Agenda Overview
Day One: Tuesday 17 May 2016
17:30 – 19:30 Evening welcome cocktail reception
Day Two: Wednesday 18 May 2016
09:00 Registration and morning refreshments
09:05 Chairperson’s opening remarks
- Noubia Gribi, Vice President of Business Development, Blumberg Grain
09:05 Global grains and oilseeds outlook: how is the MENA region affected by regional market trends?
- Import and export trends for wheat, corn and soy products
- Production updates for key grain producing regions
- Developments in MENA grain consumption patterns and quality requirements
- How is ‘food security’ defined and measured? How can MENA countries ensure that they are ‘food secure’?
- Dmitry Prikhodko, Economist – Investment Centre Division, Food & Agriculture Organisation of UN (FAO)
09:45 Macroeconomic outlook: impact of economic factors on the global agriculture sector
- Regional unrest and other geopolitical concerns in the Middle East and Black Sea regions
- Assessing the impact of China’s continued economic slowdown
- Crude oil price outlook and its effect on the global Ag market
- How are currency value changes affecting players in the MENA region?
- Mac Marshall, Economist, Monsanto
10:15 Morning refreshments and networking break
11:00 Traders’ panel: adapting strategies in a low-price market
- What consolidation has been seen in the region and is this expected to continue?
- Which origination markets are of most interest currently and why?
- Are buyers’ requirements in the region changing dramatically?
- Moderator: Gagan Gulati, Global Head - Agri, Trigon Gulf FZCO
- Donald Campbell, Head of Trading, Al Ghurair Resources
- James Wild, CEO - Middle East & Africa, Louis Dreyfus Commodities
- Scott Wellcome, Grains Trader, Hakan Agro DMCC
11:45 Ocean freight in crisis: an era of risks and opportunities for grain buyers
- Ocean freight markets in crisis - a historical overview
- Where is grain freight heading? Supply and demand analysis and forecast
- Managing the risks and capturing opportunities - a grain company perspective
- Ocean freight - MENA’s perspective
- Voytek Chelkowski, Managing Director, Seamind Pte Ltd
- Thomas Lisowski, Associate, Seamind Pte Ltd
12:45 Networking lunch
14:15 The development of food security programmes in North African countries
- An overview of current food security systems in Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco
- How can post-harvest losses be reduced?
- Is North Africa an attractive market for investors to target assets?
- What initiatives are in the pipeline?
- David Blumberg, CEO – Middle East & Africa, Blumberg Partners
14:45 Black Sea grain: will Russia and Ukraine continue to be dominant forces in the region?
- New crop quality – how have crops survived the winter and how is the new planting campaign progressing?
- Pricing outlook – how will increased competition from other regions influence prices?
- Analysing the impact of sanctions and other geopolitical issues on trade flows
- Potential export taxes and their implications for players in the region
- Moderator: Dmitri Rylko, General Director, IKAR
- Oleg Kryukovskiy, Head of Trading, GTCS Trading DMCC
- Swithun Still, Director, Solaris Commodities
15:45 Afternoon refreshments and networking break
16:30 India and Bangladesh: recent progress and outlook for the coming years
- Current export levels of wheat and soy into the Middle East
- Assessing the price and quality of Indian and Bangladeshi grains
- Do these products meet MENA millers’ requirements?
- Update on domestic policies and how these affect grain exports
- Sumit Gupta, Business Manager, Gargaon, India, McDonald Pelz
17:00 Overview of the Turkish grains market
- Wheat, corn and barley production figures and outlook for the coming season
- Are there quality concerns over products sources domestically?
- Which regions are being targeted for imports? How are geopolitical issues affecting trade?
- Turkish wheat flour and feed export performance
- Günhan Ulusoy, CEO, Ulusoy Flour Mills
17:30 End of day two and networking drinks reception
Day Three: Thursday 19 May 2016
08:55 Chairperson’s opening remarks
09:00 End users’ perspective: discussing the procurement strategies of feed and flour millers in the MENA region
- Regional flour and feed millers’ demand outlook
- What are the quality and price requirements for millers in MENA countries?
- How do consumption patterns affect procurement strategies?
- In which ways do state buying agencies’ strategies differ?
- What import requirements do MENA countries have and how does this affect supplier costs?
- Adrian Stock, Procurement Director, Agthia
10:00 Weather trends and the global grain markets: is La Niña on the horizon?
- How did the historical strong El Niño impact grain markets?
- Will a transition to La Niña occur and what impact could it have on global crop yields and production?
- Summer forecast for the major Northern Hemisphere growing regions
- Kyle Tapley, Senior Agricultural Meteorologist, MDA Weather Services
10:30 Refreshments and networking break
11:15 South American origination: can Brazil and Argentina increase their presence in the region?
- Export policy changes in Argentina – how has this affected trading flows?
- Role reversal – deepening Brazilian recession and Argentina’s promising recovery
- Real and potential grains export – where are they going and in what volumes?
- Soy crushing capacity and future demand
- Have infrastructure limitations been overcome? What new projects are in the pipeline?
- Rael Chapaval, Broker, America Corretora
- Arthur da Anunciacao Neto, Manager, Alphamar
12:00 Opportunities and associated challenges in the Iranian agricultural market
- Iranian wheat, corn and barley production capabilities
- Wheat import ban – is self-sufficiency realistic?
- What will the easing of sanctions mean for global grain traders?
- Update on banking, shipping and storage restrictions
- Sharif Nezam-Mafi, Chairman of the Board, Iran-Switzerland Chamber of Commerce
12:45 Close of conference followed by networking lunch