EU agricultural policy has focused on assisting farmers in extracting higher prices for food, based on quality built over centuries, with branding both on historic names and geographic origin, and to some degree shorting the market. U.S. agricultural policy has zeroed in on productivity – extracting the highest yield for the lowest cost. This latter approach has served well during decades in which calories were expensive or at risk, but former USDA secretary Dan Glickman argues that the policy now contributes to national decline. That is because poor diet is the leading cause of mortality in the country. U.S. agricultural policy subsidizes high calories per acre of production when it should be reinforcing the goals of the government&...
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.