I’m not sure yet if I’ll be able to attend this year’s DTN/Progressive Farmer agriculture summit in Chicago, but it looks like a terrific program. This is the second year that DTN has hosted this conference for farmers; this year’s program will be held at the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile from December 7 to December 9. The title of the program this year is “Brave New Worlds: Your Map for Managing Ag Risk” and the main focus of the conference will be looking at the volatile commodity markets and helping farmers plan their strategy for 2009.

DTN chief executive Robert Gordon notes that “Today’s producers are faced with more market swings and agricultural policy changes than ever before,” and says that the summit will provide agriculture professionals information to meet these challenges. Events will include farmer panels, sessions on dealing with lenders and landlords, and panels on handling revenue risk, crop insurance, and the growing problem of input cost inflation. DTN has lined up an impressive group of speakers and event coordinators for the program, including Blairo Borges Maggi, the governor of the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso and the largest soybean farmer in the world, Mark Palmquist, executive vice president of CHS, the nation’s largest grain and farm supply cooperative, former USDA undersecretary J.B. Penn (now the chief economist at Deere & Company), Allen Lash, president of AgriSolutions, and Mike Rahm, a vice president at Mosaic, among many others.

The registration fee for the summit is $445 ($395 before November 8) and includes food and program materials. Full information on the program and instructions on registration are available at the DTN website, http://www.dtnpf.com/promo/2008agsummit, or you can call them toll-free at 1-888-576-9881.