The European Parliament voted earlier this week to reduce the target for biofuels from 10 percent to 6 percent by primarily cutting back on food crops as biofuels feedstock. The resolution also stipulates that by 2020, 2.5 percent of total biofuels are to be comprised of the so-called advanced biofuels that are derived from waste, seaweed and algae. It passed by a vote of 356-327. The European Commission proposed a cap of five percent last year, while the original language of the Parliament's resolution called for 5.5 percent. An industry counter-plan called for a target of 6.5 percent. The 6 percent target was a compromise that allows existing construction and plant expansion plans to move forward. Legislation will now go back to the 28...
What You Need to Know Today: U.S. weather is getting more attention this week as conditions vary greatly across the western, central, and eastern corn belts, with the different regions battling dryness and too much rain simultaneously. The ProFarmer Crop Tour began today in Indiana and Nebrask...
Key Takeaways: Argentina is on pace for a record corn crop and record exports in the current marketing year, with abundant supplies likely to keep the country highly competitive in global export markets. Argentina’s record exportable surplus is allowing it to offer highly competitive pri...
Illuminating the value of technical research
On behalf of a commodity producer organization, WPI evaluated the outputs from a project that featured a $5 million investment into technical research over multiple years. WPI’s team captured the results of this extensive effort and synthesized them for presentation to the organization’s governing board; among the findings uncovered and presented for the first time was the development of genomic traits proven, via rigorous testing, to provide crop yield advantages of 50 percent or more to U.S. farmers in times of drought. Capturing measurable results from long-term efforts can be challenging. Educating clients on the dynamics of success measurement when quantifiable results are not readily available requires deep client-consultant collaboration and an ability to consider both near- and long-term client aspirations with market/policy dynamics – attributes that WPI brings to every consulting engagement.