Array of speakers, topics on Corn/Soy Expo agenda

Speakers with national and international recognition will be featured at the 2013 Wisconsin Corn/Soy Expo being held at the Kalahari Resort here on Thursday and Friday, Jan. 31 and Feb. 1.

After an 8 a.m. session on the market outlook presented by Andy Shissler of Roach Ag Marketing (offices in Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, and Nebraska) on Jan. 31, veteran farm news broadcaster Orion Samuelson of WGN in Chicago will be a member of a panel reviewing the grain export market and other pertinent timely topics.

The opening of the trade show, annual meetings of the state corn and soybean grower associations and marketing boards, and a buffet lunch are on the agenda before an afternoon series of three concurrent breakout rounds with a choice of six or seven topics for each of the one-hour sessions.

Topics for the day's first breakout session are a high-yield soybean study, a Discovery Farms report, farm succession planning, information on truck inspections by the Department of Transportation, a report on the OSHA local emphasis program, and a cooking demonstration.

Choices for the second breakout round are the latest technology applications for agriculture, a new way to feed corn stover, measures of productivity on farms, tips for grain storage, the federal Food Safety Modernization Act, a defensive stance for pork producers, and what the November election results could mean for agriculture.

The third breakout round will have presentations on the effect of the 2012 drought on weeds, bugs, and feed, pest management in stored grains, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer issues, balancing swine rations with the available feeds, CommonGround Communications (a high-tech public relations approach), and repeats of the high-yield soybean study and farm succession planning.

The evening begins with a trade show reception, followed by a "Taste of Elegance" dinner sponsored by the Wisconsin Pork Association.

Other sponsors of presentations and break periods during the day are Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers, Nidera & Schultz's Inter-State Ag, BASF, Premier Insurance, Blue River Ag, and Syngenta.

At the 8 a.m. session on Feb. 1, University of Wisconsin Extension Service agricultural economist Paul Mitchell will review the provisions of whatever Farm Bill is in effect at the time and the status of federal crop insurance.

Then a general session will feature retired military general Wesley Clark, who is a strong advocate of biofuels, and professor Barry Flinchbaugh, who will discuss the links between agriculture and politics.

University of Wisconsin-Madison band director Mike Leckrone will be a special guest at the noon luncheon.

The expo winds up with a "What's Next?" view on the link between weather and farming. The speakers will Wisconsin Extension Service agronomists Joe Lauer (on corn) and Shawn Conley (on soybeans) along with Iowa State University agriculturalist meteorologist Elwynn Taylor.

Sponsors for the Feb. 1 events are Mycogen Seeds, Landmark Cooperative, Dekalb Asgrow, and Dupont Pioneer.

Information about registration is available online at www.CornSoyExp.org. The fees will increase by $40 for registrations received after Jan. 5.