The ministerial declaration emanating from the WTO’s meeting in Nairobi this past weekend is hailed by some as “historic” and by others as a disappointment.The ministerial declaration emanating from the WTO’s meeting in Nairobi this past weekend is hailed by some as “historic” and by others as a disappointment. The fact that the various parties were far apart on Friday and yet found agreement on Saturday indicates a certain degree of papering over the differences. Indeed, the operative phrase is that the parties will “exercise utmost restraint” in their trade-distorting practices. That the enforcement will be through the dubious “naming and shaming” process adds to the doubts about its real effects in the coming years.Developed nations will...
Congress is moving forward with its FY 2027 spending bills, while also still working to address FY 2026 funding for the Department of Homeland Security, which is still in a shutdown. The House Agriculture-FDA Appropriations Subcommittee marked up and passed its FY 2027 bill. The House bill prov...
Update for 6 April 2025: Last year, users pointed out differences between the 5-year averages reported in this app and what USDA estimates in its weekly report. The difference exists because WPI calculates average based on the last 5 years of observations for the current week. In cases where ob...
Beef packer margins improved to -$100/head last week, up $28 from the prior week as the Choice cutout stabilized following its brief post-Easter decline while fed cattle prices eased modestly. The cutout firmed to $384/cwt, while fed cattle prices slipped to $246/cwt, allowing packer margins to...
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.