February 20, 2003

Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman will deliver the keynote address at the 2003 Agricultural Outlook Forum in Arlington, VA, today. Other speakers include Agriculture Deputy Secretary James Moseley, Agriculture Under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services J.B. Penn, Treasury Under Secretary for International Affairs John Taylor, and Agriculture Chief Economist Keith Collins.

USDA's annual Agricultural Outlook Forum will be held today and Friday and will examine the current state of U.S. agriculture and include panel discussions on various issues important to the nation's food and agriculture sector including production, trade, conservation and rural development.

"This annual forum brings together government officials and agricultural leaders to discuss the outlook for the food and agriculture sectors," said Veneman. "We have an impressive group of speakers for our conference this year."

Two panels will discuss the issues of competing in the 21st century. The first will feature GROWMARK Board Chairman Dan Kelley, CENEX Harvest States CEO John Johnson, ConAgra Foods Senior Vice President Greg Estep, Wal-Mart Stores Senior Vice President Bruce Peterson and USDA General Counsel Nancy Bryson. USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Charles Lambert will lead a farm organization panel that includes National Farmers Union President David J. Frederickson, Illinois Farm Bureau President Ron Warfield, Florida Citrus Mutual Executive Vice President and CEO Andy LaVigne and Kelley.

Morning plenary sessions and both panel discussions will be available via a delayed video webcast on USDA's website at http://www.usda.gov.

Sessions this afternoon will feature a focus on the farm and rural economy, el Niņo's impact, food safety and changing eating habits. Afternoon speakers include USDA Under Secretary for Rural Development Thomas C. Dorr and New York University professor Marion Nestle.

USDA Under Secretary for Food Safety Elsa Murano will moderate a session with food safety experts. The day will conclude with a dinner speech by co-CEO of Kraft Foods Betsy Holden.

Friday's sessions will provide in-depth discussion of 2003 farm and commodity prospects, conservation and environmental issues and a number of trade topics. International speakers scheduled to participate include Chris Horseman, editor, Agra Europe; Laszlo Vajda, Director of Hungary's Department of European Integration; Leonid Kozachenko, President, Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation; K.J. Weerasinghe, Sri Lanka's representative to the World Trade Organization; Cargill India executive Hardeep Singh; Tim Whitehouse, official of the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation; and Jose A. Orive, Executive Director of the Central American Sugar Association.