The annual Agribusiness Economic Outlook Conference at Cornell will be held Tuesday, Dec. 14, from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. On-site registration will begin at 9 a.m.

Sponsored by Cornell's Department of Agricultural, Resource and Managerial Economics, the conference will feature forecasts for agricultural and economic issues.

The plenary session begins at 10 a.m. in the David L. Call Alumni Auditorium of Kennedy Hall. William Tomek, Cornell professor of agricultural economics, will provide the national perspective on the economy and agriculture. At 11 a.m., David Lee, Cornell professor of agricultural economics, will discuss "International Agricultural Trade and Trade Agreements: Update and Future Prospects," a review of recent major international trade agreements, including the impacts on agricultural trade since their enactment in the early 1990s and future prospects for agricultural trade reforms and their likely effects on national and New York agriculture.

In the afternoon, two concurrent sessions will examine specific commodities and topics in greater depth. These sessions will begin at 1:15 p.m., as follows:

• Session A, David L. Call Alumni Auditorium -- Tomek will describe the outlook for grains, feed and other farm outputs; Mark Stephenson, Cornell senior extension associate in agricultural economics, will discuss the dairy situation and outlook.
• Session B, Warren Hall, Room 245 -- Gerald White, Cornell professor of agricultural economics, will discuss the fruit, grape and wine outlook. Wen-Fei Uva, Cornell senior extension associate in agricultural economics, will address the outlook for vegetables and ornamental plants. Research updates on the economic dimensions of New York's greenhouse industry and value-added apple products will be presented, respectively, by Uva and Kristin Rowles, Cornell research support specialists in agricultural economics.

All prospective conference participants are asked to preregister. The preregistration fee is $35, if letters are postmarked by Dec. 1, and $50 if postmarked after Dec. 1 or for those registering on site. Registration fees for Cornell University and Cornell Cooperative Extension staff will be waived. Box lunches will be available for $6 and parking permits are being offered at $2 each. For further information or to request a preregistration form, contact Carol Peters at (607) 255-1602 or Wendy Barrett at (607) 255-1851. Registrations will not be accepted over the phone.

Related World Wide Web site: The following site will provide additional information about the conference. The web site is under construction and it is expected to be available on Nov. 15, 1999.

• Conference site: http://www.cals.cornell.edu/dept/arme/extens/conferen.htm.