Technology Uptake Policy Climate change is making its mark in the U.S. Midwest this season with excess moisture and in other parts of the globe whether its heat in Europe, drought in Australia or excess snow in the Rockies and Alps. Research in the journal Nature says there is now no reversing the more than 1.5 degrees Celsius rise in global temperatures. The impacts are sparking accelerated interest in technological solutions for agriculture, be it more capable equipment or more elaborate plant genetic modifications. While climate change may encourage the uptake of biotechnology, Pekka Pesonen of the European farm group Copa-Cogeca complains that the new EU-Mercosur trade agreement is imbalanced on the issue of technology. Europe&r...
What You Need to Know Today: Russia rejected calls for a ceasefire in the Black Sea, including a proposal to halt attacks on civilian shipping that could help restore grain flows from Ukrainian ports. Tyson Foods announced plans to permanently close its Joslin, Illinois, beef processing facili...
The big news in the cattle markets yesterday was Tyson Foods’ move to close two more beef plants. One of them, the Joslin, Illinois, plant was shuttered immediately after the announcement. The other, in Eagle Mountain, Utah, is a case-ready plant that does not slaughter cattle. Tyson also...
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) on Wednesday. In July, the CPI rose 0.1 percent, seasonally adjusted, and rose 3.4 percent over the last 12 months, not seasonally adjusted. The index for all items less food and energy, or the “core” infla...
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.