Meat and Veggie Outlook: Food fashion prognosticators are saying that participants in meatless days will increase in 2013. This is likely due to a variety of factors, including the trend toward healthier eating aspirations and the record cost of meat. The movement is aided by improvements in meat substitute products, but there concurrently will be an increased awareness of the food safety issues in the fruit and vegetable sector. Salmonella and other problems in sprouts, lettuce and cantaloupe have been reported, but some argue there has been a larger "leafy green cone of silence" when it comes to the extent of the problems. By contrast, every problem in the meat sector gets mass media attention. A shift toward more vegetable consumption...
What You Need to Know Today: Cattle futures extended their sharp selloff Friday as weakening cash cattle prices, deteriorating feedlot profitability, and reduced packer demand continued to weigh on the market. The inability of futures to sustain a rally following last week's bullish Cattle on...
Markets are getting into the Halloween spirit, handing out more tricks than treats. There has been some encouraging news, but it hasn’t been enough to slow the broader slide. Now buyers need to show up with something other than another “Charlie Brown” rock for the bag. Somethi...
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.