The current farm bill took two years of debate and negotiations to finish, and now stakeholders are already getting involved two years later in farm policy discussions, including the costs of the new farm income stabilization programs.Believe it or not, the 2018 Farm Bill debate has started. The current farm bill took two years of debate and negotiations to finish, and now stakeholders are already getting involved two years later in farm policy discussions, including the costs of the new farm income stabilization programs such as Price Loss Coverage (PLC) and Ag Risk Coverage (ARC) that, as expected, are coming in much over budget. PLC and ARC totaled $700 million and $4.2 billion, respectively, in 2015 and are expected to reach $2 billion...
What You Need to Know Today: Chinese purchases of U.S. soybeans continued to accelerate, with USDA reporting another 558 KMT sold to China and 236 KMT to unknown destinations. Combined with sales announced Wednesday and Thursday, the latest purchases bring the three-day total to approximately...
As fall begins, wild migratory birds are starting their seasonal migration. That has the industry and government officials worried about the potential spread, again, of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). Some members of Congress have called for the United States to be prepared for a pote...
From WPI Consulting
Forecasting developments in production agriculture
On behalf of a private U.S. agricultural technology provider, WPI’s team generated an econometric model to forecast the movement of concentrated corn production north and west from the traditional U.S. Corn Belt. WPI’s model has subsequently provided quantitative support to a multi-million-dollar investment into short-season corn variety development. WPI’s methodology included a series of interviews with regional grain elevators and seed consultants. Emphasizing outreach and communication with stakeholders who possess intimate sectoral knowledge – on-the-ground insights – is a regular component of WPI’s methodologies, made possible by WPI’s ever-growing network of industry contacts.