Damian Mason to keynote 20th AgOutlook, December 5th
November 19, 2024
The 20th annual AgOutlook is Thursday, December 5th, at the Sioux Falls Ramkota Exhibit Hall.
“We have several different speakers that will be speaking throughout the day and then we have 60-plus vendors that will be available there for the trade show,” said Valerie Willson, program manager for South Dakota Soybean. The one-day show is preceded by the South Dakota Soybean Association annual meeting on Wednesday, December 4th, also at the Ramkota Inn. The South Dakota Soybean Yield Contest reception is on the evening of December 4th, recognizing the best soybean yields of 2024.
“Depending on if you’re till or no-till; irrigation or no-irrigation, there are several different awards that will be going on during that timeframe,” said Willson. “We are going to be awarding the best yields for this year.”
The South Dakota Soybean Yield Contest reception will be held in conjunction with the Uniting Agriculture Social on Wednesday evening at the Ramkota Inn.
“If you work in agriculture or you are a farmer, producer, or even a rancher, we invite you to come to this event,” said Willson, describing the Uniting Agriculture Social. “It’s just a social for everybody to talk, exchange ideas, dreams, and business cards, and to further their agricultural community.”
The main event, Thursday’s AgOutlook program, begins with an early riser session featuring attorneys Jayna Voss and Bobbi Thury talking about the 2026 sunsetting of the current estate tax exemptions. Other speakers include Nutrien Senior Meteorologist Andrew Pritchard providing a weather outlook for the coming year, and Agricultural Economic and Policy Advisor Matt Erickson from Farm Credit Services of America.
“[Erickson] is going to be talking about the economic outlook for 2025,” said Willson. “Farm Credit Services of America is our lead sponsor for AgOutlook, so we’re definitely looking forward to having him.”
Keynoting SDSA's AgOutlook is Damian Mason, a businessman, author and content creator affiliated with XtremeAg, “so we’re definitely looking forward to him and seeing what his outlook is for 2025 as well,” added Willson.
There’s a pork loin lunch served at AgOutlook, sponsored by South Dakota Soybean and the South Dakota Pork Producers Council. Following the AgOutlook program on Thursday afternoon is a happy hour with hors d’oeuvres. Register for South Dakota AgOutlook 2024 at sdsoybean.org.