You’ve got questions?
We’ve got answers

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The short answer is yes.

PACA and Blue Book are separate entities. PACA is authorized by congress and provides you the legal authority to operate in the produce industry. Whereas Blue Book provides you the necessary business, credit and sales capabilities to establish and grow your business.

For more information on getting a PACA license,
please visit the USDA’s website.

Blue Book has literally had customers for generations, so we must be doing something right. But instead of us giving you a pitch, listen to our Customers’ stories.

Blue Book has a proven track record of helping our customers reach their most important goals: managing risk, increasing revenue and growing profitably.

The intelligence tools and capabilities available to Blue Book customers power their Operations, Finance, Credit, Procurement and Sales strategies and give them the ability to outpace competition.

Blue Book subscription costs are based on two factors: subscription tier and custom add-ons.

Blue Book tiers are based on the depth of information that you might require. Higher tiers offer more robust information (e.g., contact information, credit history, real-time alerts, etc.) about companies.

Add-on solutions to the Blue Book platform and integrations can also impact pricing and packaging. For example, Who’s Viewed My Profile is available as an add-on for organizations that want real-time visibility into when companies are actively searching for them in Blue Book.

Please note, all subscriptions are sold on an annual basis. The prices listed above are shown on a monthly basis to aid in comparison to other subscription platforms.

You can upgrade your plan at any time! Contact our Customer Success team and they’d be glad to walk you through the incremental benefits, features and unlocks at each level.

Depending on your subscription tier, the add-on options may vary. We’ve tried to make as many features complimentary as possible, especially at the Premium and Enterprise levels. Add-ons include:

• Logo: add your logo to your listing to build your brand awareness (Complimentary for Standard and Premium)
• Annual print Blue Book: for those that prefer a book to a digital tool
• Blue Book Credit Application Service: speed your credit evaluation of a new customer (select reports are available at each tier – additional reports available as needed)
• Business Reports: deep dive into every aspect of a company with just a click (select reports are available at each tier – additional reports available as needed)
• Local Source: additional detail on the small, local growers
• Who’s Viewed My Profile: that added intelligence to know which companies are evaluating your firm (Not available for Basic customers, but available for purchase for Standard and complimentary for Premium customers)
• New member special discounted advertising: build your brand, tell your story (Not available for Basic customers, but increasing discounts for Standard and Premium customers)
• Business Valuation: a benchmark to evaluate your company and build plans for the future (Complimentary for Standard and Premium)

Easy! Pick a plan that best addresses your needs and once you complete payment, you will have live access the same day. Our Customer Success team will be glad to assist you with any trainings or demos. And no worries if you forget something, we’re here to help!

We accept all major credit cards. If you want to purchase the Enterprise Plan, Contact us, and we will issue an invoice that you can pay via bank transfer, check or credit card.

Great question! Produce Blueprints® is only available to subscribing customers. It provides everyone with an assigned Blue Book seat license access to deep analysis on the latest industry trends, commodities, regional spotlights, and long form interviews with industry leaders.

The Produce Reporter® is a free resource and is available to anyone! Please signup to get our newsletter delivered to your inbox today!

The BBID (Blue Book ID) is a unique identifier for businesses. While having a BBID is not a requirement for doing business, having one may help legitimize your business with potential partners and is a starting point for building a Blue Book profile.

To get listed in the Blue Book, you can apply for membership with Blue Book Services, providing necessary company information and agreeing to adhere to their standards and guidelines.

To update your listing, log in to your Blue Book Services account and edit your company profile with the most current information.

Blue Book rates thousands of companies across the produce and transportation industry sectors.

To get a Blue Book rating, a business needs to provide basic information about its trading practices, references, and financial statements, and then the Blue Book Services will assess the company’s creditworthiness and trading history.

The Blue Book Rating is an analyst assigned credit rating given to produce and transportation companies, reflecting their creditworthiness based on trade experiences and payment histories.

The Blue Book Credit Score is a proprietary predictive score ranging from 500 to 1000, indicating the likelihood of a company experiencing negative credit events, such as payment defaults or delinquencies, over a 12-month period.

It is the only predictive credit score created just for the produce industry.

The Pay Rating reflects a company’s payment performance, assessing how promptly and reliably they settle their financial obligations with trading partners.

The Credit Worth Rating evaluates a company’s overall creditworthiness, considering factors like financial stability and past performance.

The Trade Activity Score measures a company’s trading behavior, analyzing the volume and consistency of their transactions to assess reliability as a trading partner. It is a rolling 6-month average based solely on peer feedback solicited by Blue Book.

Reports are customized for every company that Blue Book monitors. They offer extensive information on key financial metrics, payment trends, trade practices history, ownership structures, ratings history, affiliations, and much more.

Trading Member or Transportation Member awards are given to companies that have consistently shown outstanding performance across a number of different criteria, including: financial, trade practices, credit, and payment trends. This is not specific to commodity or age of the company.

Best in Blue Book is an accolade recognizing companies that consistently demonstrate excellent creditworthiness and trade practices within the produce industry. It is assigned to the top 1% of companies that deal with a given commodity.

The simple answer is yes! Blue Book’s Trading Assistance staff is here to help you resolve trading and transportation disputes and collect on past due accounts. We pride ourselves in providing fair and experienced review of all claims.

No fee is charged unless you are paid, and the respondent (or debtor) does not need to be listed in our database before you place a claim.

Courtesy Contacts are “nudges” that Blue Book customers can use to encourage their past due accounts to pay invoices without taking the more significant step of opening a collection. The benefits Include:

• “Courteous” because it’s kept private and is not reported in the Claims Activity Table nor the Credit Sheet.
• Loops our Claims and Collections team into payment problems and helps get customers paid before filing a Claim becomes necessary.
• Courtesy Contacts are a free service for all subscription levels.

If you have questions or concerns about a trading or transportation regulation guideline or standard, our team is happy to help. Customers can feel free to call or email a claims analyst or submit a form online.

Blue Book Services’ Board of Arbitration was established in 1909 as a way to assist customers in formally resolving disputes. Parties who turn to Blue Book Arbitration can rest assured that they will receive a fair, industry-knowledgeable, and legally binding decision in a timely manner.

Arbitration can provide a quick, biding resolution to a trade dispute. Arbitration provides:

• A binding decision made by an arbitrator or arbitration panel.
• An inexpensive resolution to disputes.
• A more flexible and faster resolution to disputes vs. traditional litigation.

To learn more about our arbitration services and membership we encourage you to contact us by phone or email.