2013 Political Economy and Implications Trade and non-oil commodity values will fare better than overall economic growth, but there is plenty of trouble around the world to keep an eye on. The Future of Wheat As one of the earliest crops cultivated for food by man, not to mention the most prevalent, wheat has long been understood to be a “political crop.” However, wheat has been left out of the most significant and also the most controversial scientific advancement in crop production in our generation. Growth in Global Canola Production Slows After several years of rapid growth, global canola production growth has slowed. This can be attributed to poor weather in some countries and reduced plantings in Europe and China. De...
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.