PRESS RELEASE
Release Date: Immediately
Contact: Karen Loftis, 800-328-2851
Entrepreneurial Opportunities in Agriculture Conference at
Kearney Nebraska on March 17-18, 1995
LINCOLN, Neb. - Identifying and strengthening entrepreneurial
and marketing skills is the emphasis for the "Entrepreneurial
Opportunities in Agriculture: The Art of Marketing" Conference
to be held in Kearney Nebraska on March 17 and 18th.
"This conference is for anyone who wants to market their
existing business more successfully, for those who are thinking
about starting a business, or who are involved in the marketing
process," explained Karen Loftis, agricultural economics program
coordinator at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
The conference is the first of its kind in Nebraska, but could
become an annual event, Loftis said. While previous workshops
and conferences have been offered on business set-up, few have
focused specifically on agricultural and value-added types of
businesses.
The March 17-18 conference "should appeal to all types of
ag-related businesses," Loftis said, noting that conference
organizers anticipate approximately 200 conference participants.
Keynote speaker is Dave Arch, of Dave Arch & Associates in
Omaha, Nebraska. Arch will discuss creativity and cultivating an
entrepreneurial spirit.
In addition, 20 concurrent sessions featuring speakers with
experience marketing agricultural products and operating
businesses are planned. Topics include marketing non-traditional
products such as fruit and vegetables, emus and ostriches,
aquaculture, and speciality farms in general. Other topics
include marketing products directly, promotional advertising,
value-added opportunities, farmers markets, contract and niche
marketing, and micro enterprise financing.
The conference begins at 10 am on March 17 at the Kearney
Holiday Inn and concludes at 2:30 pm March 18th. Commercial
booths are available.
Registration is $50 for both days or $35 for a single day. To
register, contact Karen Loftis, University of Nebraska-Lincoln,
58 H.C. Filley Hall, Lincoln, NE 68583-0922, call 800-328-2851 or
email agec041@unlvm.unl.edu. Questions can also be directed to
Alan Corr, Kearney/Franklin County Cooperative Extension
Educator at 308/932-0645.
The event is being sponsored by the UNL Institute of Agriculture
and Natural Resources, the Nebraska Department of Agriculture,
and agricultural trade associations.