As Global Agribusiness Partners reported in WPI’s China In-Country analysis yesterday, there is “uncertainty over the future outlook of China’s live hog” sector due to ASF “new limits by the central government on the transportation of live hogs.” China’s plan and forecast was to restore its hog herd and pork production this year. The new ASF incidence – or one or possibly two new variants – likely puts a lid on those plans and expectations. Production was forecast to be up 14 percent over 2020. As a result, pork imports were forecast to be down 15 percent to 4.5 MMT. The U.S. exports last year held a 16 percent market share, second behind the EU’s 41 percent market share (pr...
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.
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...