Risk and Profit Conference

         REGISTER - August 21-22            

Both days: $215
One day (Thursday or Friday): $175

Questions? Rich Llewelyn at rvl@ksu.edu.

Dates & Location
August 21 - 22, 2025

Manhattan

K-State Alumni Center
1720 Anderson Ave.
Manhattan , KS
August 20 - 21, 2026

Manhattan

K-State Alumni Center
1720 Anderson Ave.
Manhattan , KS

Questions? Rich Llewelyn at rvl@ksu.edu

Schedule
2025 Schedule

Thursday, August 21

    Registration: 9:30-10:00

    General Session I: 10:00-11:30 pm
        TBD

    Lunch: 11:40 am

    Breakout sessions:
             A) 12:40-1:30; B) 1:40-2:30; C) 2:40-3:30; D) 3:40-4:30; E) 4:40-5:30

    Social, cash bar, and hors d’oeurves: 5:30 - 6:30 pm

    Out on the town: 6:30 - ???
 

Friday, August 22

    Rolls and juice: 7:00-7:30 am

    General Session II: 7:30-9:00 am
             Grain Markets—Dan O’Brien; Livestock Markets - Brian Coffey

    Breakout sessions:
             F) 9:10-10:00; G) 10:10-11:00; H) 11:10-12:00

    General Session III: 12:15-1:00 pm
             Conversation With a Kansas Farmer - Eric Atkinson with Kevin and Sandy Karr

    Lunch and Adjourn: 1:00 pm

Speakers

Thursday noon:  TBD

 

Friday noon: Kansas Farmer: Kevin and Sandy Karr, Emporia, KS

We have been blessed with 7 children and 3 grandchildren.  Our oldest, Olin, and his wife Michaela are parents of three children. He is a fulltime electronic PLC specialist, owns a large goat herd and occasionally helps on our farm. Our daughter, Krisanne and her husband Logan, live in Orlando Florida where they both have worked in Christian ministry and are working on college degrees. Our third oldest, Randal, came back to the farm full time after college. He and his wife ,Jessica live 1 mile from us. Our daughter, Alisha, is active in our farm part-time. The three youngest, Kailey, Paige and Joe are making college decisions and finishing high school. Each of our children have worked on our farm beginning early in their childhoods and have learned responsibility which has helped them to create a great work ethic and many fond memories.

We  have definitley been blessed to be full time farmers since we both graduated from KSU in 1985 and 1989. Upon Kevin’s graduation, a partnership was formed with his father Jerry; who was operating a farrow to finish hog operation. Over the years the hog operation has been replaced with a diverse cropping and hay operation. No-Till and cover crops have been a regular part of our cropping system with the main goal of reducing soil erosion and improving soil health.

In 2020 our son, Randal, graduated from NW Missouri State and immediately began operating his own farm and livestock operation as well as working on our farm. In 2025, a transition plan is being implemented to begin a multiple year incremental ownership by Randal into our farm operation. As he owns more of the business, Kevin and Sandy plan to continue actively farming for as many years as the Lord allows.

We are involved in our community and church serving on boards and being volunteers. We have been KFMA members since we began farming. We have appreciated the valuable farm management and analysis from KFMA over the years that has helped us to make enterprise changes and understand our profitability.

 


 

Session Summaries

2025 Breakout Sessions


1. Ag Policy Update

Robin Reid, Jenny Ifft

The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” signed into law on July 4, 2025, enhances both commodity programs and crop insurance safety nets, strengthening existing tools to manage risk and navigate market volatility. In addition to these policy changes, the 2025 American Relief Act authorized support through ECAP and SDRP payments, offering economic and natural disaster relief for 2023 and 2024 losses to affected farmers and ranchers. This session will explore the payments that have already been distributed under these programs, clarify what producers can expect in terms of future assistance, and examine key aspects of the new legislation that impacts agricultural operations.


2. Macroeconomic Implications for Agriculture

Brian Briggeman

X


3. Benchmarking Agricultural Labor Productivity

Megan Hughes, Chelsea

X


4. Net Farm Income Projections for 2025 and 2026

Gregg Ibendahl

This session will present an estimate of Kansas net farm income for 2025 and 2026. Farms in the Kansas Farm Management Association are used as the core of the estimation. This past farm data is combined with estimates of yields and prices to estimate total expenses, crop and livestock revenue, government payments, and crop insurance revenue. By using KFMA farms, a distribution of net farm income can be estimated to show a broader financial picture than just a single point estimate.


