As Gary Blumenthal reported in yesterday’s Market Commentary, a federal district court ruled that U.S. EPA erred when it approved dicamba. The court ruled EPA made a procedural error in issuing 2020 dicamba registrations for over-the-top (OTT) use on dicamba-tolerant crops because it did not offer a public notice and comment period before issuing the registrations. Thus, the court said EPA was in violation of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and vacated 2020 registrations for the products XtendiMax, Enginia, and Tavium. Further in its ruling the Court noted that dicamba’s … toxicity is not limited to weeds; it kills broadleaf plants, generally, including desirable plants...
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.