A cattle and sheep herding robot is being tested by the Australian Centre for Field Robotics. While the current model is more likely to replace herding dogs than cowboys and shepherds, the next generation will have more advanced features. North American Hogs and Pigs Inventory According to USDA’s most recent quarterly Hogs and Pigs report, total U.S. and Canadian inventory is up 2 percent (see breakdown below).Additionally, the semi-annual pig crop for the U.S. and Canada totals 74.3 million head to date, up about 1 percent from last year, and sows farrowed total 7.04 million head, an increase of less than 1 percent. According to Ag-Canada, 503,126 feeder pigs and 100,750 slaughter hogs came into the U.S. from Canada through the end of Ma...
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
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.