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What It Will Take To Pass a Farm Bill: Growing up and working on his own family farm during hard times, and devoting much of his adult life to U.S. agriculture, is a source of pride for Larry Combest, the former Chairman of the House Ag committee and author of the last U.S. Farm Bill. He recently wrote, “I was privileged to help put in place the kind of farm policies that pulled the sector out of crisis and have contributed to a strong 10-year run for U.S. Agriculture.”

During the Spring Clinic in Biloxi, Combest will be talking about what he considers to be some essential elements to keeping it going and continuing to lead economic recovery, putting Americans back to work, and feeding a hungry world.

Combest believes that first, the agriculture community must unite, on and off Capitol Hill, and work together to pass a strong, consensus-based Farm Bill in 2012. American agriculture needs the certainty of a 5-year Farm Bill, and unity is not optional if we are to get there.

Combest believes this is eminently doable. Although there are many different plans and details, there are common themes that reflect the following principles.

The 2012 Farm Bill should: (1) do no harm to crop insurance; (2) give producers the opportunity to make their own choices based on what is right for their farms; (3) provide producers real market loss protection that is relevant to today’s risk profile; and (4) not tie producers up in knots with more bureaucratic rules that stifle innovation and competitiveness.

Agriculture In China: In order to manage the unprecedented transition of millions of people from jobs in agriculture to manufacturing and meet the rise in demand for food production, the Chinese government is implementing a major restructuring of the agricultural sector. This includes the procurement of modern agricultural equipment and a move towards “western” agricultural methods.

Russell A. Meade, President of China Business Network (CBN) will discuss how members of the Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association can best assess the opportunity China currently represents as an export market and practical ways of moving towards growth in the PRC.

Attracting the Best People for Key Management Positions:
Sharon Thomas, Senior Account Manager, Management Recruiters of Iowa City.

Many of our members are currently looking to expand their management team or need to start thinking about upcoming retirements in key positions. Because of the stability in many companies, it may have been some time since owners and managers have needed to find and hire managers from outside their current staff.

This is your chance to pickup advice from one of the top recruiters in our industry.

Ownership Transition: Is the Private Equity Play Right for You? Eric Bosveld, with Bosveld and Associates will be speaking on:

• Why are private equity (PE) firms so interested in the farm machinery business? ag machinery space?
• What are the key criteria they look for in a company. i.e. quality of earnings, growth prospects, risk profile, management skills etc.?
• How are typical deals structured?
• What are the advantages or disadvantages of selling all or part of your business to a PE firm compared to another industry player?
• What are the things that you need to do now to make your business more attractive to a potential PE buyer?

The Future of Shortline Equipment Distribution: Here we will bring a panel of folks who have different viewpoints on what has worked in the past, what is working today and what future models we may need to continue to bring Choice, Value and Innovation to the consumer. Expect a lively session with plenty of time for questions and viewpoints from the floor.