USDA reports for August 2019: Changes for 2018/19 include reduced soybean crush, reflecting lower domestic use and exports of soybean meal. Soybean ending stocks are projected at 1.07 billion bushels, up 20 million. China’s soybean imports are lowered 2 million tons to 85 million reflecting lower soybean meal crush in 2019/20. With crush also lowered in 2018/19, China’s protein meal consumption growth is forecasted flat in 2019/20. The soybean meal price forecast is unchanged at $300 per short ton. ...
Mediterranean/Middle East/North Africa/Africa – MEA Region Egypt Grain Situation Recap: Wheat stocks in Egypt are at good levels, with only limited import interest. However, there is some concern over the supply of wheat from the Black Sea later in the year due to current weather problem...
Beef packer margins deteriorated to -$218/head last week, down $20 from the prior week as a softer Choice cutout combined with slightly lower fed cattle prices. The cutout slipped to $391/cwt while fed cattle prices eased to $256/cwt, leaving packer profits under pressure. Margins remain deeply...
From WPI Consulting
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.