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Highlights of Agronomics Vision 2012

The American Society of Farm Managers & Rural Appraisers held their annual meeting and AgroNomics - Vision 2012 on October 29 - November 2, 2012 in Indianapolis, Indiana. The conference had many outstanding speakers on a range of farmland topics.

Some of the key speakers were Steve Elmore, Michael Swanson, Mike Walsten, and Mark Dotzour, and an entertaining finale by Lowell Catlett.

Steve Elmore, Global Economics Director for DuPont Pioneer, provided an economic update focusing on the major factors influencing U.S. agriculture, specifically, the changes in the macroeconomic and policy conditions and their impact on the major U.S. crop sectors. His main point was the U.S. agricultural sector should remain strong although increased risk and volatility will likely continue.

Michael Swanson, Ph.D. Senior Vice President /Agricultural Economist and Consultant, Wells Fargo & Company, discussed the drivers of the current global agricultural market and the relationship between land valuation and repayment capacity relative to alternative assets. An interesting part of his discussion was about the historical return to land and management. He stated the historical return to land averaged 25% while management averaged 20%.

Mike Walsten, Editor, LandOwner discussed current U.S. land market trends and an outlook on both short and long term land market trends.

Mark Dotzour, Ph.D., Chief Economist and Director of Research, Real Estate Center/Texas A&M University, discussed the outlook for job growth, interest rates, inflation, and real estate capitalization rate trends.

Lowell Catlett, Ph.D.; Regents Professor in Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Business and Extension Economics / Dean of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences; New Mexico State University, discussed “How Agriculture Dominates 21st Century Economics.” Dr. Catlett’s presentation was a very thought provoking and entertaining ending to an outstanding AgroNomics Vision 2012. Listen to his presentation here.

Check out Photos, Presentations, Press Releases, Awards, and Media Comments at www.agro-nomics.org. Agwired also interviewed attendees including Jeffrey Hignight. Mark your calendars for AgroNomics Vision 2013 which will be held in Reno, NV on November 11-15, 2013.

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