World Perspectives

Pseudo, Pseudo, Pseudo

Pseudo Farm Bill Issues: USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack told us NPR listeners that he thought the new farm bill, which he described as a "food, farm and jobs" bill, should include provisions for organic foods. His reasoning is that the organic sector is the fastest growing part of agriculture and it is a way of creating jobs for young people in the industry. However, it creates more jobs in part because it is less efficient. If this is the strategy, why not follow the Milton Friedman parable and outlaw conventional agriculture altogether? Just an opinion, but if conventional agriculture is certified by the government as a completely safe and efficacious approach, then organic is a government enforced hoodwinking of the consumer that is far wo...

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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.

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