Jan. 11, 2006 -- The 12th annual Arkansas State University Agribusiness Conference will be held Wednesday, Feb. 15, in the ASU Fowler Center and Convocation Center. During the luncheon address, Richard E. Bell, Arkansas’ first Secretary of Agriculture, will speak on the structure and mission of Arkansas’ new Department of Agriculture.

Joining the ASU College of Agriculture as conference sponsors are: the Judd Hill Foundation, Arkansas Farm Bureau, AgHeritage Farm Credit Services, Busch Agricultural Resources, Farm Credit Midsouth, Greenway Equipment Inc., Liberty Bank of Arkansas, Riceland Foods, Inc., RiceTec, Inc., and the USA Rice Federation.

The General Session on Farm and Agricultural Policy will feature three presentations and a panel discussion. Dana Brooks, Director of Congressional Relations, American Farm Bureau Federation, will give her organization’s view of the next farm bill. Fran Freeman, Minister-Counselor for Agriculture, Embassy of Australia, will discuss U.S. agricultural policy from an international point of view. Ken Cook, President of the Environmental Working Group, will discuss the distribution of farm subsidy payments and how the public perception of farm subsidies will influence the next farm bill debate.

In the Cotton Session, Mike Stevens, a cotton specialist with Swiss Financial Services, will give his outlook for the cotton market and discuss issues facing the cotton industry.

The Rice Session features Bill Reed, Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs at Riceland Foods, and Milo Hamilton of Firstgrain, Inc. Bill will discuss how proposals for U.S. agricultural and trade policy may impact the rice industry. Milo will give his view of the rice market outlook.

In the Livestock Session, Rob Hogan, University of Extension Livestock Economist, will discuss livestock industry issues and the market outlook for beef.

In a new session on 2006 Crop Costs and Returns, H. Scott Stiles, U of A Extension Economist, will present and compare the latest enterprise budgets for Rice, Cotton, and Soybeans.

A panel of Arkansas crop production specialists will discuss how increases in input costs may affect planting decisions and production practices.

In the session on Precision Agricultural Technology, William H. Baker, associate professor of agronomy, will describe ASU’s precision agriculture research program. A panel of precision agriculture specialists will discuss how farmers and landowners can benefit from GPS and GIS technology.

Continuing education credits are available according to guidelines of the Arkansas State Board of Public Accountancy, the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers, the American Society of Agricultural Consultants, and the Arkansas Certified Crop Advisors.

On-site registration begins at 8 a.m. in the Fowler Center. Lunch will be served in the Convocation Center at noon. Afternoon sessions end at 3:30 p.m.

Admission to the conference is free, but luncheon reservations are limited to the first 600 who register. Additional conference information and on-line registration is available on the College of Agriculture web site http://agri.astate.edu.


For more details:
Bert Greenwalt, Professor of Agricultural Economics
Arkansas State University College of Agriculture
870-972-2087, bertg@astate.edu