Mark Pearson, host of “Market to Market” and “The Big Show,” was the lunchtime speaker during the 2009 Bayer Profit Maximizer Wheat Summit sponsored by Bayer CropScience, High Plains Journal and KFRM..

He entertained the crowd with his humor, but also educated them about the issues of the day that will affect American agriculture’s future..

The key topic on everyone’s mind at the meeting was the cap-and-trade policy, currently before the U.S. Senate. Specifically, how it and other environmental policies may change conventional agriculture..

“I think there’s reasonable concerns out there by agriculture,” Pearson said..

“Ag is carbon dependent. We’re big burners of carbon, and we create food.” He added most in ag first thought capand- trade could be to the industry’s benefit, citing carbon credit markets that could bring profits to farmers practicing carbon sequestration. However, this legislation before the Senate has the potential to shackle U.S. producers in the world marketplace. “The future of conventional agriculture is in peril with the policy decisions we make today,” he said..

“Before our U.S. policy goes off in a big way, let’s look at the competitors,” Pearson said. “Are they shackled in the same way? I think not. It’s hard to shackle an industry and expect it to be competitive worldwide.” In order for any cap-and-trade legislation to be acceptable to U.S. farm interests, it must be accepted worldwide, so competitors, such as China and India, are on the same playing field..

“The challenge we face in ag is that we must build production on limited arable land,” Pearson said. “We do that by using carbon fuels, and fertilizers from carbon. I think feeding people is as important as anything else we do in the world.”.

World issues have always affected U.S. farm income, but no more so than in today’s recession. Pearson explained financing will be a key influence on farm income. We’ve seen the capital markets meltdown and how it affected expansion overseas, he said..

“The growth rates in China and India have slowed,” Pearson said. “Outside equity and capital markets are still factors in the U.S.” Global trade and currency valuations are also extremely important for producers, he added..

Ethanol and energy policy will also affect producers in the new economy, Pearson told producers. He said the United States stays strong by producing its own food, while other countries have to import the majority of their food supplies. This is one of our greatest defense strengths, he added..

However, we import 40 percent of our crude oil, and it’s an important part of our future defense to produce more fuel domestically. And, if we won’t open up our own oil reserves, Pearson added, then ethanol will have to pick up the slack so that we have less dependence on foreign countries for our crude oil..

The key to long-term success for farmers and ranchers is to remember that profitability doesn’t rely solely on market influences, Pearson said.

“About every decade, we get one or two years of profitability, and this bull market we’re seeing is long in the tooth,” he said. “We will see prices under pressure as we’re going forward. Profitability comes from innovation, and efficiencies on the farm and adapting technology and quickly.” By using innovations in controlling disease and better seed selections and other technological advancements, farmers can ensure profits for their farms.