Governor’s Forum on Colorado Agriculture Draws Top Researchers, Industry Representatives

The Governor’s Forum on Colorado Agriculture drew some of the top state and national leaders in the field of agriculture to Denver. In all, more than 225 people attended the day-long event on Feb. 18 at the Renaissance Denver Hotel.

Participants heard from Gov. Bill Ritter, Commissioner of Agriculture John Stulp, Colorado State University President Tony Frank, Robb Fraley, executive vice president and chief technology officer for Monsanto, and Ralph Otto, U.S. Department of Agriculture administrator.

The theme of the annual forum was, “Energizing Colorado Agriculture through Strategic Research”.

Otto, associate administrator with the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, talked about agricultural research and the role the NIFA plays in the research effort.

Fraley discussed how Monsanto was helping to meet global grain demands through sustainable solutions.

Frank tied CSU’s role as the state’s land-grant university to developing an even stronger College of Agricultural Sciences. Frank said the university will focus on those areas of agriculture that are important to Colorado and the nation.

CSU College of Agricultural Sciences Dean Craig Beyrouty also detailed some of the specific strategic agricultural research efforts and initiatives underway at the university.

A series of afternoon breakout sessions examined research needs in the areas of livestock, crops, organic crops, and CSU’s Crops for Health program.

The Governor’s Forum on Colorado Agriculture is hosted by Ritter, the Colorado Department of Agriculture and Colorado State University with the support of the Colorado Agricultural Leadership Associates and more than 50 organizations, businesses and agencies interested in the future of Colorado agriculture.

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