Jul 22, 2019

US trade official to headline USApple’s outlook conference

USDA Undersecretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Ted McKinney will speak at the U.S. Apple Association’s annual conference next month in Chicago.

The Crop Outlook & Marketing Conference, Aug. 22-23, is the premier event to preview, forecast and discuss the global impact of the upcoming apple harvest.

McKinney leads the development and implementation of USDA’s trade policy, oversees and facilitates foreign market access, and promotes opportunities for U.S. agriculture through various trade programs and high-level government negotiations.

“We are very much looking forward to his insight as the apple industry, and agriculture as a whole, continues to navigate the current trade landscape,” USApple President and CEO Jim Bair said in a press release.

President Trump appointed McKinney to the undersecretary position in July 2017, and he was confirmed by the Senate that October, according to USApple. Previously he was appointed by then-Governor Mike Pence to serve as director of the Indiana State Department of Agriculture. Undersecretary McKinney grew up on a family grain and livestock farm in Tipton, Indiana. He graduated from Purdue University with a degree in agricultural economics.

USApple announced a number of other speakers for its conference:

• In his keynote address, Randy Riley, Director of Produce Merchandising at The Kroger Co. will identify the various consumer retail trends emerging in the produce category, and how the apple industry can continue to stay relevant as consumer choices and preferences diversify.
• Best-selling author Eric Termuende will cover the changes workplaces are seeing across every industry, including agriculture.
• Mark Seetin, USApple’s Director of Regulatory and Industry Affairs, will provide the much-anticipated annual crop outlook for the U.S. apple industry.

More information about the event is available at usapple.org/event/apple-crop-outlook-marketing-conference-2019/

Above, USDA Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agriculture Affairs Ted McKinney speaks about “The Current State and Future of U.S. Ag Trade: Challenges and Opportunities” at the National Press Club, Washington, D.C., March 14, 2019. Photo: USDA/Preston Keres