Agribusiness

Melissa Proffitt Reese, partner and chair of the agribusiness initiative at Ice Miller LLP, authored this blog.

On Thursday, Nov. 13, Ice Miller was proud to host Sen. Lugar for one of the first post election analyses on the state of agribusiness.  The event was a private briefing for our clients and an opportunity to hear first-hand about the outlook for the 111th Congress and the Obama Administration.

Sen. Lugar began his remarks with a discussion on ethanol and the extraordinary promise for the renewable energy source.  Lugar commented that by focusing on the production of ethanol, we can over time minimize our dependence on foreign sources of energy.

Lugar also focused on global trade issues, particularly the use of genetically modified organisms and climate change issues.  With respect to the economic outlook, Lugar professed that the recovery will not come soon.  Listen to some of Sen. Lugar's comments.

Sen. Lugar's remarks were followed by a panel discussion with experts from critical areas of agricultural policy and business including: Roger Bernard, Policy and Washington Editor, Farm Journal Magazine; Dave Lyons, Vice President Government Relations, Louis Dreyfus; Jeff Simmons, President, Elanco Animal Health; and Dr. Wally Tyner, Professor of Agricultural Economics, Purdue University.


Simmons commented that the, "best way out of uncertainty is to anchor to certainty."  Capitalizing on his global experience, Simmons pointed to access to technology and innovation as two essential ingredients needed to retain a competitive advantage in the global marketplace.  Listen to Simmons talking about production and technology.

A common theme throughout the discussion was the critical importance of international trade for agricultural goods and services produced in the United States.  We have far more capacity than needed to meet our own mature market’s food requirements.  More importantly, our competitive and highly efficient food and agriculture system is challenged to feed the world’s population.