The year 2022 set a record for milk prices at $25.50/cwt, beating the 2014 record of $24.00/cwt. High prices will keep cows in production – and eating feed – which is why the current USDA projection for milk production is to increase, which will ironically pressure prices. The production increase is only for 1 percent, so 2023 prices are projected to average $21.60/cwt. In context, however, the all-milk price in 2021 was $18.53/cwt. While there are expectations of marginally lower demand, based on the market in 2022 (with final data yet to be released), over time dairy demand has remained remarkable, and any reduction would come off of an impressive growing trend. According to USDA statistics, from 2017 to 2021 per capita...
Key Market Insights The broad market is locked in on this week’s Trump-Xi meeting in Beijing, but this is no longer just a trade summit. Increasingly, the meeting is becoming tied directly to Iran, energy security, and the growing global economic fallout from disruptions through the Strai...
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.