At next week’s Commodity Classic trade show in New Orleans, attendees will have an opportunity to look first hand at how various issues impact the soybean industry, all without leaving the trade show floor. New this year, the ASA Issues Spotlights are short, 20-minute segments devoted to exploring in understandable terms the issues that ASA works on in Washington.

Sessions will focus on GMO labeling, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, biodiesel, regulatory issues and pollinator health, transportation infrastructure, sustainability, precision agriculture data, social media advocacy, and leadership development programs. Each will feature an ASA farmer leader and a subject matter expert on that topics, followed by open questions from the trade show crowd.

The schedule for the Issue Spotlights is:

Thursday March 3, 2016

• 1:30 p.m. – 1:50 p.m. (20 min)   Farm Data and Transparency – Davie Stephens, KY
• 2:30 p.m. – 2:50 p.m. (20 min)   GMO Labeling – Bret Davis, OH
• 3:30 p.m. – 3:50 p.m. (20 min)   Water and Air Quality and Regulatory Issues – Kevin Hoyer, WI

Friday March 4, 2016

• 1:00 p.m. – 1:20 p.m. (20 min)  Conservation Legacy Award: Spotlight on Sustainability – Charles Atkinson, KS
• 2 p.m. – 2:20 p.m. (20 min)      Biodiesel – Mike Cunningham, IL
• 3 p.m. – 3:20 p.m. (20 min)      Transportation and Infrastructure – Lance Peterson, MN

Saturday March 5, 2016

• 9 a.m. – 9:20 a.m. (20 min)    Trans-Pacific Partnership – Ron Moore, IL
• 10 a.m. – 10:20 a.m. (20 min)    Issue Viewpoints from ASA’s Emerging Leaders: Syngenta Leadership At Its Best and DuPont Young Leaders – Wade Cowan, TX
• 11 a.m. – 11:20 a.m. (20 min)    Advocating Issues on Social Media – Kevin Hoyer, WI, and Dennis Bogaards, IA