5. Kansas Farm Income and Conservation Practice

Delide Joseph, Jenny Ifft

Last year, we shared early results from a survey of over 400 Kansas Farm Management Association (KFMA) farms, highlighting how conservation practice adoption varied by region, farm size, and operator age. We also previewed a framework to examine how adoption intensity might relate to farm financial performance. In this follow-up presentation, we take a deeper dive into the relationship between conservation practices and financial outcomes. Our analysis focuses on net farm income ratio and uses an agronomic scoring system that accounts for the agronomic impact of different practices, as well as regional considerations.


6. Succession Starts Here: Practical Steps Toward a Smooth Transition

Ashlee Westerhold

This session will help families understand why starting the transition process early reduces conflict, preserves relationships, and ensures business continuity. The session will break down the transition process into manageable phases—such as goal setting, family meetings, financial overview, and the involvement of advisors.


7. Land Value Impacts of Woody Encroachment in Kansas

Gabe Sampson, Jackson Lindamood

X


8. What Kansas Producers Want from Their Input Suppliers

Aaron Johnson, Logan Britton

Kansas producers rely on input suppliers for critical decisions in crop and livestock production. While many factors shape supplier choice, producers prioritize specific attributes when forming relationships. This session will present results from a statewide survey that asked Kansas producers what they value most for their suppliers and how these preferences vary across farm characteristics.


9. What Does Early Season Soil Moisture Tell Us About Final Corn Yields?

Micah Cameron-Harp, Parker Vulgamore, Jenny Ifft, Jesse Tack

In this session, we will present ongoing research into using soil moisture conditions before planting to predict corn yields. Our work demonstrates there is a non-linear relationship between early-season soil moisture and corn yields, with intermediate soil moisture levels providing the greatest benefits. While low and high soil moisture conditions both negatively affect yields, the magnitude of these early-season drought and flood effects differs by growing region. In addition to facilitating earlier yield forecasts, this work provides valuable information on how local yields will compare to those of competing regions.


10.  Water Resource Management and Irrigation in Kansas: Current Concerns and Emerging Issues

Micah Cameron-Harp

Issues of water quantity and quality constrain agricultural production across Kansas. This session will begin with an overview of regional water constraints and their economic impacts. We will then discuss some of the proposed solutions, such as technological fixes or water right curtailments, using evidence from irrigators who adapted to similar changes in the past.


11. Is Irrigation Water Use Efficiency Important – Evidence from the Testing Ag Performance Solutions Project

Bill Golden, Daran Rudnick, Micah Cameron-Harp, Jackson Lindamood

The Ogallala Aquifer in Kansas is experiencing significant impacts from declining aquifer thickness. To stem declines and approach aquifer sustainability, producers must transition to reduced groundwater withdrawal and enhanced system-level water use efficiency. Evidence from the Testing Ag Performance Solutions Project may help define goals for system-level water use efficiency.


12. Full Credit: A Comprehensive View of Farm-Sector Credit Conditions

Jenny Ifft, Joe Parcell, Alice Roach

In partnership with the Rural and Farm Finance Policy Analysis Center at the University of Missouri, Kansas State University researchers conduct agricultural credit research to better understand current farm financial conditions and anticipate how they may change in the future. This presentation will highlight four currently underway farm finance projects:

* State farm income outlook released twice annually.
* Estimates of historical and forward-looking farm loan delinquency rates based on the farm income outlook.
* Leading indicators of farm financial health to monitor for emerging vulnerabilities.
* Exploration of the extent to which farm debt may be underestimated and the implications of underestimated debt.


13. A 2025 Ag Income Tax Update

Mark Dikeman

X


14. Space Weather Impacts on Farm GPS

Terry Griffin

GPS technology has revolutionized farming since the 1990s, with over 70% of Midwest row-crop acres now relying on it for planting, spraying, and yield mapping. But GPS signals are vulnerable to disruptions—from space weather events like the May 10, 2024, Gannon Storm, to intentional interference. Even a short outage can cause costly delays, missed sections, and reduced yields—especially with today’s wider equipment that depends on automated guidance. This presentation explains how GPS outages affect your farm’s bottom line and how early warnings could help you plan ahead.


