2025 Wisconsin Agricultural Outlook Forum Explores Possible Impacts of Second Trump Presidency on Ag

Dec 02, 2024

The 2025 Wisconsin Agricultural Outlook Forum, which has the theme “Wisconsin Agriculture Under a Second Trump Presidency,” is set for Tuesday, Jan. 21 on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus. The in-person event runs from 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. in Varsity Hall in Union South, located at 1308 West Dayton Street, Madison. A reception will be held following the forum.

The program, organized by the Renk Agribusiness Institute, starts with presentations about the status of Wisconsin’s farm economy. Experts from the UW–Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, UW–Madison Division of Extension and industry will discuss the current situation and outlook for dairy, livestock, grain and farm income, as well as key findings from the newly-released The Contribution of Agriculture to the Wisconsin Economy report.

The afternoon session will explore what the change in the presidential administration could mean for Wisconsin agriculture, featuring two panel discussions with academic and industry experts. The first panel will focus on macro-scale markets and trade, and the second on more local-scale farms and communities. Panelists will cover pertinent topics such as tariffs and trade wars; deportations and agricultural labor; bioenergy policies; pesticide regulations; conservation programs; and the next Farm Bill. The goal of the afternoon program is to help attendees better understand and prepare for shifts in policies and programs that may occur with the new administration.

The afternoon session includes time for discussion and questions. A reception will follow the forum in order to provide time to continue valuable discussions.

Registration is open now through Jan. 17. The $75 registration fee covers the forum, lunch, snacks and reception. A reserved parking spot for the day of the forum can be purchased during registration for $20 and must be done prior to Jan. 3 to allow for processing. To register, visit: https://renk.aae.wisc.edu/2025-agricultural-outlook-forum/.

Interested individuals who are unable to attend the forum in-person will have the option to watch a livestream of the event on the Renk Agribusiness Institute’s YouTube page. No registration is required for this free, virtual option.

For questions, send a message to agforum@union.wisc.edu.

Source : wisc.edu

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.