

bbf — Billion board feet.

BC — Banks for Cooperatives.

BCS — Basic conservation systems.

B&CMA — Biscuit and Cracker Manufacturers’ Association.

BCT — Best control technology.

Beef (cattle) price index (BPI) — An index of the weighted average annual price for beef cattle, excluding calves, for a 16 western state area as compared with a specific base period equal to 100. This index is used in calculating federal grazing fees.

Below-cost timber sale — A timber sale from national forest lands in which the expected federal revenues are less than the estimated federal expenses to sell the timber.

Best management practices (BMP) — A conservation practice or combination of practices designed to maintain agricultural productivity while reducing point- and nonpoint- source water pollution. State water quality agencies (or their designees) determine BMPs to fit local conditions and to make the most efficient use of natural resources and purchased inputs.

BFP — Basic formula price.

BFW — Bread for the World.

BGH — Bovine growth hormone (see bovine somatotropin).

BICO Report — The Foreign Agricultural Service’s report of U.S. agricultural export and import data on Bulk, Intermediate, and Consumer-Oriented (BICO). In addition, the data base includes forest products and edible fish and seafood products. These trade data are further classified among 46 separate product groups. Data are available in both calendar and fiscal year format and for 16 world regions and 35 individual country markets. The BICO data can be accessed at.

Bilateral trade agreement — A trade agreement between any two countries. The agreement may be either preferential (the obligations and benefits apply only to the two countries involved) or most-favored-nation (the benefits and obligations negotiated between the two countries are extended to all or most other nations). The U.S.-Israel Free Trade Agreement is one example of a preferential trade agreement.

Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Act of 1996 — P.L. 104-210 (October 1, 1996) was named in honor of the late Congressman who was a champion of efforts to expand food donations to the poor and to protect those who make donations. It converts the Model Good Samaritan Food Donation Act to permanent law and incorporates it into the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (section 22). Good samaritan laws are designed to encourage the donation of food and groceries to nonprofit charitable agencies by minimizing the risks of legal actions against donors and distributors of foods. The 1996 amendments exclude from civil or criminal liability a person or nonprofit food organization that, in good faith, donates or distributes donated foods for food relief. The new law does not supersede state or local health regulations and its protections do not apply to an injury or death due to gross neglect or intentional misconduct.

Bioaccumulation — The absorption and concentration of toxic chemicals, heavy metals, and certain pesticides in plants and animals. Toxicity can be expressed in several ways: lead that is ingested by calves can bioaccumulate in their bones, interfering with calcium absorption and bone development; stored chemicals may be released to the blood stream at a later time, for example, during gestation or weight loss; and chemicals may concentrate to lethal levels at upper ends of the food chain. Bioconcentration is a synonym for biaccumulation.

Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) — A measure of the amount of oxygen consumed by natural, biological processes that break down organic matter, such as those that take place when manure or sawdust is put in water. High levels of oxygen-demanding wastes in waters deplete dissolved oxygen (DO) thereby endangering aquatic life. Sometimes referred to as "biological oxygen demand. Chemical oxygen demand (COD) is a measure of the oxygen consumed when organic matter is broken down chemically rather than biologically. COD can be determined much more quickly than BOD and more accurately reflects the amount of organic matter in a water sample. BOD is a standard measure of water quality.

Bioconcentration — See bioaccumulation.

Biodiesel — Biodiesel is registered with the Environmental Protection Agency as a pure fuel or as a fuel additive and is a legal fuel in commerce. It is typically produced through the reaction of a vegetable oil or animal fat with methanol in the presence of a catalyst to yield glycerin and biodiesel (chemically called methyl esters). It is an alternative fuel that can be used by itself or blended with petroleum diesel for use in diesel engines. Its use can result in substantial reduction of unburned hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, and particulate matter. Provisions of the Energy Conservation Reauthorization Act of 1998 (ECRA, P.L. 105-388) amended the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPACT, P.L. 102-486) to allow that the use of biodiesel added to conventional diesel at blends of 20% and higher would produce credits to offset up to 50% each year of alternative fuel vehicle acquisition requirements. Farmers and processors anticipate that increased use of biodiesel will strengthen the market for soybean oil.

