Several Purdue seminars to take place at Fort Wayne Farm Show

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Biofuels, property taxes, new regulations and a chance to interact with the new director of the Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service highlight the seminars to be offered by Purdue during the Fort Wayne Farm Show.

The Fort Wayne Farm Show runs Jan. 15-17 at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum Expo Center in Fort Wayne. The informational programs are co-sponsored by Purdue Extension and the Northeastern Indiana Soil and Water Conservation Districts.

Chuck Hibberd, who began as director of Purdue Extension in November, will join Randy Woodson, Glenn W. Sample Dean of Agriculture, during a session starting at 9:30 a.m. Jan. 16 in the Appleseed Room. Hibberd will discuss the future of Purdue Extension as it begins a new strategic plan process. A reception will follow the session.

"Chuck has come on board and done a lot of listening in the past couple months," Woodson said. "He has absorbed much, and is now taking that information and combining it with his own management philosophy in moving Purdue Extension forward. People who come to hear him will see that he's focused and wants to make a good organization even better."

Purdue sessions throughout the three-day event are free and will be held in the Appleseed Room, focusing on a variety of agricultural topics including:

* Feeding byproducts from bio-energy. Ron Lemenager, Purdue Extension specialist in animal sciences. 11 a.m. Jan. 15.

* Potential solutions for the property tax dilemma. Larry Deboer, Purdue Extension public policy specialist. 2 p.m. Jan. 15.

* Farm leases. Gerry Harrison, Purdue Extension agricultural law specialist. 3 p.m. Jan. 15.

* Grain and livestock market outlook. Chris Hurt, Purdue Extension agricultural economist. 10:30 a.m. Jan. 16.

* New regulations regarding manure hauling and spreading. Fred Whitford, coordinator of the Purdue Pesticide program. 2 p.m. Jan. 16.

* The future of cellulosic ethanol. Nathan Mosier, assistant professor of agricultural and biological engineering. 11 a.m. Jan. 17.

Other sessions will cover the grain market outlook, replacing feed grains with forages, farm estate planning and tax-saving opportunities.

Purdue exhibits also will be included in the Exhibition Hall.

The complete schedule and other details for the Fort Wayne Farm Show are available online at http://www.tradexpos.com/ftwayne/ .