Grainnet

Washington—A major half-day session focusing on the current U.S. and world economic situation and its implications for 2009 grain contracting and financing strategies will headline the program at the National Grain and Feed Association’s (NGFA) 37th annual Country Elevator and 12th annual Feed Industry Conference to be conducted Dec. 7-9 in St. Louis, MO.

More than 600 industry members are expected to attend the day-and-a-half conference and trade show at the Marriott Renaissance Grand Hotel in downtown St. Louis.

NGFA Country Elevator and Feed Industry Conference Program and Registration Form

The major trade show, which will occur Dec. 7-8 during the conference, will feature nearly 90 exhibitors showcasing products and services essential to the grain, feed and processing industry.

Also conducted in conjunction with the conference is an annual Leadership Conference with State and Regional Grain and Feed Associations affiliated with the NGFA, as well as meetings of several key NGFA committees.

Established in 1896, the NGFA consists of 950 grain, feed, processing, exporting and other grain-related companies that operate about 6,000 facilities that handle more than 70 percent of all U.S. grains and oilseeds.

The half-day session devoted to the economic environment, cash-forward contracting and financing strategies will focus on how different cash-grain marketing strategies may be affected by the economic environment, supply/demand fundamentals, factors influencing futures market performance, and the availability of capital for the country elevator and feed sectors in 2009 for financing grain purchases and risk-management/hedging strategies.

Confirmed featured speakers are: Scott Colbert, director of fixed income and senior economist, Commerce Bank of North America, St. Louis, MO; Mike Rokala, market adviser with John P. Stewart Associates, Minneapolis, MN; Jim Hemminger, farm market adviser with Top Third Ag Marketing, Chicago, IL; Steve Hurst of the Merchants Group, Chicago, IL; and David Sparks, regional vice president, CoBank, St. Louis, MO.

This session also will examine changes by the CME Group to CBOT futures contracts, and how they may affect basis and the convergence between cash and futures during the delivery period.

Featured speakers will be David Lehman, director, commodity research and product development at the CME Group, Chicago, IL; and Dr. Darrel Good, professor of agricultural marketing at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, IL.

Another major focus of this session will be contracting practices designed to reduce disputes and counter-party risk in volatile markets, including discussion of a model master grain purchase agreement with producers and commercial parties.

Featured speaker will be Jacob Bylund, attorney, Faegre and Benson LLP, Des Moines, IA.

Other major program topics to be addressed at the NGFA December conference include:

• The results of a new study of large-scale producers and the kinds of products and services they want from grain elevators, feed and farm supply businesses.

Featured speaker will be Dr. Allan Gray, interim director and professor at Purdue University’s Center for Food and Agricultural Business, Lafayette, IN, which conducted the study.

• New drivers in food and feed safety, and how they will affect country elevators and feed and feed ingredient manufacturers, featuring Dr. Craig Henry, senior vice president and chief operating officer for scientific and regulatory affairs at the Grocery Manufacturers Association, Washington, D.C., and Kevin Murphy, founder/owner of Food-Chain Communications, Kansas City, MO.

Topics will include prospects for major food and feed safety legislation in 2009; the future of product-tracing requirements that may be imposed on grain elevators, feed mills and feed ingredient manufacturers; and how the food and consumer sectors will influence the way the industry does business.

• Key rail policy issues for country grain elevator and feed shippers in 2009, and the avenues available for shippers to address complaints with rail carriers through the federal Surface Transportation Board and NGFA’s unique Rail Arbitration System.

Featured speakers are Dan Mack, vice president, transportation for CHS, St. Paul, MN, and chair of the NGFA’s Rail Shipper/Receiver Committee; and Thomas Brugman, section chief of the Rail Consumer Assistance Program at the federal Surface Transportation Board’s Office of Public Assistance, Governmental Affairs and Compliance, Washington, D.C.

• An overview of the new presidential administration and Congress, including profiles of the new players expected to be influential in shaping future U.S. agricultural and trade policy, featuring Sara Wyant, publisher, AgriPulse Communications, St, Charles, IL.

In addition, the NGFA program will feature a major congressional leader discussing priorities for Congress in 2009.

There also will be a session examining front-burner safety, health and environmental quality issues for country elevators and feed mills in the coming year, with a major focus on work practices to minimize the potential for engulfment accidents resulting from employees entering grain bins, tanks or other confined spaces.

Further, the NGFA’s Country Elevator Committee will host an Industry Town Hall meeting on the afternoon of Dec. 7 on the implementation of the 2008 farm bill and top grain warehousing issues for 2009.

Conference registration information is available by contacting the NGFA at 202-289-0873, or by visiting its website at www.ngfa.org.

Hotel reservations may be made by contacting the Marriott Renaissance Grand Hotel at 1-314-621-9600.

Identify with the “National Grain and Feed Association” to secure the special room rate of $129 per night, single or double occupancy.

The hotel reservation deadline is Nov. 14.

For more information, call 202-289-5388.

See Related Websites/Articles:

• Program and Registration Form

more GRAIN NEWS...