China's Overseas Agricultural Investment Continues to Expand The large state-owned agricultural enterprise Xinjiang Production & Construction Corps (XPCC) has signed an agreement with the Ukrainian government-controlled KSG Agro to lease 3 million hectares of land to China for the next 50 years, according to the South China Morning Post. Starting with 100,000 hectares, the prime farmland in Ukraine's eastern Dniproppetrovsk region will be used for growing crops and raising pigs. The products will then be sold to two Chinese state-owned companies for distribution at preferential prices. The deal, worth $2.6 billion per year, is said to be Ukraine's single largest foreign investment. This would also make Ukraine the largest overseas...
What You Need to Know Today: Chinese purchases of U.S. soybeans continued to accelerate, with USDA reporting another 558 KMT sold to China and 236 KMT to unknown destinations. Combined with sales announced Wednesday and Thursday, the latest purchases bring the three-day total to approximately...
Key Takeaways: With the fall calf run now upon us, producers are finally getting a glimpse of what their realized profits will be for 2026. Some producers may have already obtained a strong estimate of 2026 revenues, especially if calves were forward sold in, for example, the mid-summer...
As fall begins, wild migratory birds are starting their seasonal migration. That has the industry and government officials worried about the potential spread, again, of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). Some members of Congress have called for the United States to be prepared for a pote...
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.