World Ag Forum off to impressive start

In what promises to be a content-rich three days, the World Agricultural Forum was kicked off with a pre-forum networking reception and dinner Sunday night at the St. Louis, Mo., Zoo, sponsored by Novus International.
So just why are agricultural leaders from around the world attending the event? A manager from a major poultry company in Thailand tells us he hopes to learn more about alternative feeds, given the past two years of tight global grain and oilseed supplies, as well as learn about ways to bring added value to his company’s production. Feed supply and price are among his major business challenges, he says.
But it’s not only traditional agriculture producers in attendance of the event. An official with a major chocolate company was also in attendance, and has a strong interest in agricultural sustainability, one of the WAF’s key goals. Cocoa productivity has not increased like corn and soybeans in recent years, he says, but can improve with more sustainable practices.
Looking to Monday, sessions include “The Agricultural Challenge During the Global Financial Crisis: The Nature of the Challenge; An Asian Outlook: Insights from the WAF Asia Roundtable; Managing Risk and Financing Agriculture and Food Production in the Changing Global Economy; and Strategies, Actions & Policies for Long-term Security in Agriculture & Food Production.