Mink Publication

Mink
ISSN: 1949-1549

Released July 12, 2024, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of
Agriculture (USDA).

Special Note: Color class is no longer published at state level. Future publications will not include mink pelts
produced and females bred to produce kits by state.
.
Pelt Production Down 28 Percent
Mink pelt production in the United States in 2023 totaled 973,510 million pelts, down 28 percent from 2022. Wisconsin,
the largest mink producing State, produced 514,130 pelts. Utah, the second largest producing State, produced
138,550 pelts.
The number of pelts, by color class, as a percent of the total United States production in 2023 is as follows: Black at
57 percent, White at 20 percent, Mahogany at 8 percent, and Sapphire at 6 percent. The remaining color classes accounted
for 9 percent.
Value of pelts produced during the 2023 crop year was $33.1 million, down 10 percent from $36.6 million the prior year.
The average price per pelt for the 2023 crop year was $34.00, up 6.80 from $27.20 in 2022.
Female mink bred to produce kits in 2024 totaled 216,470, down 14 percent from the previous year.
Percent of total females bred to produce kits in 2024 by color class as is follows: Black at 58 percent, White at 21 percent,
Mahogany at 9 percent, and Sapphire at 7 percent. The remaining classes accounted for 5 percent.

Contents
Pelts Produced – United States ........................................................................................................................................... 3
Average Price Per Pelt – United States ............................................................................................................................... 3
Mink Pelts Produced and Females Bred by Color Class – United States: 2022-2024 .......................................................... 4
Mink Pelts Produced, Average Price, and Value – United States: 2004-2023 ..................................................................... 4
Mink Pelts Produced and Females Bred by State - States and United States: 2022-2024 .................................................... 5
Statistical Methodology ...................................................................................................................................................... 6
Information Contacts .......................................................................................................................................................... 7

2

Mink (July 2024)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

Pelts Produced – United States
Million
3.8
3.6
3.4
3.2
3.0
2.8
2.6
2.4
2.2
2.0
1.8
1.6
1.4
1.2
1.0
0.8
2004

2006

2008

2010

2012

2014

2016

2018

2020

2022

2016

2018

2020

2022

Due to sequestration the Mink Report was suspended in 2012.

Average Price Per Pelt – United States
Dollars
$99
$89

$79
$69
$59
$49
$39
$29

$19
2004

2006

2008

2010

2012

2014

Due to sequestration the Mink Report was suspended in 2012.

Mink (July 2024)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

3

Mink Pelts Produced and Females Bred by Color Class – United States: 2022-2024
Color class

Pelts produced

Females bred to produce kits

2022

2023

(number)

2023

(number)

2024

(number)

(number)

Black ...............................
Demi/Wild .......................
Pastel ..............................
Sapphire .........................
Blue Iris ..........................
Mahogany ......................
Pearl ...............................
Lavender ........................
Violet ...............................
White ..............................
Other ...............................

691,060
44,660
35,670
98,740
26,380
133,450
46,650
5,250
15,770
219,850
28,610

552,070
15,890
24,460
59,340
21,600
79,400
4,500
4,050
4,090
195,200
12,910

143,070
4,020
6,260
15,170
5,680
20,450
1,130
1,020
1,030
49,250
3,240

125,550
330
4,960
14,310
2,960
18,570
210
1,170
950
44,510
2,950

Total ................................

1,346,090

973,510

250,320

216,470

Mink Pelts Produced, Average Price, and Value – United States: 2004-2023
Year

Pelts produced

Average price

(number)

Value of mink pelts

(dollars)

(dollars)

2004 .............................................
2005 .............................................
2006 .............................................
2007 .............................................
2008 .............................................
2009 .............................................
2010 .............................................
2011 .............................................
2012 1 .........................................
2013 .............................................

2,558,100
2,637,800
2,858,800
2,828,200
2,820,700
2,866,700
2,840,200
3,091,470
(NA)
3,544,610

47.10
60.90
48.40
65.70
41.60
65.10
81.90
94.30
(NA)
56.30

120,486,510
160,642,020
138,365,920
185,812,740
117,341,120
186,622,170
232,612,380
291,525,621
(NA)
199,561,543

2014 .............................................
2015 .............................................
2016 .............................................
2017 .............................................
2018 .............................................
2019 .............................................
2020 .............................................
2021 .............................................
2022 .............................................
2023 .............................................

3,741,150
3,682,960
3,454,410
3,400,080
3,169,560
2,742,200
1,441,760
1,565,520
1,346,090
973,510

57.70
32.00
34.70
36.10
26.60
21.30
33.70
30.00
27.20
34.00

215,864,355
117,854,720
119,868,027
122,742,888
84,310,296
58,408,860
48,587,312
46,965,600
36,613,648
33,099,340

(NA) Not available.
1
Due to sequestration the Mink report was suspended.

