News Release Distributed 11/30/09
The LSU AgCenter will host the 2010 Agricultural Outlook Conference Jan. 21 in Alexandria.
Designed to continue addressing the current issues facing the state’s farmers, agribusinesses and others, the theme of the conference is “Keeping Louisiana’s Agriculture Competitive.”
The program, which will be held at the State Emergency Shelter building on the LSU AgCenter's Dean Lee Research and Extension Center south of Alexandria, will feature experts discussing topics such as biofuels, commodity outlooks, climate change, the recession, input costs and the Cap and Trade debate.
The conference originated as an Agricultural Crisis Summit in 2003 in response to problems the state’s agricultural industry faced that year. It then evolved into an annual event focused on the future of agriculture.
“Although we started off looking at how farmers would get past the 2002 storms that had caused them to have one of their worst years ever, we found many people in the industry were interested in coming together to plan for the future,” LSU AgCenter Chancellor William B. “Bill” Richardson said.
“Since then, we’ve seen relatively good years and years like last year when farmers faced problems ranging from drought to too much rain at the wrong time,” he continued. “The common thread is that those who are involved in Louisiana agriculture want to take an active part in ensuring it remains viable and competitive.”
Conference check-in and continental breakfast will begin at 8 a.m. Jan. 21, and the conference will start at 8:30 a.m. with informative presentations and discussions. It will adjourn at 3:30 p.m.
The event is sponsored by the LSU AgCenter, the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, the Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and USDA Rural Development.
There is no fee for participating in the conference, but because of limited seating and the need for meal planning, advance registration is required.
More details, electronic registration, hotel information and directions are available on the Internet at www.lsuagcenter.com/agoutlook. Additional information also may be obtained by phoning Frankie Gould at (225) 578-2263 or e-mailing fgould@agcenter.lsu.edu.
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Contact: Frankie Gould
Writer: Tom Merrill