The bullish tone of USDA's July WASDE surprised many observers. USDA lowered its projected corn and soybean yields and production more aggressively than expected. USDA now projects a national average corn yield of 146.0 BPA, exactly 20 BPA less than what it used last month. Harvested land was lowered by 200,000 acres and total corn production fell to 12.970 billion bu, down 1.820 billion from June. This must represent a record drop for a single month, or at least close to it.The national average soybean yield was put at 40.5 BPA, down 3.4 BPA from June. The reduced yield more than offset the sharply increased planted acreage from the 29 June plantings report with the result that soybean production was pegged at 3.050 billion bu, down 155...
Key Takeaways: President Trump announced $8 billion in additional agricultural assistance through the Harvest Fuel Relief Program, as USDA projects farm fuel and oil expenses will increase 28.8 percent in 2026. The package follows $12 billion in earlier relief, while government farm payments w...
Key Takeaways: A student group from the University of Chicago is protesting to bring back onion futures trading. Trading in onion futures was banned in 1958 following a spectacular bout of market manipulation that resulted in a corner of the physical market. The ban on onion futures led t...
Beef packer margins deteriorated to $141/head last week, down $55 from the prior week as fed cattle prices strengthened while the Choice cutout remained nearly unchanged. The cutout held near $373/cwt while fed cattle prices climbed $4/cwt to $224/cwt, narrowing processor profits. Despite the d...
From WPI Consulting
Infrastructure investment due diligence
On behalf of a Canadian oilseed processer WPI's team provided market analysis, econometric modeling and financial due diligence in support of a $24 million-dollar investment in a Ukrainian crush plant. Consistent with WPI's findings, local production to supply the plant and the facility's output have expanded exponentially since the investment. WPI has conducted parallel work on behalf of U.S., South American and European clients, both private and public, in the agri-food space.