4

Mink (July 2024)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

Mink Pelts Produced and Females Bred by State - States and United States: 2022-2024
State

Pelts produced

Females bred to produce kits

2022

2023

2023

2024

(number)

(number)

(number)

(number)

Idaho ..........................................
Illinois .........................................
Iowa ............................................
Michigan .....................................
Minnesota ..................................
Oregon .......................................
Pennsylvania .............................
Utah ............................................
Washington ................................
Wisconsin ...................................

102,750
(D)
17,250
98,550
(D)
75,520
(D)
276,700
(D)
573,600

81,130
(D)
(D)
(D)
9,770
75,530
(D)
138,550
(D)
514,130

21,430
(D)
1,650
11,930
2,500
19,130
(D)
35,620
(D)
132,360

15,660
(D)
(D)
(D)
2,600
17,600
(D)
28,650
(D)
118,800

Other States 1 ............................

201,720

154,400

25,700

33,160

United States .............................

1,346,090

973,510

250,320

216,470

(D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations.
1
Includes data for States not published in this table.

Mink (July 2024)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

5

Statistical Methodology
Survey Procedures: Mink production data are collected from early May through late May from all known producers.
Individual NASS Regional Field Offices maintain a list of all known mink producers and use known sources of producers
to update their lists. All known mink producers are mailed a questionnaire and given adequate time to respond by mail.
Those who do not respond by mail are telephoned or enumerated in person.
Estimation Procedures: All data are analyzed for unusual values. Data from each operation are compared to their own
past operating profile and to trends from similar operations. Data for missing operations are estimated based on similar
operations or historical data. NASS headquarters prepare these estimates by using a combination of survey indications and
historic trends. Individual State and US estimates are reviewed by the Agricultural Statistics Board for reasonableness.
Revision Policy: Revisions to previous estimates are made to improve year-to-year and item-to-item relationships.
Estimates for the previous year are subject to revision when current estimates are made.
Reliability: Mink production estimates are based on a census of all known active producers and therefore, have no
sampling variability. However, estimates are subject to errors such as omissions, duplication, mistakes in reporting,
recording, and processing data. While these errors cannot be measured directly, they are minimized through strict quality
control in the data collection process and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness.
To assist in evaluating the reliability of the estimates in this report, the “Root Mean Square Error” is shown for selected
items in the following table. The “Root Mean Square Error” is a statistical measure based on past performance and is
computed using the differences between first and final estimates. The “Root Mean Square Error” for mink pelts produced
over the past 10 years is 3.2 percent. This means that chances are 2 out of 3 that the final estimate will not be above or
below the current estimate of 973,510 pelts by more than 3.2 percent. Chances are 9 out of 10 that the difference will not
exceed 5.8 percent.

Reliability of Mink Estimates
[Based on data for the past 10 years]
Item

Root mean
square error
(percent)

Difference between first and latest estimate

90 percent
confidence
level

Average

Smallest

Largest

(percent)

(1,000)

(1,000)

(1,000)

Years
Below latest

Above latest

(number)

(number)

Pelts produced ..................................

3.2

5.8

59

0

137

7

2

Females bred ....................................

5.8

10.6

20

0

59

6

3

6

Mink (July 2024)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

Information Contacts
Listed below are the commodity specialists in the Livestock Branch of the National Agricultural Statistics Service to
contact for additional information. E-mail inquiries may be sent to [email protected]
Travis Averill, Chief, Livestock Branch ...................................................................................................... (202) 692-0069
Greg Lemmons, Acting Head, Poultry and Specialty Commodities Section ................................................. (202) 720-9526
Holly Brenize – Poultry Slaughter ......................................................................................................... (202) 720-0585
Liana Cuffman – Catfish and Trout, Mink, Census of Aquaculture ....................................................... (202) 720-8784
Fatema Haque – Turkey Hatchery, Turkeys Raised ............................................................................... (202) 720-3244
Derron Martin – Chicken Hatchery, Egg Products ................................................................................. (202) 690-3237
Seth Riggins – Honey, Honey Bee Colonies ......................................................................................... (202) 690-4870
Shulonda Shaw – Cold Storage, Capacity of Refrigerated Warehouses ................................................. (202) 720-3240
Autumn Stone – Layers, Eggs ............................................................................................................... (202) 690-3676
Takiyah Walker – Broiler Hatchery ....................................................................................................... (202) 720-6147

Mink (July 2024)
USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service

7

Access to NASS Reports
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