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For the last 33 years I have farmed in south Oxfordshire England UK – in partnership with my wife. We have four grown up children. Our ‘downland’ farm is located in the Thames Valley on the outskirts of a village called Brightwell-cum-Sotwell in an area classified as one of ‘Outstanding Natural Beauty’. The farm has an extensive range of traditional and modern farm buildings but a limited land base which has demanded intensification and diversification of the business over the years. We have been through the gambit of livestock enterprises breeding and fattening pigs, beef at all levels and now run an early lambing flock of sheep in-wintered with straw as the base fodder, grow wheat, oilseeds, potatoes and have an extensive diversification enterprise letting traditional farm buildings as workshops. Marketing is through cooperative or group resources and we also sell produce directly from the farm-gate. My formative years were spent at the Royal Agricultural College Cirencester with a post-graduate at the University of Reading and worked as an Advisor with the Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food and in Farm Management Consultancy before having the farming opportunity – which was never intended to be a full-time job! I am a Nuffield farming Scholar. My wife and I are very involved in our local community and with many wide ranging farming committees and bodies. Currently I am a Director of a Farm Buying Group and for the last five years have been stretching myself writing a monthly ‘Farmer Focus’ column for the Farmers Weekly Magazine one of the leading farming journals here in the UK. The aim is to have more holidays and wind down – but this seems to demand in the short term greater involvement and a winding up!

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Jon is Managing Partner of Market Wise Ag Services. He is a 1984 graduate of Iowa State University in Agriculture Business. Jon has had a passion for farming and agriculture since childhood. His career path has included companies such as PHI Marketing Services, Inc., a subsidiary of Pioneer Hi-Bred Intl. Inc., Garst Seed, the GROWMARK Cooperative System and Cargill. Jon has over 14 years of experience in agriculture marketing and serves clients in Iowa and Minnesota.

Making an informed marketing decision requires knowing what bulls AND bears are looking for in price action. We’ll share our key thoughts on each market - followed by a verdict. So grab a cup of coffee and let’'s dig in and sort it out..

Dave Fogel spends his day serving as a mentor to our Ag Risk Management Consultants/Marketing Advisors. He has been with Advance for 29 years and has extensive experience helping farmers manage risk and solve problems in all ag commodities. The Advance Trading team believes strong caring relationships built on trust and education leads to farmer knowledge and increased knowledge of managing risk.

I was raised in Marshall, MO although I was gone several years to attend college, manage a rock quarry and farm, and then returned to my home. While in college I earned a bachelors degree in psychology and political science and later a masters degree in clinical psychology. For over twenty years I owned and managed a private system of comprehensive clinical mental health clinics in rural Missouri and I manage our family farm, which currently is approximately 1500 acres. Farming has been a big part of my life since I was a child as I started “helping” when I was a ripe old age of 5. I have been married for over 30 years to the most wonderful lady in the world (I hope she is reading this!) and it amazes me that she has put up with me all these years. Jerri Lou and I have three adult children and one granddaughter and a grandson who is soon to join us.

Eddy Lamar is a member of the Chicago Board of Trade and is registered as a floor broker with the CFTC and the NFA. He currently works as one of the risk managers for a large Futures Commission Merchant where he helps monitor risk for floor traders and funds trading a variety of products.

John Blue, as Chief of Community Creation for Truffle Media Networks, has responsibility for developing the ability to engage audiences through marketing, technology, and in person interactions. Truffle Media Networks provides high-quality, turnkey production and distribution of agriculture business-focused podcasts. Truffle Media Networks produces BeefCast®, CropVillage™, DairyCast®, PoultryCast®, and SwineCast® for the agricultural industry.

Jeffrey Carter is a serial entrepreneur, angel investor and independent trader. He specializes in turning concepts into profits. He co-founded Hyde Park Angels one of the most active angel groups in the United States in April of 2007. He previously served on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Board of Directors.

Our family farming history began with my great-great-... (nine generations ago) grandfather Johannes. He, his wife and three children left Saxony, Germany, on April 20, 1734, aboard the ship St. Andrew, mastered by Capt. John Stedman. They landed at Philadelphia on Sept. 22 and eventually settled our family’s first “New World” farm near Society Run in Frederick Township, Montgomery County, Pa., in 1743. Pig farming was our family’s specialty until the mid 1950s. A lot has changed since then. Our farm is now located in Northeast PA and includes a 100% Grass-fed closed herd of Registered Red Angus BEEFALO, pastured Tam-Roc pigs, and roasters & layer chickens. We organically maintain 150 acres, comprised of 25 acres in rotational pastures, 15 acres in tillable cropland, and alfalfa/mixed grass hay on the balance 110 acres. We have never used chemical pesticides or herbicides on our pastures or hay fields. We also do not have a “vaccination schedule” for our animals. We do however reserve the right to administer antibiotics to the animals in life-threatening circumstances. Because of our humane animal treatment we are not a “certified” organic farming operation. We do however employ the natural/organic approach to help promote sustainability and environmental health. Additional info. about us and our farm can be found at thekuhnfamilyfarm.com.