The theme for this year’s USDA Agricultural Outlook Forum is centered on managing risk in today’s markets. The forum will feature several international trade sessions highlighting strategies, challenges, and prospects for growth for U.S. agricultural exporters.

One of the international trade sessions, “Prospects for Export Growth in Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, and Turkey,” will feature a panel of experts highlighting the many promising market opportunities for these countries. Commonly known as MIST, these markets accounted for more than 21 percent of U.S. exports with shipments reaching $29 billion compared to $18 billion only five years ago.

Panelists include Mitch Skalicky, the U.S. Wheat Associates Regional Vice President for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean; Dennis Voboril, a returning USDA agricultural counselor from Indonesia; Michael Francom, a returning agricultural attaché from South Korea; and Kyd D. Brenner of DTB Associates, LLP, discussing Turkey. Read more »

Demand for local and regional foods is strong and growing, as consumers across the country are looking for healthy food options grown and raised in their own communities. USDA has long supported this effort along with the procurement of regional foods by schools and helping them increase food literacy among the nation’s children.

These efforts will be the topic of the “Showcasing Local Foods” session at USDA’s 2013 Agriculture Outlook Forum, February 21-22, where Dr. Sonny Ramaswamy, director of USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), will moderate a panel of speakers to discuss how local foods can lead to more nutritious diets. Lela Reichart with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture will discuss the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program, which focuses on nutrition knowledge and related topics. USDA Food and Nutrition Service’s Deborah Kane will discuss the Farm to School Program that isbringing more locally sourced fresh fruits and vegetables into school cafeterias.  Tom Coon, from Michigan State University, will discuss Cooperative Extension’s role in educational programs related to regional and local food systems. Read more »

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the selection of 30 university students who
will attend USDA’s 2013 Agricultural Outlook Forum. The students—who attend land-grant,
Hispanic-serving, and American Association of State Colleges of Agriculture and Renewable
Resources Institutions—have received assistance from USDA and corporate sponsors in order to
attend the Forum. The 2013 Agricultural Outlook Forum will be held Feb. 21- 22, 2013, at the
Crystal Gateway Marriott Hotel in Arlington, Va.

“The Outlook Forum will give these students the chance to hear from leading government and
industry voices on a broad range of topics, opening and expanding their opportunities to excel in
agriculture-related fields,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Read more »

USDA’s 2013 Agricultural Outlook Forum, Feb. 21-22, in Arlington, Va., will host a morning of plenary session speakers on the opening day followed by 25 breakout sessions.  The “Food Price Outlook” breakout session for 2013 will offer perspectives on food price inflation, the factors contributing to food prices, and the consumer implications.

In this session, Dr. Todd Davis, Senior Economist for the American Farm Bureau Federation, will discuss the link between this past year’s harvest and the prices consumers pay for food. Joining him will be USDA economist Richard Volpe explaining the relationship between food prices and inflation.  Kurt Collins, Senior Director of Commodity Risk Management for Unified Foodservice Purchasing Co-op, will explore strategies the food industry is using to manage commodity price risks. The “Farm Income” session will focus on general measures of the financial well-being of the farm economy and farm households.

To learn more about the Forum, please visit our website.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced speakers for the 2013 Agricultural Outlook Forum, “Managing Risk in the 21st Century,” Feb. 21-22 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott Hotel, Arlington, Va. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will present the keynote address, followed by guest speaker former Senator Thomas A. Daschle, currently a senior policy advisor with DLA Piper. USDA Chief Economist Joseph Glauber will present the 2013 U.S. Economic Outlook for Agriculture. In addition, a distinguished panel of speakers for the Feb. 21 plenary session includes: Bryan T. Durkin, Chief Operating Officer, CME Group; David Baudler, President of Cargill AgHorizons; and Scott H. Irwin, Laurence J. Norton Chair of Agricultural Marketing, University of Illinois. Mike Adams, AgriTalk Radio host, will moderate the panel.

The Forum’s dinner speaker on Feb. 21 will be Adam Sieminski, Administrator of the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), addressing the “U.S. Energy Market Outlook.” Read more »

USDA’s 2013 Agricultural Outlook Forum, “Managing Risk in the 21st Century,” will be held at the Crystal Gateway Marriott Hotel in Arlington, Virginia, on Feb. 21-23.  Speakers will include USDA policymakers and 85 distinguished experts in the fields of international trade, insurance, forestry, conservation, risk management, transportation, energy, nutrition, local foods, and food safety. The Forum continues to feature the traditional USDA commodity supply and demand and food price outlooks. Read more »