Kenya will begin a two-season GM maize testing program in October. The hope is that the biotech variety will be found to be superior to the current maize stocks and that GM seed could be commercially available by 2018. Meanwhile, another initiative is being funded by the Gates Foundation. Regional Updates MIDDLE EAST/MEDITERRANEAN COMMENTS Egypt’s public prosecutor has ordered the arrest of 13 individuals in connection with the investigation into fraudulent dealings related to the government’s local wheat purchases. The arrests are for 15 days only and intended to allow the investigation to proceed further. The public prosecutor has said that EGP 621 million ($70 million) had been paid for wheat that was not received. These arrests are i...
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.