Argus Agritel Paris Grain Conference

• Natural gas and oil price context and the effects it will have on key commodities.
• How has the past 3 years of economic, logistical and geopolitical turmoil affected Europe’s appetite and ability to achieve timely energy transition?
• With China’s domestic economy stagnating and trying to become more self-dependent, where are they really heading?
• De-dollarisation - what will happen in the Middle East and North Africa in terms of the heavy devaluation of their currency’s and how will this impact grain price?
• Emergence of new trade blocs - with the emergence of regionalism in place of globalism will trade become more fragmented?

Speakers:
Arthur Minsat, Head of Africa, Europe, and Middle-East Unit, OECD Development Centre
Anne-Sophie Corbeau, Global Research Scholar, Centre on Global Energy Policy
Stephane Bernhard, Global Head of Trading, ETG 
Isabelle Job-Bazille, Chief Economist, Credit Agricole
Moderator: David Fyfe, Chief Economist, Argus

• Where are we in terms of production and what is the pricing outlook? How will the grains market evolve in the next 6-12 months?
• Supply and demand - what is the overall capacity versus demand growth?
• An analysis of shifting global grain trading patterns in the mix of transforming food demand and higher incomes.
• What are the key supply chain pressure points? What are the additional or new risks to supply?

Speaker:
Arthur Portier, Agritel, an Argus Media Company

 

• How are grain trades in the black sea evolving? What impact does it have on international grain shipping trades? 
• With South American grain exports increasingly entering Europe and North Africa – how will the price of logistics play out? Will there be any subsidies? How do we deal with bottlenecks in Brazil’s logistics? What is expected to happen as a bottleneck and how to mitigate the risk when sales increase in the short to mid-term?
• What are the implications of shipping decarbonisation on grain trades? How will the decarbonisation agenda impact the flow of shipping and freight and what solutions will become available? 
• What will be the impact of carbon pricing on EU focused shipping routes going forward?

Speakers:
Eero Vanaale, Principal Consultant, Drewry

• Do grains traders have the tools they need to effectively manage commodity price risk exposure?
• How is hedging achieved given the current geopolitical circumstances? What is the need for new hedging tools and trade practices?
• How can businesses mitigate the flat price risk?
• The role of OTC markets and premium volatility - who are the financial players and how do they impact the market? 

Speakers:
Scott Wellcome, Director, Grains Risk Management, GoodMills Group
Filipe Gonzaga, Managing Director, Bryce
Moderator: Charles Funnell, Managing Director, CF Commodities

• What impact is changing weather pattens having on agriculture? How is it impacting crop conditions globally and in key producer and exporting countries? Where will we see areas with declining yields and increasing yields? 
• Looking at crop science and AgTech, how can players adapt to climate risk? What technologies are available to mitigate the detrimental effects of weather on crops? 
• What might shifting weather patterns mean for production prospects around the world? How will El Nino and La Nina affect Asia and the America’s grains and oilseed markets and how will they recover?

Confirmed speakers:
Andrea Fogliato, Sustainable Agriculture Project Manager, Pernod Ricard
Mark Jekanowski, President, United States Department of Agriculture
Katharina Geiger, Policy Advisor for Crop Production, Deutscher Bauernverband E.V.
Moderator: Denis Drechsler, Project Manager, G20 Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS)

• What is the evolution of price and availability over the last 6 months? What is the price and availability outlook for fertilizer production in Europe and globally?
• How can business’ plan ahead of gas price increases and production costs? 
• What products and approaches are in place to enhance the efficiency of traditional fertilizers? What technologies are available to improve nutrient use efficiency to meet short-to mid-term food security, sustainability goals and its targets? 
• Moving away from synthetic fertilizers, what opportunities does green and blue ammonia present? How practical is it for the energy transition? 

 

Speakers:
Tim Cheyne, VP Agriculture, Argus

 

• How will traders navigate increased state intervention?
• With the ABCD’s exiting Russia, what will that mean for the market in terms of pricing and competition?
• Ukraine’s new means to supply the market: the Danube River and other river-based routes. What does this mean for the Romanian market?
• How are grain importers in the MENA region adjusting to supply risks? And how are cash flow challenges impacting demand in the MENA region?
• The changing face of east coast south American grain - is the world going to become much more reliant on Brazilian corn and what is the capacity or Brazilian corn in terms of production and logistics? How will Brazil maintain sustainable requirements and become a top exporter/producer?

Speakers:
Ibrahim Ait-Salem, Senior Trader, Graderco
Guillermo Benedit, Senior Grains Merchant - Middle East & Africa, Louis Dreyfus Company
Evgeniya Dudinova, Procurement Director, Commodities, Agthia
Anton Zhemerdieiev, Chief Commercial Officer, TAS Agro
Fahad Vaipel, Vice President, Olam International
Moderator: Fiona Poynter, Business Development, Agriculture Lead, Argus

• How will the EU green deal, Nature Restoration Law, SUR and other biodiversity strategies impact agricultural production capabilities, and in turn food security in the short mid-term? And what impact does policy decisions have on commercial requirements?
• With limited prospects for expansion of land in key producer and exporter countries, how can producers increase yield without conflicting with sustainability criteria? 
• How are retailers integrating sustainability targets and collaborating with those at the beginning of the supply chain to solve the challenges of supply chain resiliency?  
• How can practices such as regenerative agriculture and carbon farming optimize soil health? What are the specific interventions needed to increase the carbon content in these ecosystems? 

Speakers:
Gary McGuigan, President, Global Trade, ADM
Gaelle Marion, Head of Unit, DG AGRI, European Commission 
Raphael Latz, Head of Europe Distribution Grain & Oilseed, Louis Dreyfus Company
Moderator: Cedric Benoist, Chair of Cereals Working Party, Copa Cogeca

• With the growing global demand for biofuels, what feedstocks will be used to produce in the next few years? Will there be an increased need for grains and oilseeds or other feedstocks in the future? 
• With the U.S ramping up mandates on renewable diesel, what are the long-term implications for oilseed demand? How will it affect prices, production patterns and global demand over the next few years? 
• Can we increase global crop production capacity to meet the increasing demand posed by biofuels while still meeting the needs of the food industry?
• With transportation being the largest consumer of biofuels, how big is the sustainable aviation fuel market and what does it mean for ethanol producers? Will it be the next boom to the ethanol industry?

Speakers:
Xavier Noyon, Secretary General, European Biodiesel Board
Paul Webborn, Head of European Biodiesel, Freepoint Commodities
Moderator: Giulia Squadrin, Argus

• EU Deforestation Regulation – what impact will it have on oilseeds, palm oil and soybean demand coming out of Asia and how large will those affects be? What does it mean for sourcing practices in the EU and beyond? What practices will business’ have to put in place to remain compliant, and how will it impact producers?
• What vegetable oils or origins have substituted Ukrainian product in key importers’ markets? What will Ukraine need to regain its position in these markets?
• What are Indonesia’s plans in raising its mandatory palm oil-based biodiesel blending to 40%? When will it be implemented? 
• Will China’s demand for oilseeds purchases from the US to Brazil affect global grain transportation patterns? Will China fuel future demand growth or will other importers in other regions take the share?

 

• What is the supply and demand for pulses and organics in the context of dietary and consumption changes?
• What is the future of organics in the U.S, Europe and Asia? What is the demand in the next 5-10 years?
• What are the challenges in boosting production in the next few years to satisfy anticipated growth in demand?
• What implications do pulses have on the livestock markets?

Speakers:
Ryan Koory, VP Economics, Mercaris an Argus Media Company