We are idiots. There is a certain elegance to New Age agriculture. Miles and miles of fields dedicated to either corn or soybeans are so vainly contrived by humans. Nature’s success is found in the immense diversity of a fallow field. What could be more equitable and inclusive? Strangely, the same species that tamed fire, split atoms with neutrons and suppressed the deadliest global virus within months using mRNA technology is an idiot about basic 10,000-year-old farming. Opponents of monoculture argue that it violates nature, and what could be better than nature? So, interlace your crops – mix it up and deal with the resulting immense logistical hurdles of extracting adequate nutrients from fallow ground. Why is inventin...
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.