15. Is Micro-Captive Insurance an Alternative to a Whole-Farm (Business) Comprehensive and Liability Insurance Policy?

Joe Parcell, Weston Guetterman

The premiums for comprehensive and liability insurance have been trending higher leaving many persons to question what alternatives there are beyond self-insuring.  The micro-captive insurance option is gaining interest as one alternative.   Persons get excited about the micro-captive concept because of potential tax advantages and because it’s like paying yourself the premium.   Is it really that easy and advantageous?   What are the pitfalls?  What are the regulations?  What do we know from other industries about whether captives offer a better financial outcome?  Join us as we explore micro-captive insurance.


16. Maritime Trade Disruptions in Global Food Supply Chains: Effects on Caloric Availability

Jenae Tildford, Nelson Villoria

World trade for maize, wheat, rice, and soybeans rely heavily on maritime passageways like the Panama Canal, Suez Canal, and Malacca Strait. Over 55% of these globally traded commodities pass through at least one. This paper uses a gravity trade model and calorie-based bilateral trade data (2010-2022) to estimate food security risk from passageway disruptions. A 1% increase in distance traveled reduces imported calories by 1.2%. Impacts include a 62% drop for El Salvador (Panama Canal disruption), 81% for Jordan (Suez Canal disruption), and 20% for Malaysia (Malacca Strait disruption). Results highlight vulnerability in Central/South America, the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.  


17. International Grain Market Trends

Guy Allen, Dan O'Brien

X


18. Bioenergy Market Situation and Outlook

Dan O'Brien, Gregg Ibendahl

X


19. Black Sea Grain and Oilseed Production and Trade: The Latest Developments and Prospects

Antonina Broyaka

From Black Sea port infrastructure to farmland soils, Russia’s war has negatively impacted all aspects of Ukraine’s agricultural system. However, despite wartime risks, Ukraine’s agricultural sector demonstrates a high level of resilience and continues to maintain leading positions in the global food markets. This session will discuss what has changed and what to expect in the Black Sea region, as well as how these changes affect global grain and oilseed markets.


20. Climate Change and Agricultural Exports: Evidence from U.S. Corn and Soybeans, 2000–2100

Abena Damuah, Vincent Amanor-Boadu

This study assesses the impact of the variability of growing season temperature, heat extremes, and precipitation on corn and soybean production and export volumes in 12 U.S. Midwestern states (2000-2020) using future climate projections through 2100, particularly the increasing incidence of excess heat during the growing season.

For corn, we find that increased heat incidence significantly curtails production, but its impact on export volumes is proportionally smaller, suggesting that the domestic market absorbs most of the loss in production. In contrast, for soybeans, increasing heat significantly diminishes both production and export volumes comparably.

Spatial analysis across the Midwest reveals pronounced regional heterogeneity. Hotter states (Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska) consistently demonstrate significantly larger adverse effects on production and export potential from heat stress, while cooler northern states (Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin) exhibit less pronounced negative effects.


21. Costly Regulation, Minimal Results: The EU’s Deforestation Regulation Effect on Global Soy Trade

Manoj Sharma, Nelson Villoria

The European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) seeks to reduce deforestation by restricting soy imports. The main concern is that trade restrictions can shift deforestation-embodied trade to unregulated markets. To shed light on this issue, we employ a gravity model, treating the EUDR compliance costs as trade costs for exports to the EU. We find that the stricter EU trade restrictions on tropical soy producers reallocate soy exports toward China and other Asian countries. If tropical countries do not comply with the EUDR, the EU consumer prices rise even more, while tropical countries see minimal terms-of-trade losses. Our analysis indicates that the EUDR is likely to be ineffective in reducing deforestation directly linked to soy production.


22a. Economic Feasibility of Alternative Crops in Arid and Semi-Arid Areas: The Case of Tomato in Southwest Kansas

Gventzly Eugene, Vincent Amanor-Boadu

The accelerating depletion of the Ogallala Aquifer threatens the sustainability of water-intensive traditional farming in western Kansas. This research investigates the techno-economic viability and socio-environmental impact of transitioning to controlled-environment agriculture as a strategic adaptation. We employ a System Dynamics Modeling framework to replace the net farm income of a typical farmer in southwest Kansas with new alternative crops and crop production technologies. Preliminary simulations, using tomato production as a case study, suggest that controlled-environment systems can deliver comparable or superior profitability while drastically reducing resource use, including water. Additionally, the transition has the potential of changing the social make up of communities as they grapple with out-migration, economic development, and other challenges. The results also indicate that moving to this innovative farming system would require a change in attitude that may be equivalent to frontier thinking – innovative, entrepreneurial, and enduring.

