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Political and financial events around the globe have significant impact on U.S. agriculture and dairy operations. The 2024 Business Conference presented by the Professional Dairy Producers® (PDP) will feature keynote speakers focusing on how the dairy industry and individual producers can prepare for continued changes in global trade, conflict, and energy production and use.
Jacob Shapiro, partner and director of geopolitical analysis at Cognitive Investments will deliver the keynote for the Day Two general session titled “What in the wide world?!” He’ll identify today’s key geopolitical forces expected to shape food production and agricultural markets over the next five years, including trade protectionism, conflicts between major powers, changing energy sources and more. Shapiro will also address some of the most pressing events currently happening around the globe and outline the implications to agriculture policy and production.
“There are a lot of geopolitical signals coming our way, and dairy producers need to know not just how to interpret them, but to be prepared for the potential results,” said John Haag, Dane, Wis., dairy producer and president of the PDP board of directors.
The 2024 PDP Business Conference will be held March 13-14, 2024, at the Kalahari Resorts in Wisconsin Dells, Wis. The two-day event will feature 54 learning sessions in a variety of formats, as well as the Hall of Ideas Equipment and Trade Show, Preview Stage, Nexus® stage and two sessions for 15-18 year-olds to build their leadership and communications skills. Business conference sessions will be translated simultaneously for attendees who prefer to learn in Spanish.
Additional keynote sessions and speakers will include:
- “Navigate change with resilience and passion,” presented by Brent Gleeson, Navy SEAL combat veteran and founder and CEO of TakingPoint Leadership
- “Driving innovation in the environmental sustainability discussion,” a panel discussion featuring Mitch Breunig, dairy producer at Mystic Valley Dairy in Sauk City, Wis.; JJ Pagel, dairy producer at Pagel’s Ponderosa Dairy, Kewaunee, Wis.; facilitated by Sustainable Environmental Consultants (SEC)
- “Where there is vision, there is hope,” presented by Bruce Vincent, third generation logger from Libby, Montana
Register today by visiting the 2024 Business Conference website. Also available are the English-language flier, the Spanish-language flier, information on exhibiting, and details on lodging. A discounted rate at Kalahari Resorts is available if booked through PDPW by Feb. 19.
The 2024 PDPW Business Conference offers accredited training through such providers as Dairy AdvanCE (DACE) American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists (ARPAS) and Certified Crop Advisor (CCA).
Professional Dairy Producers (PDP) is the nation's largest dairy producer-led organization of its kind, focusing on producer professionalism, stakeholder engagement and unified outreach to share ideas, solutions, resources and experiences that help dairy producers succeed.
