The United States Department of Agriculture announced today the full lineup of plenary sessions for its 100th Annual Agricultural Outlook Forum, titled “Cultivating the Future,” scheduled to take place on February 15-16, 2024 in Arlington, Virginia.
“The Agricultural Outlook Forum provides an all-encompassing look into American agriculture and its extraordinary diversity,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “In this vein, the plenary sessions in this year’s edition of the Forum will provide insight into key current and emerging topics and trends in the food and agriculture sector.”
Plenary speakers and topics on the first day of the 2024 forum will focus on solutions to cultivating the future of agriculture, with opening comments by Agriculture Deputy Secretary Torres Small, followed by the unveiling of USDA’s 2024 Outlook for the domestic agricultural economy and trade by Chief Economist Seth Meyer. Keynote remarks by Secretary Vilsack will underscore USDA’s progress in creating a more resilient food system and structures that allow future generations to keep farming and build a good life in the communities they love. The latter half of the morning program will include a moderated panel with Amanda Beal, Commissioner of the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry; Dr. Tim Boring, Director of the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development; and Rick Pate, Commissioner of the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries for a discussion on the future of agriculture, challenges producers are facing, and state experiences implementing USDA investments in food and agriculture on the ground. Additionally, a panel of producers and industry experts will discuss how science, technology, and innovation are positioning farmers and ranchers to prosper. Concluding the day’s plenary sessions will be a conversation with Raj Shah, President of the Rockefeller Foundation, about the challenges facing agriculture and the planet in the years ahead, and the big ideas needed to move forward. Following concurrent sessions on a range of topics, Dr. Wendy Wintersteen, President of Iowa State University, will close out the day with remarks on innovating agriculture’s future.
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