As of this writing, there is no word from the two-day U.S./China trade meeting that should be about to wrap up. No one expects an agreement to suspend hostilities, but the two sides will hopefully agree to more talks. That the tit-for-tat tariffs on $16 billion worth of goods, part of the first $50 billion announced, went into effect as scheduled today does not help. China has reported another incidence of African swine fever in a different part of the country than the other outbreaks, indicating the disease is on the move. This is a virulent disease, usually fatal to hogs, for which there is no known cure or vaccine. Unless strong steps are taken to stop its spread, it could threaten a significant portion of China’s huge hog populat...
What You Need to Know Today: Russia rejected calls for a ceasefire in the Black Sea, including a proposal to halt attacks on civilian shipping that could help restore grain flows from Ukrainian ports. Tyson Foods announced plans to permanently close its Joslin, Illinois, beef processing facili...
The big news in the cattle markets yesterday was Tyson Foods’ move to close two more beef plants. One of them, the Joslin, Illinois, plant was shuttered immediately after the announcement. The other, in Eagle Mountain, Utah, is a case-ready plant that does not slaughter cattle. Tyson also...
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) on Wednesday. In July, the CPI rose 0.1 percent, seasonally adjusted, and rose 3.4 percent over the last 12 months, not seasonally adjusted. The index for all items less food and energy, or the “core” infla...
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.