FAS Agricultural Counselor Allan Mustard (nominated to be U.S. Ambassador to Turkmenistan) has issued a report exposing how New Delhi is substantially subsidizing Indian agriculture, but failing to report it to the WTO as required. Selective Approvals EU environment ministers are likely to vote tomorrow in favor of a plan allowing individual member states to decide for themselves whether to allow the planting of biotech crops otherwise approved by the European Food Safety Authority and the Commission. U.S. officials are already upset that the delayed approval process in Europe has cost American farmers substantial sales losses. Dispute settlement on whether the policy is WTO-compliant would be uncertain, particularly given Geneva's recen...
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.