USDA announced this week that more than $7 billion will be paid out in farm support payments under the new ARC and PLC programs versus approximately $5 billion last year. Perhaps the only good fiscal news for the next farm bill is that SNAP is forecast to have a decreasing baseline of spending.USDA announced this week that more than $7 billion will be paid out in farm support payments under the new Ag Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs versus approximately $5 billion last year. These programs replaced the Direct Payment program, which operated under the previous farm bill and cost about $5.2 billion annually. Based on the latest Congressional Budget Office (CBO) data, farm and conservation support payments are the fa...
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.