April 13, 2021
Ag Allies: Weather Outlook and Fertilizer Trends
Predictions and Indicators for Effective Strategy
With the rapid rise in global population and continuous changes in the climate, the agribusiness industry has been under a significant pressure, particularly in navigating demands on sustainable food production.
To equip leaders in our state’s vital sector with the latest predictions and market indicators to help inform their business strategy, the NC Chamber is partnering with Nutrien, an innovator in agriculture, on a webinar: “Ag Allies: Weather Outlook and Fertilizer Trends.”
Join industry experts for a meteorological update and overview of the current landscape in the fertilizer industry. Topics will include weather outlook with forecast tools and resources, and a snapshot of global fertilizer pricing and commodity markets, including China’s impact on grain and fertilizer. Attendees will have an opportunity to ask questions on topics impacting their business.
We welcome members of our agriculture and agribusiness communities to join Ag Allies, a coalition of businesses that work tirelessly to champion the needs our state’s top industry.
Agenda
Tuesday, April 13
| 11:00 am | Welcome Remarks and Introduction Ray McKeithan is Manager Government and Industry Affairs at Nutrien, covering the six state Mid-South region. His responsibilities include public affairs, advocacy, stakeholder engagement, spokesperson and community investment. He focuses on the company’s mission of serving growers to navigate regulatory and other challenges to ensure sustainable, high-yield agronomic practices to feed the world. Prior to joining the organization, he enjoyed a long newspaper career serving most recently as President and Publisher of the Washington Daily News. He has served as a board member of the NC Chamber and continues to be active as a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure committee. |
| 11:10 am | Fertilizer Markets and Trends Clay Hackney, Director of Sales, Nutrien
Clay grew up in rural North Florida where he gained an appreciation for agriculture while working on nearby farming operations. After high school, he attended the University of Florida where he earned a bachelor’s degree in agriculture and a master’s degree in business. Clay then went on to work for PotashCorp (legacy company of Nutrien) gaining experience in both operations and sales over the last 18 years. |
| 11:20 am | Weather Outlook Eric Snodgrass, Principal Atmospheric Scientist, Nutrien Ag Sollutions
Eric is a Science Fellow and Principal Atmospheric Scientist for Nutrien Ag Solutions, where he develops predictive, analytical software solutions to manage weather risk for global production agriculture. He provides frequent weather updates that focus on how high-impact weather events influence global agriculture productivity. His current research uses machine learning to better understand field-level weather impacts on yields in the US. He presents at over 120 conferences on logistical guidance and solutions to weather sensitive financial institutions, farmers, commodity traders, and other stakeholders. |
| 11:30 am | Q&A Session Moderator: Peter Daniel Jr., Government Affairs Manager, NC Chamber |
| 11:45 am | Event Concludes |