Sequester and Meat Plants Last Friday (see WPI 22 February) we wrote about the potential sequester and the political specter of furloughing meat inspectors. Earlier this week National Pork Producers Council Executive Director Neil Dierks commented that it was not clear whether the furlough talk was more politics or probability. USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack had said that he has no discretion over the way in which sequestration relates to federal meat inspection activities because of the way the sequestration order is structured. However, Senator Roy Blunt (R-Missouri) sent a letter to USDA stating that "a sequestration order would apply by program, project, or activity at USDA." Additionally, "an agency has the flexibility to implement re...
Key Takeaways: Brazil confirmed a Newcastle disease outbreak at a commercial turkey farm in Santa Catarina on 18 October, raising concerns about potential disruptions to poultry exports despite the outbreak being confined to a single facility thus far. Mexico and Malaysia have imposed nationwi...
Yesterday, Alberta held a referendum on whether to begin the process toward independence from Canada. With more than one million votes counted as of early Tuesday morning, around 77 percent supported remaining in Canada, and 23 percent voted to start the process of separation, according to unof...
Mediterranean/Middle East/North Africa/Africa – MEA Region Pakistan’s smaller wheat farmers have been holding protests to complain about the lack of a support price for wheat and the potential expansion of GMO crop production. They also want the reinstatement of PASSCO, the governme...
From WPI Consulting
Infrastructure investment due diligence
On behalf of a Canadian oilseed processer WPI's team provided market analysis, econometric modeling and financial due diligence in support of a $24 million-dollar investment in a Ukrainian crush plant. Consistent with WPI's findings, local production to supply the plant and the facility's output have expanded exponentially since the investment. WPI has conducted parallel work on behalf of U.S., South American and European clients, both private and public, in the agri-food space.