Alternative proteins have become the rage in food processing, though there is now an argument that Americans have switched back to more traditional foods as a form of comfort during the current crisis. Alternatively, protein crops like peas should be higher in demand when traditional meat supplies become tight due to labor problems in fabrication plants. U.S. peas are currently priced seasonally similar to last year at this time, tending to be elevated in late fall/early winter due to holidays and perhaps consumption of more stews in cold weather. U.S. pea prices reached $8.93/kg during the winter holiday period but were priced 80 percent less in late summer around harvest time. As a major supplier, Mexico’s pea prices also pea...
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.