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Strategies to Strengthen Your Business.
Wednesday, August 26, 2015
Tour Port Tampa Bay (Optional)
Learn about Port Tampa Bay’s expansion plans due to the Panama Canal Expansion Project opening in 2016 allowing larger ships to access this port. The port is proposing a refrigerated warehouse and food campus along with a high speed train from Tampa to Chicago to move goods and agriculture products. Mosaic will sponsor the tour and after, dinner at Keel & Curley Winery in Plant City.
**Optional tour limited to the first 55 to register**
Bus departs Omni Orlando Resort at Champions Gate
Travel to Keel & Curley
Travel to Port Tampa Bay
Travel to Keel & Curley
Dinner Keel & Curley
Bus travels back to Omni Orlando Resort at Champions Gate
Hospitality Room
Come network with conference attendees and speakers.
Omni Suite #1646
Thursday, August 27, 2015
US Economic Update: Summer, 2015
Ed Seifried — Professor Emeritus of Economics and Business at Lafayette College
Greece, China, interest rates, and slow economic growth are major news headlines as our summer grinds onward. Dr Ed will tackle these issues and much more during is kickoff presentation to our conference. He will also discuss current economic conditions, and provide an economic forecast for the remainder of 2015.
Current Agricultural Taxation Issues and Planning Strategies
Dr. Roger McEowen – Director of the Iowa State University Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation
This session sorts through current tax issues involving agricultural producers and agribusinesses, with a look to what legislative prospects loom in the future and the planning strategies to take advantage of them.
Networking Break
Benefits to Work with Fresh from Florida Exporting
Whitney Lett — Marketing Specialist in the International Trade and Development section of the Division of Marketing at the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Whitney Lett will discuss how the International Trade and Development section of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services works with growers and companies to expand their international presence. She will cover how the Southern United States Trade Association (SUSTA) works with companies to assist them in their exporting efforts. SUSTA’s two Market Access Programs, which provide companies with financial assistance and the opportunity to attend various trade events and missions, will be discussed. She will also share other trade shows and events the International Trade and Development team participate in. Additionally, she will also cover how Florida exporters can obtain domestic, financial assistance through the Fresh From Florida program and how to obtain international export assistance through the Florida Export Finance Corporation in the Florida Department of State.
Cuba’s Agricultural and Sector and Food Trade: Implications for Florida Agriculture
William Messina — Agricultural Economist with the Food and Resource Economics Department at the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS).
Mr. Messina will provide an overview of the current state of Cuba’s agricultural sector and its future implications to Florida agriculture, given its similar climate and crops and new normalized diplomatic relations with the U.S.
Networking Lunch
Tax and Succession Planning for Agricultural Businesses
Brad Gould — Tax/Business/Estate Planning Attorney at Dean Mead
Dana Apfelbaum — Attorney at Dean Mead
Overview of federal tax issues concerning farmers and agribusiness & tax efficient succession planning.
Investing in Ag Land
Dr. Paul Genho, PHD — President of Farmland Reserve, Inc. Retired and will join the faculty of the University of Florida as a visiting professor in October
Dr. Genho will review some of the factors that might influence the profitability of agriculture land investments into the coming decades and will present a methodology of balancing risk and returns on ag land investments.
Networking Break
Agriculture Farmland Valuations in Florida – Panel Discussion
Cliff Bowen — Agri-Property Consultants
Wynn Jones — Angus Investments
Shane Platt — Farm Credit of Central Florida
Farm land values impact all aspects agriculture financial management concerning capital, profitability; estate taxes; farm expansion and acquisitions; 1031 exchanges; rental values; conservation easements and more. Hear what this panel of agriculture real estate professionals have to say about current trends in farm land values throughout Florida.
Agriculture Farmland Investment Environment in Florida & Southeast – Panel Discussion
Ed Lassiter — Prudential Agriculture Investments
Fred Hepler — Hepler Real Estate Sales, Mgmt and Consulting
Investors’ see their best chance of achieving long-term returns from investing in real assets that can cash flow through all business cycles. Not only is farmland a real asset that cash flows, but it is in diminishing in supply around the world, and produces a product with an increasing global demand. This panel will discuss the agriculture investment environment in Florida and the Southeast – what is fueling this appetite; are you interested in selling; want to sell and lease back; or are you buying?
State of Florida Agriculture
Adam Putnam, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Dinner On Your Own
Hospitality Room
Come network with conference attendees and speakers.
Omni Suite #1646
Friday, August 28, 2015
Growth & Evolution of Your Business
Dave Kohl — Professor Emeritus in the Agricultural and Applied Economics Department at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia
In today’s world of global economics with surprises around every corner, managing and prospering can be challenging but can also offer opportunities as well. This high energy session will inform participants about how to position their business to be resilient and agile. Discussion will center on the financial and management metrics that will be necessary for opportunity and the different levels of financial leverage as well as compensating financial metrics. A major focus will be on liquidity, working capital and concepts of burn rate on working capital. What are the successful characteristics of business planners? How do you measure up? What are tips and tools for the younger generation transitioning into your business? What are the characteristics that define a successful growth rate? The globetrotting road warrior presenter will blend the best of academics, trends, and working with the agricultural industry along with tips and advice gained from his part ownership of a successful dairy creamery over the past dozen years.
Measuring Your Financial Success and the Use of Benchmarking
Clay Worden — Managing partner of the Orlando office of McGladrey LLP
Defining success is not “one size fits all.” This session will focus on the various ways of measuring success; look at the importance of having a dynamic budget; and using benchmarking to see how well you’re doing and identify ways you can be more competitive. Whether you are near-term or long-term focused, keep your records on a cash basis or accrual, there are consistent traits that successful organizations share. How is your organization measuring up?
Networking Break
Strategic Decision Making
Dr. Michael Gunderson — Associate Director and Associate Professor Purdue University
You make tons of decisions at work all of the time. Yet, there are typically two or three throughout the year that have a bigger impact on the direction of the company. New product strategies, investment opportunities, research and development initiatives – we call these “fork-in-the-road” decisions. Because of their impact, they take more time and require a more structured approach than deciding what new office chair you want to buy. And, honestly, they can be a little scary. Strategic Decision Making will give you the knowledge and tools needed to make strategic choices. You will learn how to clarify the specific decision you need to make, list the alternatives and manage any risk involved. Mastering this process and using these tools significantly increases your odds of success.
Lunch/Florida Congressional Recap
Steve Bousquet — Tampa Bay Times’ Tallahassee Bureau Chief
Wrap Up
Dave Kohl — Professor Emeritus in the Agricultural and Applied Economics Department at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia
* Check back often for the latest updates and announcements about this year’s program!