News Release:
Hundreds of North Dakota farmers and agribusinesses joined together to get the latest updates on important topics like trade, weed management and farm stress at the 2019 Northern Corn and Soybean Expo at the FargoDome in Fargo.
More than 600 participants from across the state braved snowy conditions to take part in the second annual event held February 12 and organized jointly by the North Dakota Soybean Council (NDSC); the North Dakota Soybean Growers Association (NDSGA); the North Dakota Corn Utilization Council (NDCUC); and the North Dakota Corn Growers Association (NDCGA).
“Our turnout was very good, especially considering the weather and a lot of poor road reports,” says Jamestown, North Dakota farmer and NDCGA board member Ryan Wanzek.
The Northern Corn and Soybean Expo featured general education presentations and breakout sessions, as well as a trade show highlighted by more than 80 exhibitors.
With a March 1 deadline looming for a trade agreement to be reached between the United States and China before further tariffs would be imposed on Chinese goods, international trade was the focus of several presentations. United States Soybean Export Council CEO Jim Sutter, National Corn Growers Association Public Policy Director Lesly McNitt and North Dakota State University (NDSU) Distinguished Professor Dr. William Wilson offered their global perspectives during an international trade hot topics panel.
NDSU Extension Crops Economist and Marketing Specialist Dr. Frayne Olson also delivered an update on current market and trade conditions. Olson stepped in for announced speaker Chip Flory who was unable to attend due to the inclement weather.
“Trade talk is obviously big right now. A lot of farmers are concerned about that, both in the corn and soybean industries, so that’s one of our biggest issues,” Wanzek says.
2019 marks the second year North Dakota’s corn and soybean organizations jointly put on the one-day event. The combined resources help the organizations tackle broader issues and attract more widely known speakers.
“People come in and they want to hear what these experts have to say,” says Valley City farmer and NDSC secretary Matt Gast. “Trade and marketing are always hot topics.”
“It allows us to cover bigger topics and get more bang for our buck,” Wanzek adds. “This event is for the growers and most of us are out there growing both corn and soybeans.”
Gast says he heard very positive feedback from farmers who liked the diversity of topics, with a Palmer amaranth panel, a water management session, and a weather trend overview with DTN meteorologist Bryce Anderson.
“We’ve had a lot of positive feedback on the trade show and the flow,” Gast says. “No two farms are alike, so we try to cover a broad spectrum of topics so everyone can relate."
Both the NDCGA and the NDSGA held their annual meetings and discussed policy issues to be addressed both in Washington and Bismarck. Those issues include Farm Bill implementation as well as tax and transportation concerns.
Hundreds of farmers also participated in a dicamba application training session following the Corn and Soybean Expo.
Farmers are encouraged to mark their calendars for next year’s 3rd Annual Northern Corn and Soybean Expo at the FargoDome, which will be held February 4, 2020.
North Dakota harvested 6.85 million acres of soybeans and 2.92 million acres of corn in 2018.