USDA Ready to Bring it Friday
The Progressive Farmer – 02/07/2019
After five weeks of dark offices, USDA’s lights are back on and the department is ready to issue final corn and soybean crop estimates for 2018, new crop estimates for South America, Dec. 1 grain stocks totals and an estimate of winter wheat seedings…Compared to corn and soybeans, changes to wheat estimates in Friday’s reports are likely to be mild and, not surprisingly, are likely to lean bearish. According to Dow Jones, the estimate of U.S. ending wheat stocks is expected to increase from 974 mb to 993 mb for 2018-19. If, as I suspect, USDA leaves export estimates unchanged in February, there is a chance the U.S. ending stocks estimate for wheat doesn’t change at all.
Farmer Confidence Surges, is Highest Since Trade War Began
Successful Farming – 02/07/2019
With Trump tariff payments boosting Corn Belt farm revenue, farmer confidence shot to its highest level since last June, just before the trade war began against China, said the monthly Ag Economy Barometer published by Purdue University. Producers polled by Purdue said they expect ag exports to increase in the years ahead, an indirect sign they expect a beneficial resolution with China.
Trump Faces Uphill USMCA Battle in Congress
Agri-Pulse – 02/06/2019
Tumultuous U.S. talks with Mexico and Canada to rewrite a 24-year-old North American trade pact ended more than two months ago, but now President Donald Trump faces what could be an even more daunting task: negotiating with Congress. The Trump administration may be able to convince enough lawmakers to support the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, but both Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate have substantial concerns about the deal. Trump used his State of the Union speech Tuesday night to call on Congress to ratify USMCA, but negotiations have yet to truly begin, says Rep. Kevin Brady, the top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee.
Arcadia Biosciences’ GoodWheat Supply Chain is Progressing in Two Hemispheres
Associated Press News – 02/07/2019
Demonstrating its commitment to advancing its GoodWheat™ portfolio of novel, non-GM wheat ingredients with unique health benefits to commercialization, Arcadia Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: RKDA), an agricultural food ingredient company, today announced additional progress in the development of its supply chain, led by Grant Aldridge, the company’s new Head of Commercial Development. Since mid-2018, Arcadia has significantly expanded its grower base for unique GoodWheat varieties to provide adequate supply for its consumer and animal feed customers. To preserve the unique characteristics of GoodWheat, the company has developed a robust identity preservation system that ensures the wheat’s unique quality is maintained throughout the supply chain, from seed to food company.
Source: U.S. Wheat Associates