The two major party presidential candidates have now named their running mates, and both have distinct records as well as positions regarding agriculture.Both major party presidential candidates have named their running mates; they are former Congressman and current Indiana Governor Mike Pence on the Republican side with former Virginia Governor and current Senator Tim Kaine on the Democratic side. Donald Trump introduced Pence as his running mate on 15 July and Hillary Clinton introduced Kaine as hers on 24 July.Kaine had an 83 percent vote rating by the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) during the time of the 2014 Farm Bill when the average score for Democratic members of Congress was 58 percent. His priorities in the farm bill were...
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...
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.