The National Grain and Feed Association's Country Elevator Conference in St. Louis from December 8-10, 2026, will bring industry professionals together to explore economic forecasting, policy analysis, and emerging grain trading structures while providing networking opportunities across the agricultural value chain.
- Event Details: NGFA CEC 2026 takes place December 8-10, 2026, at The St. Louis Union Station Hotel in Missouri
- Core Topics: 2027 agricultural economy outlook, post-election policy changes, emerging grain trading landscapes, and U.S. agricultural market access under USMCA
- Expert Speakers: Features senior risk management consultants from Advance Trading, policy experts from The Russell Group, and trading leaders from Louis Dreyfus Company, Scoular, and CME
- Networking Opportunities: Multiple structured events including trade show receptions, networking breakfasts and lunches across all three days
- Educational Format: General sessions, breakout sessions on specific topics, and hands-on trade show floor exposure to new technologies and services
The National Grain and Feed Association's (NGFA) Country Elevator Conference (CEC) will bring grain and feed industry professionals to St. Louis on December 8-10, 2026, for a program built around economic forecasting, policy analysis and hands-on networking, all set against the backdrop of one of the Midwest's most distinctive event venues.
CEC is a business development event, and the agenda reflects that goal directly. Attendees will gain access to economic, market, policy and regulatory insight; exposure to new technologies and services on the trade show floor; and structured opportunities to connect with peers across the agricultural value chain.
Three sessions anchor the education program. The general session on day one opens with back-to-back presentations aimed at helping attendees plan for the year ahead and offers experts’ perspectives on the futures market.
2027 Agricultural Economy Outlook
Troy Presley and Michael Reginelli, two Advance Trading Inc. senior risk management consultants, will walk through the economic, market and global factors shaping commodity markets, input costs, demand and trade heading into 2027.
After the Election: What's Next for Washington
Andrew Harker, Ashlee Johnson and Randy Russell of The Russell Group will break down the new balance of power in Congress after the 2026 midterms and what it could mean for regulation, energy, taxes, trade and agriculture policy.
Futures and More: The New Grain Trading Landscape
This panel session rounds out Day 1’s general session with a panel featuring Reggie Griffith of Louis Dreyfus Co. (LDC), Ed Prosser of Scoular and John Ricci of CME. The speakers will examine prediction markets, perpetual trading and other emerging market structures from the exchange and commercial trading perspectives.
Day 2 turns to transportation and trade policy. Tony Hatch of ABH Consulting opens with a rail industry outlook covering service, capacity, investment and freight-market dynamics, followed by a session on strengthening U.S. agricultural market access under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), focused on NGFA’s work addressing non-tariff barriers tied to sanitary and phytosanitary standards and agricultural biotechnology.
Beyond the general sessions, attendees can choose from two rounds of breakout sessions, giving the program room to go deeper on specific topics.
Networking built into every day
The CEC schedule is organized around several structured networking opportunities, including:
- Day 1 evening trade show welcome reception
- Day 2 trade show networking breakfast and networking lunch
- Day 2 evening trade show networking reception
- Day 3 networking breakfast
A venue with its own story
CEC 2026 will be held in St. Lous, Missouri, at The St. Louis Union Station Hotel, Curio Collection by Hilton. The historic property features a Grand Hall with 65-foot barrel-vaulted ceilings including original stained-glass windows. The hotel connects to the St. Louis Aquarium, the St. Louis Wheel and sits less than a mile from downtown and the Gateway Arch.
With its dual focus on 2027 economic and policy outlooks and its emphasis on peer connection, CEC 2026 positions itself as a chance for grain and feed professionals to walk away with both actionable market intelligence and new industry relationships.
Registration is open at ngfa.org/events-news/cec-2026.
