Crop Insurance Today February 2018 - 15

ance programs in Poland, China, France, Russia,
and South America.

Agronomy Society, Crop Science
Society, and Soil Society Annual
Convention
Mark Zarnstorff and James Houx attended
the Agronomy Society of America/Crop Science Society of America/Soil Science Society
of America annual meetings in October. These
societies are the primary professional organizations for agriculture researchers in the United
States and worldwide. The meetings bring together industry and academic researchers in
agronomy, crop science, and soil science for
presentations on current research. Mark and
James used this opportunity to hear from researchers about the latest research being conducted at land-grant universities and elsewhere,
and to keep track of trends in agriculture research. Most of the researchers involved in
NCIS-sponsored research projects attend these
meetings and the venue provided opportunity
to gather as a group to discuss the challenges
and outcomes from the past year, as well as discuss the upcoming year's research.

National FFA Convention & Expo
NCIS participated in the 90th National
FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis, IN,
October 26. More than 65,000 FFA members
from across the United States, representing all
50 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands,
attended the four-day convention. NCIS sponsors the Diversified Crop Production-Placement Proficiency Award, recognizing students
who work for a farmer and use the best management practices available to produce and
manage crops. Laurence Crane participated
as a judge for the award where four finalists
presented their Supervised Agricultural Experience and answered questions from a panel
of judges.

Trade Talk
Tom Zacharias and Laurie Langstraat participated in the National Association of Farm Broadcasting's annual Trade Talk event on November 9.
Several farm broadcasters visited the NCIS booth
to discuss crop insurance and its importance
to America's farmers and ranchers. John Block,
former Secretary of Agriculture (1981-86), also
stopped by the booth and said he still supports a
strong crop insurance program and to "keep up
the good work."

Whole-Farm Revenue Protection training took place in Savannah, Georgia, in September. More than
115 people from NCIS member companies and RMA regional and compliance offices attended.

Agriculture Future of America
Leaders Conference and
Opportunity Fair
Laurie Langstraat participated in the Agriculture Future of America (AFA) Leaders Conference and Opportunity Fair in early November.
AFA Leaders Conference provides support for
college students who are preparing for careers in
agriculture-related fields, while at the same time,
supporting the development of human capital for
the agriculture and food industry. The Opportunity Fair provides students with the chance to
network and learn from industry professionals,
and search out opportunities for internships and
full-time employment. The 800 students that participated went through an extensive application
process in order to be selected to attend, and are
considered some of the best and brightest agriculture students in the country.

New England Vegetable and
Fruit Conference and Trade
Show
NCIS participated in the 21st New England
Vegetable and Fruit Conference and Trade Show
in Manchester, NH, in December. The conference is held every other year and features 30 educational sessions over three days. Laurence Crane
participated in the conference and coordinated
NCIS trade show activities with extension educators from Maine, Massachusetts, and Rhode
Island. He interacted with many of the 1,500
growers and educators registered for the conference who were interested in learning more about
using crop insurance to manage risks.

Rural Coalition Winter Forum
and Gala
Laurence Crane attended the 9th Annual Rural Coalition Winter Forum and Gala in
early December. The Rural Coalition members
discussed current issues and set priorities for
future farm policy advocacy. Laurence partic-

ipated in the forum discussions and presented
an update on current crop insurance programs
and activities that NCIS utilizes to reach small,
limited-resource, and socially disadvantaged
farmers. The Rural Coalition is a grassroots-oriented and culturally-diverse alliance of farmers,
farmworkers, indigenous, migrant, and working
people from the United States, Mexico, and Canada. It includes more than 90 grassroots member organizations serving as a critical advocacy
voice for African-American, American-Indian,
Asian-American, Euro-American, Latino, and
women farmers, ranchers, farmworkers, and rural communities.

Risk Management Education
and Presentations

Working at times in partnership with RMA
and at times by itself, NCIS conducts seminars
on risk management for limited-resource and
socially disadvantaged farmers and others interested in better managing risk. The goal is that
helping farmers develop better risk management
tools will ensure their long-term viability.

Risk Management Workshops in
Delaware and Maryland
NCIS partnered with extension educators at
Delaware State University and the University of
Maryland-Eastern Shore (both 1890 land-grant
universities) to teach a series of risk management
planning workshops to beginning, limited-resource and socially disadvantaged farmers in
Maryland and Delaware. NCIS conducted one
workshop each month in Harrington, Del., and
Upper Marlboro, Md., in January, February, and
March. The objective of the activity was to help
farmers and ranchers understand their risk exposure and develop risk management plans for
their farms. The training consisted of a series of
three workshops (18 hours) and 60 hours of individualized instruction. During these workshops,
each participant set risk management goals in
CROPINSURANCE TODAY®

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crop Insurance Today February 2018