Packing capacity has been an issue not only for cattle and beef production, but for broilers also. Production is also slowed by various issues like labor availability and social distancing protocols. Pork, where the name plate capacity has expanded in the recent past, and the market hog herd contracting hasn’t seen the same sort of impact; in fact, hog prices are quite bullish. Broiler meat production was down 3 percent in the Q1 of the year compared to 2020 – a pre-pandemic comparison. It is catching up, with cumulative production now running only 1 percent below last year on slightly heavier birds, though slaughter is still 3 percent down. Additionally, as of April, cold storage inventories were at a seven-year low – an...
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.