The slowdown in China's economy is clearly having a significant impact on 2015/16 global soybean demand as growth in its soybean imports is expected to be much smaller than last year. Larger U.S. Canola and Sunseed Crops in 2015 While the focus in the oilseed component of last week’s USDA reports was understandably on soybeans, the crop production report showed that the U.S. sharply boosted its production of canola and sunseeds in 2015. It indicated U.S. farmers will produce 3.092 billion pounds (1,402,477 MT) of canola, a 23.1 percent increase over the total 2.511 billion pounds (1,138,980 MT) in 2014. This gain was the result of an 11 percent increase in both harvested area and average yield. This year’s average yield was 1,791 pounds p...
What You Need to Know Today: The corn and soybean markets closed slightly higher in low-volume trade. The wheat market was mixed, with HRW continuing its downward trek on improved moisture. As expected, the bearish cattle on feed report drove down cattle prices and pulled hogs down with it. Mi...
Monday, 25 May is a U.S. holiday, and both the markets and our office will be closed. Please note that the next issue of Ag Perspectives will be published on Tuesday, 26 May. The WPI staff wishes everyone a safe and enjoyable holiday weekend...
USDA’s monthly cattle on feed report was released today. The total number of cattle on feed in feedlots with 1,000 head or more capacity amounted to 11.6 million head, 102 percent of last year. Source: USDA, WPI Placements were up, but part of that is attributable to persistent drought c...
Illuminating the value of technical research
On behalf of a commodity producer organization, WPI evaluated the outputs from a project that featured a $5 million investment into technical research over multiple years. WPI’s team captured the results of this extensive effort and synthesized them for presentation to the organization’s governing board; among the findings uncovered and presented for the first time was the development of genomic traits proven, via rigorous testing, to provide crop yield advantages of 50 percent or more to U.S. farmers in times of drought. Capturing measurable results from long-term efforts can be challenging. Educating clients on the dynamics of success measurement when quantifiable results are not readily available requires deep client-consultant collaboration and an ability to consider both near- and long-term client aspirations with market/policy dynamics – attributes that WPI brings to every consulting engagement.