"Challenging Times...Innovating Solutions" will be the theme of the Agricultural Economic and Technology Summit July 17-18 in Kearney.

The conference offers opportunities to stay on top of changes in agriculture and mingle with ag leaders and growers while discussing issues facing today's agriculture. The event, open to producers, agribusiness professionals, and consultants, will include feature speakers on managing crop inputs, the economics and integration of new ag technologies, the 2018 farm bill, and farm and ranch transition.

Keynote speakers and their topics are:

• What's Ahead for the Ag Economy — Jason Henderson, Purdue University
• Technology in Agriculture — Brian Watkins, Cropzilla
• Farmers and FreeTrade — Brian Kuehl, Farmers for Free Trade
• Transitioning the Operation to the Next Generation — Dick Wittman, Wittman Consulting

Other session topics include: What Successful Farms are Doing Right, Economics of Technology Application, Testing Ag Performance Solutions (UNL-TAPS), Data Intensive Farm Management, Big Data = Better Beef, and a Farm Policy Update.

The conference is being presented through a partnership of the Nebraska Farm Bureau and the Departments of Agricultural Economics and Biological Systems Engineering in the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

The conference will be held at the Holiday Inn in Kearney.

Sponsors include the Nebraska Corn Board, Nebraska Cattlemen, Nebraska Soybean Checkoff, Nebraska Independent Community Bankers, and the Nebraska Agri-Business Association, Inc.