Iowa farmers are in the third year of a downturned ag economy and since one out of every five jobs in Iowa comes from agriculture, the financial struggles of farmers matters to many Iowans.   National experts agree that future profitability of farming is a delicate balance involving many factors; those factors were discussed in-depth this week at the 2016 Iowa Farm Bureau Economic Summit.

To see some of the information that was presented by the speakers at this year’s conference, click on the links below.

General Economic Outlook
Interest Rates & the Market - Charlie Happel, CIO, Farm Bureau Financial Services
The Economy & Agriculture - Nathan Kaufmann, Federal Reserve of Kansas City

International Markets
Meat Export Outlook - Erin Borror, USMEF Economist
Grain & Soybean Export Outlook - Sam Funk, US Soybean Board 
TPP&TTIP - Veronica Nigh Swerdlow, American Farm Bureau Federation

Priority issues & topics for Farm Bureau
Scott VanderWal, Vice President, American Farm Bureau Federation  

USDA Farm Programs & Conservation
John Whitaker, State Farm Service Agency Director
Kurt Simon, State Conservationist

Land Prices and Farm Finance
Trends and Outlook for Farm Land Prices - Steve Bruere, Peoples Company
Ag Finance Outlook - Jim Knuth, Farm Credit Services of America
Using Technology & Big Data to Improve Profits - Matt Darr, Iowa State University

Managing Margins in 2016 & Beyond
View Powerpoint presentation - Chad Hart, Iowa State University

Politics of the U.S. & The Economy
View Powerpoint presentation - Dan Mitchell, Cato Institute