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Conaway, Texas economists to address markets, available aid

Free webinar includes a question and answer segment with Conaway and economists.

Shelley E. Huguley, Editor

April 23, 2020

2 Min Read
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Congressman Mike Conaway, ranking member of the House Agriculture Committee, to speak and answer questions live on the Texas Ag Forum webinar, April 28, 2020.

The Texas Ag Forum is going live April 28 to discuss market and policy issues affecting producers. The free webinar will include updates from Congressman Mike Conaway, ranking member of the House Agriculture Committee, and the state's top economists.   

"We're going to talk about the latest information possible out of Washington D.C.," says Texas Ag Forum Secretary Joe Outlaw, who is also co-director of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center (AFPC), Texas A&M University, College Station.   

The webinar, which begins at 1 p.m., will include 15-minute presentations by each guest speaker, followed by a live question and answer segment.  

"People can either call in or ask questions online," Outlaw says. "Even Mr. Conaway will answer their questions live — this is something he wanted to do."  

Economists will cover topics ranging from livestock to cotton to specialty crops to feed grain and rice.   

"Everyone understands the markets are bad right now. So, what we want to do is give them tools they can use to protect themselves, or at least lock in some of the price, and allow themselves to continue to benefit if the markets come back," Outlaw says.   

Bart Fischer, AFPC co-director, will also address details about the new assistance programs available due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  

"We also want to hear how signups for government aid is going, and if producers have any questions. Or if they've applied and been denied, what we can do to help. Ultimately, we want to help people walk through this process."  

To register for the free webinar, click here.   

The Texas Ag Forum agenda is as follows:  

  • 1:00 p.m. - 1:15 p.m. Welcome Charles Ring, Chair Texas Ag Forum  

  • 1:15 p.m. - 1:35 p.m. Washington Update Mike Conaway, Ranking Member of the House Agriculture Committee  

  • 1:35 p.m. - 1:55 p.m. Livestock Market Update David Anderson, Professor & Extension Economist - Livestock and Food Product Marketing  

  • 1:55 p.m. - 2:15 p.m. Feed Grain and Rice Markets Mark Welch, Professor & Extension Economist- Grain Marketing  

  • 2:15 p.m. - 2:35 p.m. Cotton Markets John Robinson, Professor & Extension Economist - Cotton Marketing  

  • 2:35 p.m. - 2:55 p.m. Specialty Crops and Trade Update Luis Ribera, Professor & Extension Economist - International Trade and Transportation  

  • 2:55 p.m. - 3:35 p.m. Details of New Assistance Programs Bart Fischer, Co-Director, AFPC  

  • 3:35 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Wrap-up Joe Outlaw, Co-Director, AFPC and Secretary, Texas Ag Forum  

  

  

About the Author(s)

Shelley E. Huguley

Editor, Southwest Farm Press

Shelley Huguley has been involved in agriculture for the last 25 years. She began her career in agricultural communications at the Texas Forest Service West Texas Nursery in Lubbock, where she developed and produced the Windbreak Quarterly, a newspaper about windbreak trees and their benefit to wildlife, production agriculture and livestock operations. While with the Forest Service she also served as an information officer and team leader on fires during the 1998 fire season and later produced the Firebrands newsletter that was distributed quarterly throughout Texas to Volunteer Fire Departments. Her most personal involvement in agriculture also came in 1998, when she married the love of her life and cotton farmer Preston Huguley of Olton, Texas. As a farmwife, she knows first-hand the ups and downs of farming, the endless decisions made each season based on “if” it rains, “if” the drought continues, “if” the market holds. She is the bookkeeper for their family farming operation and cherishes moments on the farm such as taking harvest meals to the field or starting a sprinkler in the summer with the whole family lending a hand. Shelley has also freelanced for agricultural companies such as Olton CO-OP Gin, producing the newsletter Cotton Connections while also designing marketing materials to promote the gin. She has published articles in agricultural publications such as Southwest Farm Press while also volunteering her marketing and writing skills to non-profit organizations such as Refuge Services, an equine-assisted therapy group in Lubbock. She and her husband reside in Olton with their three children Breely, Brennon and HalleeKate.

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