Agriculture

Time has come for Aussie CEOs to walk climate talk

12 Dec 2019

Fierce bushfires have left Sydney choking, triggering public anger along with home fire alarms. A government that won by challenging Labor’s green campaign is sitting idle. Companies can fill the leadership gap by pushing for coherent policy that would benefit investors, too.

Viewsroom: China-US trade deal is thin gruel

17 Oct 2019

President Donald Trump is touting the latest Sino-American talks as a real win, especially for farmers. China agreed to buy more agricultural goods like soybeans, but big issues like intellectual-property theft are still up in the air. Plus: The pros and cons of direct listings.

Farmers will turn activists to mop spilt Kiwi milk

26 Sep 2019

New Zealand's Fonterra, reeling from writedowns and its worst ever annual loss, will cut back overseas. Battered investors can press for more from the world’s largest dairy exporter. That includes fixing the $3 bln giant’s contradictory structure by carving out consumer brands.

Pig crisis gives China a shot at transparency

18 Sep 2019

African swine fever has driven local pork prices up by about 50% in a year. Inflation remains muted regardless, prompting some speculation that officials may be massaging the figures. Other factors make that unlikely, but it's a rare opportunity for Beijing to open up – a little.

U.S.-China trade war hinges on farmers, not Apple

13 Aug 2019

The Trump administration is delaying import tariffs on some electronics, giving the iPhone maker and the S&P 500 a boost. That’s down to business lobbying and a little pragmatism. But the president wants to boost American agriculture. Until China helps, investors can’t rest easy.

Trump turns U.S. farmers into trade-war fertilizer

9 Aug 2019

The president is using China’s stance on American agricultural products to escalate the conflict. Beijing is willing to egg him on. There are domestic political reasons for the White House to make just $20 bln of goods the crux of the battle. But it increases farmers’ suffering.

Viewsroom: Vicious trade cycle traps U.S., China

8 Aug 2019

The White House’s decision to brand Beijing a currency manipulator is the latest move in a conflict riven by miscommunication, unrealistic expectations and no obvious way out. Plus: Why the LSE is paying $27 bln for Refinitiv, and which of the data firm’s owners comes out on top.

African swine fever nudges China towards peak pork

25 Jun 2019

The outbreak has sent prices of the meat up 18% in May from a year earlier. The surge is likely to get worse, even if overall inflation remains stable. It is already encouraging a lasting shift among the world’s top buyers - one that might even complicate a trade war compromise.

India Insight: Not enough water for 1.3 bln people

10 Jun 2019

Maharashtra boasts one-tenth of the country’s population and the biggest economy of any state, but it is parched. Beyond the capital, Mumbai, a cattle camp offers a window into India’s struggle with water. Skewed incentives need to be reset, and more, to avert a stirring crisis.

Beyond Meat’s green IPO could still burn buyers

30 Apr 2019

The plant-based burger maker is seeking a $1.5 bln valuation after raising its IPO target price by 20 pct. The eco-friendly business has developed a following among consumers. But with former investor Tyson entering the alternative-meat space, investors may have tastier options.

Canola exposes Beijing’s blunt diplomatic tools

4 Apr 2019

Officials are scrutinising Canadian exporters of the stuff on quality concerns. China’s status as a giant trader is one of its few real geopolitical levers. But using health and safety for political ends also hampers watchdogs doing much-needed work to improve standards at home.

Roundup crisis could snarl Bayer in activist weeds

29 Mar 2019

The chemicals maker has lost 40 bln euros in value since U.S. juries said its glyphosate herbicide causes cancer. With science on Bayer’s side, delaying any settlement makes sense. But the longer the German group’s shares remain low, the more vulnerable it looks to interlopers.

Swine fever tests China’s transparency credentials

29 Mar 2019

Grains trader Cargill is the latest company to cite outbreaks of the highly contagious hog disease as a drag on business. It’s likely to fuel fears that the world's biggest pork producer may be under-reporting the issue. The taint adds to Beijing's fast-spreading problem.

U.S. floods add new twists to 2020 elections

21 Mar 2019

Several midwestern states have suffered some of their worst deluges on record, raising more climate-change fears. That could influence voters in Iowa, where presidential candidates face their first test. And the floods’ financial toll may prompt underwater farmers to dump Trump.

China’s trade problems go well beyond Trump

21 Feb 2019

Beijing hopes harsh terms in any tariff pact could be undone if the U.S. president loses re-election. But Democratic White House hopefuls like Sherrod Brown and Bernie Sanders are also tough on China. No matter who wins in 2020, bashing the People’s Republic is here to stay.

U.S. soy farmers will suffer trade war shell shock

20 Feb 2019

Midwestern producers will place a bet on talks between Washington and Beijing, when planting begins. Even with a deal, they face stockpiles and fewer soy-eating pigs in China, after an outbreak of disease. Worse, the spat has taught their top buyer it can live without U.S. supply.

Financing drought cracks farmers’ loyalty to Trump

24 Dec 2018

The U.S. president’s trade war has evaporated export markets for soy beans and other crops, leaving growers struggling even more than before. Yet they’re mostly sticking by Trump. If he can’t strike a good deal, farmers’ faith will erode when credit dries up for the next harvest.

Approach of peak chicken brings vat meat closer

12 Dec 2018

Today’s bird weighs up to five times as much as 60 years ago, putting it on track to be the world’s protein of choice. Yet the rate of growth is slowing because of the fowl’s physical limits. That’s a recipe for lab-grown alternatives, just as regulators clarify the rules.

Beyond Meat IPO could go from rare to charred

19 Nov 2018

Investors who take a bite of the plant-based meat maker could get a taste of rapid growth, top-notch leaders and a way to address the looming food crisis. But the company is restricting some shareholder rights and faces competition from traditional and fellow upstart firms alike.

Trade and pig diseases infect China’s pork giant

31 Oct 2018

WH Group, $11 bln owner of U.S.-based Smithfield, is fighting a losing battle on two fronts. Deadly swine fever is sweeping China, while tariffs hammer its American market. Quarterly earnings fell by almost a third from a year earlier. It will get worse before it gets better.