Plant Nutritionist to Discuss Microbial Processes, Glyphosate Impacts - June 16

JONESBORO, Ark.-(AgWatch)--Dr. David N. Sasseville, a former extension specialist with the University of Missouri, will provide the morning address at the June 16 AgWatch Live Power Breakfast.

Dr. Sasseville will discuss the science behind the product Foliar Blend--a bio-stiumulant from Doniphan, Mo.-based Agri-Gro Marketing, Inc.--and the importance of microbial processes to crop production. He will also cover the consequences of glyphosate on soil microbes and crop nutrition, and what growers can do enhance crop performance using glyphosate.

Dr. Sasseville served as a state extension specialist with the University of Missouri for 25 years. While in this positions, he helped growers improve crop performance by examining crop nutrition, including micronutrients and the use of tissue testing. Since retiring from MU in 2003, Dr. Sasseville established Superior Agronomy Solutions, a consulting company, and AgriGuardian, a micronutrient specialty product company. His companies have clients and customers in 15 states, from Georgia to Texas and as far north as North Dakota and Minnesota.

Dr. Sasseville grew up on a family peach orchard in Georgia. He received his bachelor's and master's degrees in horticulture and plant nutrition from the University of Georgia. He obtained his doctorate from the University of Missouri in plant nutrition, examining the influence of pesticides and soil microbes on plant nutrition and overall plant health.

Beginning in 1991, he served as an expert witness and consultant for growers in more than 500 litigation cases, including some of the largest pesticide damage lawsuits in history. He has also done extensive international crop consulting in countries including Jamaica, Costa Rica, New Zealand, Mexico, Brazil and South Pacific countries.

For more than a decade, he has conducted research on Agri-Gro Marketing, Inc. products.

AgWatch Live begins at 6:30 AM in the AgWatch Network Media Center and will finish by 7:30 AM. Once again, sign up is free but limited, so reserve your seat today!

USB CEO To Address AgWatch LIVE - May 19

John Becherer, Chief Executive Officer of the United Soybean Board (USB), will be the featured speaker at the AgWatch LIVE Power Breakfast on Tuesday, May 19 at 6:30 am.

Becherer was raised on a dairy farm in central Wisconsin and has strong ties with the agricultural community. John has more than 25 years of management experience and holds a master’s degree in agricultural economics.

John served as the senior director of development and programs for the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC) at West Lafayette, Indiana. CTIC is a clearinghouse for technological information on soil conservation, water conservation and water quality. John was named senior director of CTIC in July 1991 after serving as executive director since 1988.

Prior to working for CTIC, John worked as a consultant for Demeter Inc., the nation’s 10th largest merchandising firm. The position helped him develop an international view of the challenges that face soybean farmers today.

John graduated from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in 1971 with a degree in economics. He managed a construction company in Milwaukee for 14 years, directing its successful marketing program and serving as general manager.

He returned to school in 1986 and earned his master’s degree in agricultural economics from Purdue University in 1987. While at Purdue, John worked on various agricultural-related projects for both the university and private industry.

John describes himself as a consensus builder and views his position at USB as an opportunity to continue his career-long interest in helping producers farm more profitably.

USB consists of 68 soybean producers appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and are charged with the responsibility of investing soybean checkoff funds to benefit U.S. soybean producers. John directs the implementation of USB’s $63 million annual collections budget that develops international and domestic markets; finds new soybean uses; conducts soybean production research; and implements communications activities. John serves as an outside spokesperson for USB, meeting with industry and government officials as well as soybean producers and agricultural groups.

Join us May 19 here at the AgWatch Network headquarters to hear more from the CEO of the United Soybean Board. Breakfast will be served 6:30 am, followed by a presentation from Becherer and a crop progress update from University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service personnel.

Sign-up is limited, so reserve your seat today! Call 870-931-7500.

Dr. Lanny Ashlock to Address AgWatch LIVE - April 20

Dr. Lanny Ashlock, soybean agronomist with Armor Beans/Delta King Soybeans, will be addressing the prospects and challenges of soybean production in Northeast Arkansas in his presentation “A Growing Season Preview” at the upcoming AgWatch LIVE Speaker Series, April 20 at 6:00 pm.

Join us April 20 here at the AgWatch Network headquarters to hear more about the upcoming soybean season. The Speaker Series will begin at 6pm with a free catered meal, followed by a presentation from Ashlock.

Sign-up is limited, so reserve your seat today! Call 870-931-7500.