Biodiversity (or biological diversity) — In general, the variety and variation among plants, animals, and microorganisms, and among their ecosystems. It has 3 levels: ecosystem diversity, species diversity, and genetic (within species) diversity. The concept of maintaining biodiversity holds that civilization should preserve the greatest possible number of existing species so that a highly diverse genetic pool, which can be tapped for useful and beneficial characteristics, will be available into the future. Genetic diversity provides resources for genetic resistance to pests and diseases. In agriculture, biodiversity is a production system characterized by the presence of multiple plant and/or animal species, as contrasted with the genetic specialization of monoculture.

Bioengineering — See genetic engineering.

Biological control — The practice of using beneficial natural organisms to attack and control harmful plant and animal pests and weeds is called biological control, or biocontrol. This can include introducing predators, parasites, and disease organisms, or releasing sterilized individuals. Biocontrol methods may be an alternative or complement to chemical pest control methods. Biocontrol is part of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service program to control several economically important pests of food and fiber crops; it also is researched and used by other USDA agencies that promote integrated pest management.

Biological monitoring — Using living organisms to test the quality of either effluent to be discharged into receiving waters, or waters downstream from a discharge.

Biological oxygen demand — See biochemical oxygen demand.

Biologics — Immunization vaccines, bacterins, antigens, and antitoxins and other preparations made from living organisms and their products, intended for use in diagnosing, immunizing, or treating humans or animals, or in related research. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has responsibility for approving some animal biologics. See Veterinary biologics.

Biomagnification (or biological magnification) — The increase in the concentration of bioaccumulated toxic chemicals in organisms higher on the food chain due to preferential storage of the toxic chemical in edible body parts. For example, chlorinated pesticides concentrate in the fat and skin of fish in contaminated lakes and streams and are biomagnified when those fish are eaten by larger fish, and perhaps eventually by mammals or birds of prey.

Biomass — The generic term for any living matter that can be converted into usable energy through biological or chemical processes. It encompasses feedstocks such as agricultural crops and their residues, animal wastes, wood, wood residues and grasses, and municipal wastes.

Biopesticide — A pesticide that is biological in origin (i.e., viruses, bacteria, pheromones, natural plant compounds) in contrast to synthetic chemicals. Transgenic Bt cotton and corn are biopesticides because Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a naturally occurring soil bacterium that has been genetically engineered into the plants.

Bio-security; bio-terrorism — "Bio-security" refers to the policies, and measures taken, for protecting a nation’s food supply and agricultural resources from both accidental contamination and deliberate attacks of "bio-terrorism." Now viewed as an emerging threat, bio-terrorism might include such acts as introducing pests intended to kill U.S. food crops; spreading a virulent disease among animal production facilities; and poisoning water, food, and blood supplies. The federal government is now increasing its efforts to improve bio-security because of the recognition that the United States is currently vulnerable, both from a civil and military standpoint.

Biotechnology — See genetic engineering.
 

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Blair House Agreement — The November 1992 agreement between the United States and the European Union on export subsidy and domestic subsidy reduction commitments in the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations. The agreement also dealt with some bilateral agricultural trade issues.

Blend price — Primarily used in the federal milk marketing order program. Represents the weighted average price of milk, per hundred pounds, paid to each farmer based on how Grade A (fluid grade) milk is allocated to different usage classes (e.g., fluid, manufacturing) by processors.

Blended credit — A federal export promotion program operated from 1983 to 1985 by the Foreign Agricultural Service. Federally guaranteed commercial loans at market interest rates (GSM-102) were combined (blended) with direct export credits (GSM-5) issued by the CCC at zero interest. This subsidized credit was made available to selected countries for a limited number of agricultural commodities. The program was terminated in 1985 when a federal judge determined that commodities shipped under blended credit were subject to cargo preference laws, which would have required that 50% of blended credit exports be shipped on higher-cost U.S. flag vessels.

Blending — In grain marketing, the combining of two different qualities of grain in order to change the total value of both lots. For example, it is common to blend grains of differing moisture or different foreign material content to achieve the requirements of a contract order.

BLM — Bureau of Land Management.

