As WPI reported last week, the October WASDE increased its projection for beef production by 205 million pounds on higher slaughter and heavier carcass weights and increased the 2025 forecast for beef production by 300 million pounds. Nonetheless, October slaughter is starting slowly. Total slaughter last week was 586,000 head, a 4.1 percent drop off from the week before and 4.9 percent below the same week last year. Fed slaughter was 468,000 head. This week the outlook is for 482,000 head fed slaughter, which would be about 3 percent lower than last year. Slowing the pace of exports has helped the cut-out value and bolstered packer margins. Last week, the choice cutout was $313/cwt, which was up $8.70/cwt from last year. While heavier wei...
Key Market Insights Geopolitical Limbo: Geopolitical risk remained a key driver across global commodity markets today. President Trump stated that the Iran memorandum of understanding is not yet final and warned that military action could resume if negotiations fail. Both sides continue w...
Key Takeaways: Drought remains a major threat to global agricultural production, particularly in regions with limited rainfall and growing water scarcity. Commercially available drought-tolerant traits in corn, soybeans, and wheat have generally delivered modest yield improvements, limiting th...
Key Takeaways: Peace at last in the Persian Gulf? Over the weekend, the U.S. announced and Iranian officials confirmed a peace agreement, with formal ratification set for Geneva on 19 June. The announcement means the Strait of Hormuz is set to reopen fully and toll-free within 30 days.&n...
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.