Environmentalists and climate warriors have long targeted agriculture, particularly intensive animal agriculture, as a prime source of greenhouse gases and global warming. And as the largest agricultural producer, the U.S. has been the bullseye of their target. It is estimated that agriculture produces about 9 percent of U.S. greenhouse gases with a third of that coming from the gas, which contains methane, passed by cattle. The cattle business and feedlots have been singled out by environmentalists as an important source of climate change. They argue that if cattle production (with its flatulence) could be eliminated in the U.S. and in other countries where it is a major sector, this would have a greater beneficial impact than the Paris Cl...
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.