22b. Economic Feasibility of Alternative Crops in Arid and Semi-Arid Areas: The Case of Tomato in Southwest Kansas

Adji Aamtato Gane-Bang, Vincent Amanor-Boadu

Western Kansas faces a growing agricultural water challenge due to increasing uncertainty about rainfall and a declining Ogallala Aquifer. Exploring potential low moisture demand crops is a potential solution to sustaining livelihoods in the region. This research assesses the feasibility of sesame as an alternative. Preliminary findings suggest that sesame is well-suited to the region’s semi-arid climate and had lower production costs than current crops. However, it requires different husbandry skills and management resources. The preliminary results show that ongoing agronomic research and increasing global demand support a consideration of sesame as a credible alternative.

23. Strengthening Georgia’s Wheat Supply Chain: Quality Assessment and Strategies for Reducing Import Dependence

Kara Ross, Allen Featherstone, Antonina Broyaka, Shawn Thiele

Georgia’s reliance on imported wheat, particularly from Russia, poses significant food security risks. This study evaluated the Georgian wheat and milling industry, compared the quality of domestic wheat and flour to Russian imports, and identified strategies for improvement. Laboratory testing revealed that Georgian wheat has weaker gluten properties. The absence of standardized testing contributes to quality misperceptions among millers and bakers. To strengthen the domestic industry, the study recommends implementing quality testing protocols, upgrading infrastructure, and adopting targeted agronomic practices. These measures can enhance wheat quality, reduce import dependence, and improve national food security.


24. Digitalization, Tariffs and Trade

Allen Featherstone

X


 

Registration information

https://commerce.cashnet.com/ksuagecon

Both days: $215
One day (Thursday or Friday): $175

Or print the BROCHURE, and mail a check made out to KSU Extension, to: 
Rich Llewelyn
324B Waters Hall
1603 Old Claflin Place
Manhattan, KS 66506

Questions? Rich Llewelyn at rvl@ksu.edu

Trade show

More information, contact Rich Llewelyn: rvl@ksu.edu or 785.532.1504 .

Directions

To Manhattan, Kansas and the K-State Alumni Center (17th & Anderson):

From the east: I-70 to exit 313. North on Hwy 177 to Ft. Riley Blvd then west to 17th Street. North (right) on 17th to Anderson Ave. 

From the west: I-70 to exit 303. North on Hwy K114/K18 (Ft. Riley Blvd) to 17th St. North (left) on 17th to Anderson.

From the north: Hwy 77 south to Seth Child Rd (Hwy 113). South on Seth Child to Anderson Ave. East (left) on Anderson to 17th St.

Hotel accomodations

Holiday Inn - Campus
 
1641 Anderson
 Manhattan, KS 66502
 785.539.7531


Conference Rate: $119.95 + tax / night
 
Single or Double
 Rates valid August 20-22, 2025
 Cut-Off Date: July 30, 2025

 Use Group Name: RISK AND PROFIT 
 Direct Link: Risk & Profit Block Holiday Inn at the Campus

 

 

Parking

There is limited parking available at the Alumni Center. If spots are available, you can park there. You will need an Alumni Center pass, which will be available as you arrive.

Conference parking is included in the registration fee, for either the lot west of Old Stadium, or for the parking garage. You may park in either location, then bring your tag number (write it down or take a picture of it) to the registration table and we will take care of it for you. 

  • Limited parking is available in the Alumni parking lot for those arriving early. 

  • Additional parking is available in the lot west of Old Stadium (across Denison Avenue), north of the Catholic Church, or in the parking garage.

  • Parking is permitted only in areas designated for parking. Parking is not permitted on campus streets or drives

  • Please observe HANDICAP, RESERVED and NO PARKING zones; these are TOW ZONES and violators will be towed.

Kansas State University is committed to making its services, activities and programs accessible to all participants. If you have special requirements due to a physical, vision, or hearing disability, contact Rich Llewelyn, rvl@ksu.edu, or Director of Affirmative Action, Kansas State University, (TTY) 785.532.4807. K-State Research and Extension is an equal opportunity provider and employer. Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension Work, Acts of May 8 and June 30,1914, as amended. Kansas State University, County Extension Councils, Extension Districts, and United States Department of Agriculture Cooperating, J. Ernie Minton, Director.

For more information, contact Rich Llewelyn at the phone or email below:
Email: rvl@ksu.edu