U.S.-EU Contrast on Biofuel The EU announced its new policy is to limit biofuel made from food to 5 percent, end its subsidies by 2020, and mandate a 60 percent GHG reduction for new plants online after 1 July 2014. As stated by one minister, it "is not sustainable to put fuel production in competition with food." By contrast, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack doubled down by announcing new subsidies so that net food deficit New England could turn more of its food production into biofuel. Contrast in Trade Policy In their usual beggar thy neighbor approach to trade, the least developed countries are getting together to produce proposals that they will strongly advocate for should the G20 package of early harvest initiatives be moved forward...
What You Need to Know Today: U.S. weather is getting more attention this week as conditions vary greatly across the western, central, and eastern corn belts, with the different regions battling dryness and too much rain simultaneously. The ProFarmer Crop Tour began today in Indiana and Nebrask...
Key Takeaways: Argentina is on pace for a record corn crop and record exports in the current marketing year, with abundant supplies likely to keep the country highly competitive in global export markets. Argentina’s record exportable surplus is allowing it to offer highly competitive pri...
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.