What was it like to work with President Donald Trump and negotiate the U.S.-China trade deal that led to robust exports of corn and soybeans to the Middle Kingdom?

Pull up a chair and listen in as Gregg Doud, former U.S. Trade Ambassador and one of the primary architects of the U.S.-China Phase One trade deal, shares his view of China and future ag exports at the upcoming Farm Futures Business Summit, June 16-17 at the Coralville Marriott Hotel and Conference Center near Iowa City.

“When we started these conversations trade was the friction between our countries; by the time we finished we realized trade with China was one of the pillars of our relationship,” says Doud, now Vice President of Global Situational Awareness & Chief Economist at Aimpoint Research. “We were able to sort through and fix a huge number of problems. China needs U.S. food stuffs and they knew we have the best. It was a matter of getting governments, state-owned enterprises, and private sectors working together.”

Unique insights

Doud has seen the evolution of ag trade over nearly 30 years working in and around agriculture on Capitol Hill. He previously served as president of the Commodity Markets Council. As a senior staff member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, Doud helped craft the 2012 Senate Farm Bill. Doud served as Chief Economist for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association where he saw the rise of meat exports as well as the BSE crisis. He also saw how trade impacted farm pocketbooks as a former market analyst for the U.S. Wheat Associates.

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These days ag trade is a major factor in farm profitability. “Now for the first time, other than the EU, we have gotten to where we need to be with market access for U.S. ag exports in most places around the world,” he says.

Doud will discuss what he learned from the negotiations and what led to President Trump applying tariffs to China. “Stepping up to China should have been done a long time ago,” he says. “It was a historic time for agriculture to have that conversation with China about agriculture, and it had never happened before.”

While the China Phase One deal is satisfying, ‘the trade to-do list around the world is enormous,” he says.

More sessions planned

Doud’s presentation is one of 17 business and risk management sessions planned for the 2021 summit. Idaho rancher and farm management consultant Dick Wittman will offer key lessons in business governance for farm families. This Week in Agribusiness meteorologist Greg Soulje will provide a growing season weather forecast followed by a market outlook discussion with leading grain marketing experts emceed by TWIA anchor Max Armstrong. Other speakers will share open-book management concepts, ways to make better farm expansion decisions, and potential tax changes that could threaten to blow up your estate plan.

For many the summit will be the first chance this year to meet face to face and network with other farm families from across the country. To see the agenda and get your registration sorted, go to www.farmfuturessummit.com. See you in Iowa!

Want to save 20% on the 2021 Farm Futures Summit? When you register at farmfuturessummit.com use the promo code FFLIVE

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