8:00 a.m. - Registration and Check in with continental breakfast

8:30 a.m. - 8:45 a.m. - Introductions / Welcome

8:45 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. - Morning Keynote Speaker,  Dr. Michael Swanson

9:30 a.m.- 9:45 a.m. - Break

9:45 a.m. - 10:45 a.m. - Panel #1 - Changing land use, investment inflows and sustainability issues in agriculture

10:45 a.m - 11:00 a.m. - Break

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. - Panel #2  -  Changing environmental and regulatory landscape in the food and agricultural industry

12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. - Luncheon and Keynote Speaker - George H. Soares

Michael Swanson is an agricultural economist and consultant at Wells Fargo, based in Minneapolis. He's responsible for analyzing energy's impact on agriculture, forecasting key commodities, and developing credit and risk strategies. 

Before Wells Fargo, he supervised dairy supply chains at Land O’ Lakes and worked for Cargill Cafetera de Manizales S.A. in South America. Earlier in his career, he was a transportation analyst with Burlington Northern Railway. 

Swanson holds degrees in economics and business administration from the University of St. Thomas and a master's and doctorate in agricultural and applied economics from the University of Minnesota, where his thesis improved economic activity estimation using value-added tax data.

 

Panelists

Curt Covington is the Senior Director of Partner Relations at AgAmerica Lending. He joined the team in March 2020. As Senior Director of Partner Relations at AgAmerica Lending, Curt assists with credit analysts and production personnel on large agricultural loans. His major initiatives include building customizable products as well as developing efficiencies for the large loan process as the company continues to evolve.

Curt earned a B.S. in finance at the University of Southern California and an M.B.A. in Agribusiness at Santa Clara University. Curt began his career in agricultural banking in 1979. Prior to AgAmerica, he was the Executive Vice President and Chief Credit Officer of Farmer Mac. Before that, Curt held the Senior Vice President position at Bank of the West for nearly 12 years. He was a professor at California State University, Fresno's School of Agricultural Economics, where he taught ag finance and ag accounting for 26 years. Curt is also the owner and operator of The Agricultural Lending Institute headquartered in Fresno, California. 

He is a board member for Porterville Citrus, Inc., the largest citrus packer and shipper in the Sunkist Coop System as well as an advisory board member for Proterra Investment Partners in Denver, Colorado. 

 

 

Michael Ming, ARA is the President/Owner of Alliance Appraisal, LLC and President/Owner/Broker of Alliance Ag Services, Inc. In 2024, he added Lee & Associates Central California where he serves as President and Co-Managing Partner. 

Mike is an experienced Expert Witness with several courts as well as an approved appraisal contractor for National Fish and Wildlife, the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, and the U.S. Department of Justice. His companies provide real estate appraisal services on agricultural, commercial, industrial and renewable energy property types as well as brokerage services for open row lands, permanent plantings, grazing lands, renewable and resource lands and more.

Mike has been a member of ASFMRA since 1997 and earned the Accredited Rural Appraiser (ARA) designation in 2005. He has served on the California Chapter Board of Directors, was Chapter President in 2008/08 and currently chairs the Southern San Joaquin Valley Region of the Chapter’s Trends® in Agricultural Land and Lease Values Report. 

 

 

Casey Creamer serves as the President/CEO of California Citrus Mutual (CCM), a position he has held since 2019.   

During his career Creamer has been appointed to and/or served on numerous boards and advisory committees related to agricultural trade, water quality, water supply, air quality, and pesticide use including USDA and USTR’s Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee for Fruits and Vegetables, the Water Blueprint, the Central Valley Salinity Alternatives for Long Term Sustainability (CV-SALTS) and served on California’s Sustainable Pest Management (SPM) Workgroup. 

Casey graduated from California State University Fresno, with a degree in Business Administration.  He is also a graduate of the prestigious California Agricultural Leadership Program, Class 47. 

 

 

 

 

 

Moderator:   Andres Jauregui graduated with a bachelor’s degree in international economics from the International University of the Americas in San Jose, Costa Rica, in 1999. I then obtained an M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Applied Economics from Auburn University in 2006, focusing on real estate, environmental, and urban economics. 

Currently, I am a Professor of Real Estate in the Department of Finance, Real Estate, and Business Law at Fresno State. In addition to teaching and research, I serve as the Director of the Gazarian Real Estate Center, which enhances real estate education and research in the Central Valley. I also sit on the Board of Directors for the U.S. Green Building Council Central California Chapter and the Southwest Fresno Development Corporation.

My research interests include real estate economics and finance, with publications in several academic journals, such as the Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Housing Policy Debate, Journal of Regional Science, Journal of Housing Research, and Journal of Real Estate Research. I am particularly interested in the connections between real estate and environmental issues, especially regarding water.

 

Panelists:

Laura Brown, the Environmental Resources Manager at J.G. Boswell

John Chandler is a fourth generation farmer in Selma, CA, where he is a partner with his family farming almonds, citrus, and wine grapes.  

After graduating with a Bachelor’s degree from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, John worked in Washington DC for Congressman Doug Ose.  Returning to California, John worked for Devin Nunes election campaign before becoming a field representative for Association of California Water Agencies.  For almost 8 years John was Consultant to the California Senate Committee on Agriculture.  

Returning to the family farm in 2012 John has been actively working on the farm as well as serving on several industry boards.  Currently, he sits on the Fresno Farm Bureau board of directors, the California Association of Wine grape Growers board of directors, Nuffield USA Board, and was recently elected to the Western Growers Association board.

 

 

 

 

Moderator:  Trudi Hughes is the CEO/President of the California League of Food Producers (CLFP).   CLFP is a statewide non-profit trade association that represents food processors with production facilities in California.  The membership includes firms involved with canning, freezing, and dehydrating/drying a wide array of fruit and vegetable products as well as nut processors, cheese manufactures and olive oil producers.

Trudi has over 30 years of experience in public affairs, government relations and legislative advocacy.  She was the Director of Government Affairs for CLFP for 12 years before becoming the new CEO/President in 2022. Prior to joining CLFP in 2010, Trudi was the Senior Manager of Public Affairs and Government Relations for Walmart’s interests in California.  She was also a Legislative Advocate for the California Chamber of Commerce and worked for almost 10 years as legislative and committee staff at the State Capitol.   

She has a B.S. in Agriculture Business Management from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo and an MBA from the University of California, Davis.

 

George H. Soares is a managing partner at KSC and an influential figure in California's legislative landscape. He has achieved AV Preeminent status, the highest peer rating for legal professionals, reflecting his skills and ethical standards. Throughout his career, George has played a pivotal role in drafting thousands of legislative and regulatory proposals, notably the largest tax relief package for California agriculture and the establishment of commissions that support agricultural market expansion and research.

Before his legal career, George served as a principal consultant to the California State Assembly Committee on Agriculture. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, and is admitted to the California Bar, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court. He also holds a Bachelor of Science from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, where he was student body president.

George has received numerous awards, including an honorary Doctor of Laws from the California State University Board of Trustees. He serves on several boards, including those of Cal Poly and Fresno State. Together with his wife, Gloria, he operates a cattle business and grows various crops, including pistachios and walnuts, in Hanford, California.