Uneven Distribution U.S. Farm Belt bankruptcies have reportedly reached a 10-year high as banks show their displeasure with producer balance sheets hammered by five years of low prices. Yet Purdue University’s monthly Ag Economy Barometer survey of farmers and their confidence rose 16 points in January to a seven-month high. The rise was likely helped by the Trump administration’s $6 billion distribution of trade war compensation checks. Unfortunately, the rest of the value chain is not receiving such subsidies. Trading houses are suffering as lower volumes of trade concentrate competition and deplete profits. As a result of the trade war and newer consumer-based demands, the entire U.S. agrifood value chain is facing major ch...
What You Need to Know Today: Commodities were mostly lower across the board today after yesterday’s Federal Reserve meeting hinted at a potential interest rate hike later in 2026. The dollar index reached its highest level in over a year, and a strong dollar makes U.S. agricultural expor...
Tomorrow is the Juneteenth federal holiday, and the USDA, along with the rest of the federal government and the CME, will be closed, so the monthly Cattle on Feed report was released a day early. The total number of cattle on feed in feedlots with 1,000 head or more capacity on 1 June amounted...
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.