The reputation destruction that was just quickly and definitively imposed on lean, finely textured beef (LFTB) and the company that made it is actually occurring to the broader conventional agriculture sector. The years-long, low-level campaign against Big Ag is over; foodies are now engaged in a highly orchestrated, well-funded effort to accelerate the demise of GMOs and agricultural chemicals. Meanwhile, most aggies are still hoping that practicalities and glad-handing will save them. Markings of the Campaign The cabal of environmental groups, organic producers, vegans and cultural elites (celebrity chefs, Hollywood, coastal media) we call "foodies" have ramped up their campaign against conventional agriculture using a multi-pronged a...
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.