Experts discussed how Indiana’s agricultural sector intersects with global markets during a panel Thursday at Indiana University.

Hosted by the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies, the America’s Role in the World conference featured a panel called The Global Nature of Heartland Agriculture.

Indiana State Department of Ag director Don Lamb spoke about how the current trade environment has made being a farmer in Indiana a challenge.

“What has happened in the last few years has just been the relationship between China and Brazil has become more solid,” he said. “They're buying a lot more of those products, especially soybeans, but agriculture products from Brazil, and it's just a reality that we have to deal with.”

Other panelists included AgriNovus CEO Christy Wright and Ports of Indiana Chief Operating Officer Dave Parrot.

Wright said Indiana is uniquely positioned among other states to make advancements in Ag Bioscience due to the presence of ag production, value added food and nutrition, animal health and nutrition, crop science and health, and ag tech sectors.

“When you take those five platform economies together, you have about $70 billion worth of impact to our state economy,” she said. “It puts us on par with the automotive industry, actually, in Indiana.”

The conversation also touched on controversial land use practices such as solar farms and data centers, with Lamb saying there needed to be a balance and careful consideration of how and where these projects are built.