The Dairy Security Act provisions in the 2012 Farm Bill continue to be a point of controversy in the industry even though both congressional Agriculture Committees have been adamant about including the language on "voluntary" supply control. At last week's World Dairy Expo, a number of producers joined the chorus against the supply management proposals. Producers involved with the Dairy Business Association (DBA) held a press conference at the Expo urging Congress to drop the supply management provision of the program but maintain the margin insurance language, which is something processors also support.According to the DBA, had the supply control mechanisms been in effect this year, it would have triggered in May and cost a 100-cow dairy $...
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.