BLS — Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Blue box policies — Direct payments, under the definition of "production-limiting" measures as defined in Article 6 of the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture, that are not subject to the commitment to reduce domestic support. To qualify for the exemption, payments must be based on fixed areas or yields, on a fixed number of livestock, or on 85% or less of the base level of production. See green box.

BMP — Best management practice(s).

Board foot — A measure for lumber, equal to a 1-inch thick board that is 1 foot long and 1 foot wide in nominal dimensions (a 2x4, for example, is less than 2 inches thick and 4 inches wide, but a 1-foot long 2x4 is still counted as 2/3 of a board foot); typically reported in thousands of board feet (mbf). Also used to estimate the volume of lumber that can be produced from logs and standing trees.

Board on Agriculture — See National Academy of Sciences.

BOD — Biochemical oxygen demand; biological oxygen demand.

Boll weevil — An insect pest of cotton that is the subject of an Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service eradication program cooperatively funded and managed by cotton producers.

Bonus commodities — From the agricultural perspective, these are commodities donated to domestic feeding programs that USDA acquires for unexpected surplus removal reasons or because Commodity Credit Corporation holdings are not needed for other purposes, or are in danger of waste or spoilage. For example, if meat prices fall, USDA may buy beef and donate it to the National School Lunch Program, or if the CCC is holding an excess of cornmeal that is in danger of spoiling, it might donate this to the lunch program. From the food program perspective, these commodities are those donated in addition to the commodities that must be provided under mandatory requirements in food program statutes.

BOR — Bureau of Reclamation.

Botanical pesticides — Pesticides whose active ingredients are plant-produced chemicals such as nicotine, rotenone, or strychnine. Also called plant-derived pesticides. Being "natural" pesticides, as distinct from synthetic ones, they are typically acceptable to organic farmers.

Bottom — Usually synonymous with "vessel" or "ship." A ship of American registry may be referred to as a "U.S. bottom," whereas if registry is other than U.S., the ship, in U.S. usage, may be called a "foreign bottom."

Bound tariff rate — The most-favored-nation tariff rate resulting from negotiations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and incorporated as an integral component of a country’s schedule of concessions or commitments to other WTO members. If a GATT contracting party raises a tariff to a higher level than its bound rate, the country or countries adversely affected have the right under GATT to retaliate against an equivalent value of the offending country’s exports or to receive compensation, usually in the form of reduced tariffs on other products they export to the offending country.

Bovine growth hormone (BGH) — See bovine somatotropin (bST).

Bovine somatotropin (bST) — Also called bovine growth hormone, bST is a naturally occurring protein that has been genetically engineered as a synthetic compound (now manufactured in large quantities and commercially available to farmers) that causes cows to increase the efficiency of milk production per unit of feed consumed. Its use has caused public controversy, and some states require retail dairy product labels to identify the use of synthetic bST.

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) — Commonly known as "mad cow disease," BSE is a slowly progressive, incurable disease affecting the central nervous system of cattle, first diagnosed in Britain in 1986. Consumption by cattle of BSE-contaminated ruminant proteins in animal feed has been cited as one possible means of transmission. Scientists have confirmed a link between BSE in cattle and several dozen recent European cases of a human variant of BSE, Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease. More than 77,000 cattle suspected of having been exposed to the disease have been slaughtered in Great Britain, and a ban on ruminant protein-containing feeds was imposed in 1988. To date, no BSE has been found in U.S. cattle, although other BSE-like animal diseases are found in the United States, including scrapie in sheep and goats. USDA banned the importation of live cattle from Great Britain in 1989, and imposed a partial ban on using ruminant protein in animal feed in 1997.

Bovine tuberculosis — A highly contagious disease of cattle that causes severe economic losses, especially in dairy herds. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service quarantines infected herds and works with producers to eradicate the disease. The target date for total eradication has been pushed back from 1998 to after the year 2000.

Boxed beef — Beef that a packer cuts into relatively small pieces, seals in vacuum packs, and ships in cardboard boxes, often ready for retail sale. Prior to the 1970s, most beef left the packer as partial carcasses.

BPI — Beef (Cattle) Price Index.

BPJ — Best professional judgment.

