The Northern Crops Institute (NCI) recently completed its annual grain procurement course. This longstanding course has been a mainstay of the institute, since its inception in 1983. Over the years, the course has connected hundreds of participants from around the globe, and introduced them to the mechanics of grain merchandising.
In previous courses, attendees would meet in-person and collaborate through a variety of lectures and exercises, as well as travel throughout the northern plains to meet with experts in the grain trade and tour grain facilities. Due to the recent pandemic, the NCI has had to adapt to the way the course was held, ultimately moving it to a virtual format.
The move to a virtual format proved beneficial as the course saw a record number of attendees. This year's course, which ran from September 14-25, had a total of 94 participants from 18 different countries around the globe. Additionally there were 17 participants from sponsor organizations. All-in, the course had 111 total participants, 27 lecturers/presenters and more than a dozen contributors to the virtual tours.
Meeting in a virtual environment is a great way for people from all around the world to get together to discuss the nuances and implications of grain merchandising. It provided participants from around the globe with a guide to international grain markets.
When asked about their experience participating in the grain procurement course, one participant said, “It's been a great and insightful course and I highly appreciate very much the invitation to attend, and such an effort to pull it together in these times. Great material and videos and live sessions and updates.”
During the course, industry professionals presented on commodity analysis, hedging, international grain contracts, and more. This gave participants a well-rounded experience and allowed them to collaborate and ask questions. This course was designed to connect NCI with participants globally and offer unique information about grain procurement that would inform participants about the industry as a whole and simultaneously provide technical information specific to what these professionals do every day.
International buyers, millers, and food processors, along with other industry professionals attended the course. When asked about the value of the course, another participant added that:
“Our pleasure that we have attended the grain procurement course. It will help us in our hedging strategy. We will definitely send another member of our buying team next year. It was very enriching.”
Overall, this year’s grain procurement course was a success. Program manager, Brian Sorenson stated:
“Our main objective of this course is to educate grain buyers from around the world on how to purchase grains from the U.S. This includes showing them how to use the risk management tools available to them, as well as help them understand the high quality of our crops and that we are a consistent supplier of grains and oilseeds to meet their needs.”
For more information on the NCI or to register for any upcoming courses, please visit northern-crops.com.
