The Van Trump Report

Month: June 2024

How Companies are Winning the High-End Produce Market

Some produce lovers out there are willing to spend a surprisingly large amount of money on what’s been dubbed “designer” fruits and vegetables. From strawberries that run upwards of $5 each, to mini, seedless peppers that cost three times that of  their full-sized cousins, these products have transformed produce aisles into one of the more …

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Broke Bob’s Ag Equity Report: Ukraine War’s Impact on Ag Equities

Wars can swing commodity prices widely. Certainly, this has been true in Ukraine. The question for readers of the Van Trump Report is how markets might react if hostilities in Ukraine were to cease and tensions in the Middle East subside, or conversely, should conflicts spread further into the Middle East and China Sea. In …

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What You Need to Know About India’s Agricultural Sector…and Opportunities for US Exports

Over the next five years, Indian households are predicted to become the biggest spenders among the G20 countries, a group composed of most of the world’s largest economies. Already, India has the largest population of any country in the world at an estimated 1.4 billion in 2023. According to the United Nations, that equates to …

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China’s Recent Weather Extremes Could Drive Up Grain Imports

China started this year by unveiling big plans to boost its agricultural production and minimize imports. However, Mother Nature seems intent on derailing those plans, at least for this growing season, with China’s farmers battling drought and scorching heat in the northern half of the country and extreme flooding in the south. High temperatures and …

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It’s Soybean Scouting Season – What You Need to Know

We have reached that time of year when it’s important to be scouting soybean fields for an array of yield-sapping pests and diseases. Catching problems early gives crops the best chance of minimizing yield loss, something that has become even more important amid razor-thin margins for many farmers. Just as important to identifying trouble in …

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Honeybee Killing “Yellow-Legged Hornet” Invading US

A few years ago, Americans were warned about “Asian Giant Hornets” – aka “murder hornets” – that were spotted in Washington state. While that menace seems to be under control for now, a new Asian hornet species known for its penchant for murdering honeybees has snuck into the US. The “Yellow-Legged hornet” feeds on a …

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What’s Going On with Russia’s Wheat Crop?

Russia has declared a series of federal emergencies recently amid crop-damaging frosts and drought that are denting the country’s wheat prospects. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) in its most recent June update trimmed Russia’s 2024-25 wheat production by -5 million metric tons (MMT) to 83 MMT. Other forecasters are even less optimistic, including local …

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