BPT — Best practicable technology, best practicable treatment.

Breastfeeding promotion — Relates to activities required to be carried out by state and local agencies using federal funds provided for nutrition education and administrative services under the WIC program. States are required to use a portion of funds they receive to promote breastfeeding by postpartum mothers participating in the program.

Broadcast application — The spreading of pesticides or fertilizers over an entire area (see band application).

Broiler — A young chicken, usually 6 to 8 weeks old and 3 to 5 pounds, raised primarily for its meat.

Brucellosis — A highly contagious disease of cattle, goats, sheep, and swine that can be transmitted to humans (undulant fever). The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service conducts an eradication program that is expected to eliminate brucellosis from U.S. cattle herds by the end of 1999.

BSE — Bovine spongiform encephalopathy.

bST — Bovine somatotropin.

Bt — Bacillus thuringiensis is a naturally occurring soil bacterium commonly known as Bt. It is a biological pesticide (biopesticide) used as a spray or dust and also in several genetically engineered plants. The plants have a gene from Bt inserted into their own genetic material. This new gene produces a natural protein that kills insects after the protein is ingested. The toxins are specific to a small subset of insects. Cotton has been genetically altered to control the tobacco budworm, bollworm and pink bollworm. Potatoes have been altered to control the Colorado potato beetle. A new hybrid of Bt corn, altered to be resistant to the European corn borer, became available for the 1997 planting season. Bt degrades rapidly to non-toxic compounds. It is not known to present any human or animal hazards. However, recent reports suggest that it may harm certain beneficial insects, such as monarch butterflies. Pest resistance management (PRM) plans are required by the Environmental Protection Agency as part of the registration.

bu. — bushel.

Buffer strips — Slender areas of permanent vegetation, often planted along the edge or the contour of a field, usually to slow the flow of water or the velocity of wind, in order to capture sediment and other materials before they leave the farm and become pollutants. Types of buffers include filter strips, field borders, grassed waterways, field windbreaks, shelterbelts, contour grass strips, and riparian buffers.

Bulgur — Wheat that has been parboiled, dried, and partially debranned for later use in cracked or whole grain form.

Bulk carrier — Refers to two types of cargo ships: the dry-bulk carrier and the liquid-bulk carrier, better known as a tanker. Bulk cargo is a shipment such as oil, grain, or ore, that is not packaged, baled, bottled, or otherwise packed and is loaded without counting or marking.

Bulk commodities — Generally, high volume, low value unprocessed agricultural commodities, which are treated as though they are homogeneous (fungible) in nature prior to processing. Grains, oilseeds, and cotton are considered bulk commodities. Contrasting categories are high value commodities, semiprocessed and processed commodities, and consumer ready commodities.

Bureau of Land Management (BLM) — A bureau within the Department of the Interior that has exclusive jurisdiction over about 268 million acres of federally owned lands. Approximately one-third of this area is in Alaska. The majority of the remaining acreage is in the Western States.

Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) — A bureau within the Department of the Interior, whose mission is to manage, develop, and protect water and related resources. The agency replaced the Reclamation Service, which was established pursuant to the Reclamation Act of 1902 to "reclaim (arid lands) throughout the West through irrigation." The Bureau built, operates, and maintains more than 300 storage dams on rivers throughout the western United States.

Burley tobacco — The main type of air-cured tobacco; a cigarette tobacco that together with flue-cured tobacco account for more than 90% of total U.S. production. Burley tobacco production is limited by national marketing quotas and eligible for nonrecourse price support loans. Its production centers in Kentucky.

Bushel — A dry volume measure of varying weight for grain, fruit, etc., equal to four pecks or eight gallons (2150.42 cubic inches). A bushel of wheat, soybeans, and white potatoes each weighs 60 pounds. A bushel of corn, rye, grain sorghum, and flaxseed each weighs 56 pounds. A bushel of barley, buckwheat, and apples each weighs 48 pounds.

Business incubator — A facility that supports the development and operation of a number of small start-up businesses. Tenants of the facility share a number of support services including computers, support staff, telecommunications equipment, and janitorial services. Occupants also may receive technical assistance, business planning, legal, financial, and marketing advice.

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