Ohio State to Hold 2013-2014 Agricultural Policy and Outlook Conference Series Statewide

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Growers and producers will find that despite the fact that cropland in Ohio increased in value in 2012 and 2013, those values are expected to remain flat or even decline in 2014, an economist from Ohio State University’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) said.

Barry Ward, production business management leader for Ohio State University Extension, spoke Nov. 25 during the college’s kickoff of its 2013-2014 Agricultural Policy and Outlook series. The event initiates a series of local meetings to be held statewide through the end of the year.

OSU Extension is the outreach arm of the college.

Ward, along with several others of the college’s agricultural economists will present their findings and their economic outlook for the coming year during a series of countywide meetings this month as part of the college’s conference series.

The meetings will feature presentations by experts from the college's Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics on matters the agricultural community should expect in 2014, including policy changes, key issues and market behavior with respect to farm, food and energy resources, and the environment. 

In addition to Ward, speakers for the series will include:

• Carl Zulauf, a farm policy expert who will discuss differences in the U.S. House and Senate versions of the Farm Bill
• Mark Partridge, a regional economics expert who will discuss the outlook for economic growth in Ohio and the U.S. for 2014
• Ian Sheldon, an international trade expert who will discuss the changing economy of China and the impact on its role in the global economy
• Brent Sohngen, an environmental economist who will discuss new models for managing phosphorus emissions
• Cameron Thraen, a dairy expert who will discuss Farm Bill dairy safety net alternatives
• Matt Roberts, a grain economist who will discuss his outlook for the 2014 grain market

The meetings, which are open to the public, will be held on the following dates statewide throughout December:

• Dec. 12 from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Fisher Auditorium at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, 1680 Madison Ave. in Wooster
• Dec. 12 from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Bellevue VFW Hall, 6104 U.S. Route 20, in Bellevue
• Dec. 13 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the MetroParks Farm, 7574 Columbiana-Canfield Road in Canfield
• Dec. 16 at 10 a.m. at the Fraternal Order of Eagles Club, 400 East Lake Drive in Ashland
• Dec. 16 at 4:30 p.m. at the Attica Fairgrounds, Social Hall, 15131 E. Township Road 12 in Attica
• Dec. 17 at 5:30 p.m. at the Miami Valley Career Technology Center, 6801 Hoke Road in Clayton
• Dec. 18 from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. at the Circleville Presbyterian Church, 134 E. Mound St. in Circleville
• Dec. 18 from noon to 4 p.m. at the OSU Extension office, 111 Nelson Ave., in Wilmington
• Dec. 18 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Union County Services Building, 940 London Ave., in Marysville
• Dec. 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Wood County Fairgrounds, Junior Fair Building, 13800 West Poe Road in Bowling Green
• Dec. 19 from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at the Jewell Community Center, 7900 Independence Road, in Jewell
• Dec. 20 from 8 to 10 a.m. at the Fairfield County Agriculture Center, 831 College Ave. in Lancaster

Some of the meetings require registration and payment and may include a lunch or dinner. For more information or to register, go to http://go.osu.edu/2014outlook. More information including policy briefs and presentation files from each of the presenters can also be found at http://aede.osu.edu/policy-outlook.