Although the payment estimates from the president’s budget and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) for FY 2016 are relatively close and within standard estimating variances, the difference grows to $1.933 billion for next year.With the submission of the president’s FY 2017 budget, Congress will start its own budget-writing process. No changes to the major farm support programs created in the 2014 Farm Bill (the Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC) and the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs) were included in the president’s budget. There is also no reason to expect congressionally-pursued changes to either program, per the House Agriculture Committee’s “budget views and estimates” letter filed with the House Agriculture Committee (see Ag Persp...
What You Need to Know Today: After a period of limited activity, USDA reported a sizeable 613 KMT in soybean export sales, including 330 KMT to China and 283 KMT to unknown destinations, potentially also China. The purchases represent a meaningful pickup in demand and bring China closer to ful...
Inflation is back in the driver’s seat, and agriculture is getting pulled in two directions. A stronger dollar is pressuring grains despite fresh Chinese buying, while renewed Middle East attacks lift crude oil. Higher energy prices can support commodities, but they also raise expenses an...
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.