Scale and TPP Today was the start of two days of working level talks between the U.S. and Japan on the latter joining the TPP. Meanwhile, Stephen Harner of Forbes highlights the work of Yamashita Kazuhito of the Canon Institute for Global Studies. Yamashita advises those concerned about the collapse of agriculture if Japan joins the TPP that the sector has already collapsed. Its output has fallen by a third over the past 28 years due to overprotection. His graph below shows that to make money growing rice in Japan, a farmer needs to have scale. Most rice farmers are on the left side of the graph, though Takashi Terada of Waseda University says small-scale rice farmers mostly work at jobs off the farm. Trans-Atlantic Waste of Time? This...
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
Weighing in on strategic realignment
WPI’s team was retained by the governing board of a U.S. industry organization to review a decision, reached by vote, to invest significant assets into the development and management of an export trading company. WPI’s team conducted a formal review of this decision and concluded that the current level of market saturation would limit the benefits of the investment. Based on WPI’s analysis and recommended actions, the board subsequently reversed its decision and undertook a strategic planning effort to identify more impactful investments. On behalf of numerous clients, WPI has not only assisted in identifying strategic paths but also advised their implementation.