Rains Impacting South American Soy Crops Farmers in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso are beginning to harvest early-maturing soybeans, but almost daily rainfall is preventing any progress. There have been several days of stoppage in some areas, while they are only able to harvest for a few hours each day elsewhere. Forecasters expect the daily rainfall to continue for at least the rest of this week and perhaps next week. Frequent rains in central and northern Brazil are typical during a La Nina, which is now developing. In some past years, this has caused soybeans to sprout in the pods with major yield and quality losses. Such rainfall is also conducive to the development of Asian soybean rust, another factor that can greatly reduce yie...
What You Need to Know Today: After a period of limited activity, USDA reported a sizeable 613 KMT in soybean export sales, including 330 KMT to China and 283 KMT to unknown destinations, potentially also China. The purchases represent a meaningful pickup in demand and bring China closer to ful...
Key Takeaways: Consumer spending is a key driver of the U.S. economy, and the latest retail sales data indicate that spending remains robust despite inflation. In September, total retail and food service sales rose more than 6 percent year-over-year, with food service spending up 7 percent and...
The Trump import plan for 300,000 MT of beef supplies used for ground beef, i.e., lean trim, from September through November has, according to Secretary Brooke Rollins, brought some relief to beef prices. The Executive Order states that the Secretary of Agriculture will analyze and review the m...
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.