AgWatch LIVE to Feature CNBC Commentator on March 16

John S. Wilson - CFA, Managing Director/Chief Technical Strategist, Equity Capital Markets, will be the keynote speaker at AgWatch LIVE on March 16th.

Wilson joined Morgan Keegan in 1987. He is Chief Market Technician for Morgan Keegan and is a member of Morgan Keegan's Focus List Committee. He serves as co-director of the Equity Strategy Group, responsible for guiding financial advisors on market strategy and stock selection. He is a frequent guest on CNBC Television and Bloomberg Financial Television and has written for the Wall Street Journal Online and Institutional Investor. His opinions are frequently quoted in various financial publications. Mr. Wilson is the author of Reveille, a daily stock market commentary that is available at www.morgankeegan.com.

Prior to joining Morgan Keegan, Wilson worked in the Investment Management department of a Regional Bank where he managed both equity and fixed income investments for clients of the bank. He served on the bank's Investment Strategy Committee, Investment Review Committee, and as head of Equity Trading.

Wilson is a past president of the Memphis Financial Analysts Society and a past member of the board of directors of both the Memphis and Nashville Financial Analysts Societies. He has served as a member of the faculty of the Seminar for Financial Analysis at the University of Windsor, Ontario.

He is a native of Chattanooga, TN, where he graduated from The Baylor School. He received a B.S. degree in Economics from Vanderbilt University where he played on the Vanderbilt Rugby team. He served as an officer with the Military Assistance Command Vietnam. He is married to an attorney and is the father of two boys, ages 9 and 15.

Join us March 16 here at the AgWatch Network headquarters to hear about investing during a bear market. The Speaker Series will begin at 6pm with a free catered meal, followed by a presentation from Wilson.

Sign-up is limited, so reserve your seat today! Call 870-931-7500.

March AgWatch Live: Investing in Common Stock in a Down Market

The next AgWatch Live Speaker Series meeting will focus on investing in common stock (equities) in a down market. John Wilson of Morgan Keegan will be the evening's keynote speaker.

Join us March 16 here at the AgWatch Network headquarters to hear about this important issue along with other investment options, such as CD's, Money Market Funds and IRA's. The Speaker Series will begin at 6pm with a free catered meal, followed by a presentation from Wilson.

Sign-up is limited, so reserve your seat today!

Biodiesel Leader to Speak at AgWatch Live Meeting February 16

Is there a relationship between the soybean basis and the biodiesel market?

We'll address that question during the upcoming AgWatch Live Speaker Series February 16 at 6 pm with guest speaker Kent Engelbrecht, Commodity Manager for biodiesel producer Prairie Pride.

Prairie Pride--based in Deerfield, Mo.--is a producer-owned cooperative that's produced biodiesel for a little more than a year and began crushing soybeans in August.

Engelbrecht says Prairie Pride has a freight advantage over other soybean meal providers through its close proximity to the poultry industry in northwest Arkansas, southwest Missouri and northeast Oklahoma.

Engelbrecht says that Prairie Pride's freight advantages also help in its soybean procurement. "We have sufficient production in the surrounding area," he says, "but have purchased early new crop beans from southern production areas of Arkansas, Lousiana, Oklahoma and Texas. We are located on the MNA Railroad and can source soybeans from northeast Arkansas or from other markets via the Union Pacific Railroad."

Engelbrecht says that as a biodiesel producer of 30 million gallons per year, Prairie Pride is large enough to capture size efficiencies but can also sell crude soybean oil into the food oil refinery market if the market dictates. "We can crush 65,000 bushels of soybeans per day and will produce over 500,000 tons of high protein soybean meal per year," he says.

As an integrated soybean crusher and biodiesel producer, Englebrecht says he relies on this statement: "In the food versus fuel debate, we produce both food and fuel - therefore there is no debate."

January AgWatch Live Series to Focus on Grain Marketing and Hedging for 2009

"Even though ag producers will have opportunities to market their crop this year, they will face time limitations and price fluctuations. With volatile markets and a struggling economy, it will be critical for producers to implement a plan and have the discipline to stick with it in the first quarter of the year.

We think in the next 90 to 120 days, the grains will reach their highs. During that period, it is absolutely necessary for a producer to follow through with a plan of action." --Jim Daven, Market Analyst for Commercial Grain Inc.

Join us for our next AgWatch Live Speaker Series, Mon., Jan. 19 at 6 pm, and hear Jim Daven talk about how ag producers can lock-in profits through marketing and hedging--even in an unstable economy. We hope to see you there!