Government Markets Typically Gamed The EU member states voted to impose a 9.6 percent tariff on ethanol imported from the U.S. over the next five years, as they claim that the fuel is cheap and subsidized. U.S. ethanol is a mandated market, which makes it a rather indirect subsidy. Ethanol makers would certainly say it is too low-priced to be profitable but that is due to a variety of reasons, including rebounded production by Brazil now that it has a decent sugar crop. The problem isn't subsidies, but rather the contortions that occur whenever government attempts to make a market instead of simply living off of it.The latest fine example of why biofuel mandates are problematic is the so-called "train to nowhere." Bioversel Trading Inc...
Key Takeaways: Brazil confirmed a Newcastle disease outbreak at a commercial turkey farm in Santa Catarina on 18 October, raising concerns about potential disruptions to poultry exports despite the outbreak being confined to a single facility thus far. Mexico and Malaysia have imposed nationwi...
Yesterday, Alberta held a referendum on whether to begin the process toward independence from Canada. With more than one million votes counted as of early Tuesday morning, around 77 percent supported remaining in Canada, and 23 percent voted to start the process of separation, according to unof...
What You Need to Know Today: Harvest pressure in the U.S. sent corn and soybeans lower as supplies increased and there were signs USDA’s upward revisions to yields in the October WASDE could be close to right. The conflict between Russia and Ukraine escalated over the weekend, with Ukrai...
From WPI Consulting
Accountability and a comprehensive approach to export programming
WPI’s team helped construct a strategic approach to develop, implement, and track promotional activities in 8 key regions across the globe for an agricultural export association. With continued progress measurement and strategic advisory services from WPI, the association has seen its ROI from investments in promotional programming increase by 44 percent over the past 5 years. Not only does this type of holistic approach to organizational strategy provide measurable results to track and analyze, it fosters top-down and bottom-up organizational accountability.