Photo Gallery: Commodity Classic 2013: Transition, Marketing, Agvocating, Palm Trees & Rock-and-Roll

Jen Bennett, Corn and Soybean Digest

Mar. 8, 2013

Florida sunrise

Thursday morning offered Commodity Classic attendees a beautiful sunrise to start the day.
Talking with farmers

CSD Columnist Ed Usset was in the booth talking to growers about marketing plans. Usset's early-riser session on Saturday offered insight on different marketing styles and carrying charges.
Record attendance

Record crowds attended Commodity Classic this year. Maybe it was the warm location, but the variety of information, research and networking also drew farmers in.

Read more about this year's record attendance.
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack championed farmers, agriculture

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack brought farmers to their feet as he took the stage, and as he ended his speech, at the general session.

Read highlights from Vilsack's speech to farmers, where he championed their efforts and agriculture in general.
Farm transition planning was well received

After speaking to a packed room, Darren Frye, Brian Hensley and ARlen Suderman of Waterstreet Solutions and Bryce Knorr of Farm Futures had lines of farmers wanting to talk more about farm transition planning.

Read the highlights of their hour-long talk during Commodity Classic 2013
Tweeting on Twitter

While we were at Commodity Classic 2013, we lit our Twitter account on fire, tweeting valuable tidbits from educational sessions we attended. These tweets came from an agvocacy session, along with some from a session on secrets to high-yield beans.

Check out our feed and follow us on Twitter to make sure you don't miss out on tips and information we have.
CSD at the trade show

CSD was well represented at the trade show. Many farmers stopped by to say hello, check out the latest issues or subscribe to the magazine.
Fans in action

Our youngest, and cutest, fan stopped by the booth at Commodity Classic. He makes our hat look good!
Early-riser marketing session

CSD columnist Ed Usset was back in action Saturday morning at the early-riser marketing session. Farmers stayed late to talk to Ed. Along with talking about his "celebrity producers" and their marketing styles, Usset shared their results.

See how Ed's producers did in their post-harvest marketing quests.
More Than a Feeling

For some Saturday night entertainment, Commodity Classic 2013 attendees listened to come classic rock by World Classic Rockers, a group made up of members of rock bands including Lynyrd Skynyrd, Boston, Journey and more.

Watch their live performance of Boston's classic hit, More Than A Feeling.
Palm trees and sunshine

There was sun and warmth in Kissimmee, Fla., during Commodity Classic. Palm trees and sunshine make for beautiful scenery!
Alligators!

And what's Florida without some alligators? The Gaylord hotel was amazing, and was home to these guys! Some of the attendees even caught a feeding for them. Glad my job was to attend Commodity Classic, and NOT get into a pen with a bunch of hungry gators!

Commodity Classic 2013 was held in Kissimmee, Fla. There were many educational sessions for farmers, from soybean secrets to transitioning the farm, new-product introductions to marketing plans. The general session captivated all attendees, offering viewpoints from commodity groups and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. There was fun with all the learning, too. World Classic Rockers provided entertainment, and palm trees provided a beautiful view. And don't forget about the trade show with exhibitors from all areas of agriculture. If you weren't there, here's a quick recap of a busy, informative, warm three days.