The EU’s political leaders have made dramatic policy reversals in recent days that reflect a more reasoned approach than in the past. As noted previously, they have scrapped some of the Green Deal/Farm to Fork requirements like quitting pesticides, and today the EU Parliament (EP) approved releasing NGT-1 products from the obligations of the Novel Foods Directive. This means that new crop traits developed through new genomic techniques and considered to be “indistinguishable” from conventional crops avoid the most burdensome requirements. The EP voted approval (307 for, 263 against, 41 abstained) despite anti-GMO advocacy groups insisting that it would mean GMO’s released into use without any requirements for...
Last week, the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) raised the federal funds rate by 0.25 percentage point to a target range of 3.75 to 4 percent. That was the first rate hike since mid-2023, and the vote was unanimous. President Trump, who nominated Kevin Warsh in March...
Key Takeaways: Higher interest rates increase the cost of financing agricultural production, reducing farm margins without providing any corresponding increase in production or revenue. The financial impact of higher rates varies considerably by operation, with highly leveraged producers and t...
Last week, the Senate Ag Committee passed the farm bill on a party-line vote upon the return of Senators Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) and Tommy Tuberville (R-Alabama), who missed the vote on 6 August (see WPI coverage here) when it failed by a similar party-line vote, 10-11. Democrats held the...
What You Need to Know: U.S. fertilizer production is highly concentrated, but concentration alone does not establish that producers are operating as a cartel. Imports introduce competition unevenly: they supply nearly all U.S. potash consumption but play much smaller roles in domestic ammonia...
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.