2024-2025 Potential Public Speaking Topics for Ag-Ed/FFA Students

Hey there! Thanks for checking this list out! If you need any help with your public speaking journey or would like Brandon to come present a public speaking workshop feel free to give him a shout at:

bbaumgarten18@gmail.com.

Best wishes!

Sincerely,

Brandon

Below are some major trending ag topics which are currently very prevalent, followed by other topics that have remained relevant to the ag industry as well.

  • USDA Rural Investment: The USDA announced an investment of nearly $121 million to advance research and extension activities for specialty crops and organic agriculture.
    • EPA cutting Hydrofluorocarbons Used in Refrigeration
    • How the Future of Weather Prediction Could Help Better Prepare Ag Industry for Natural Disasters
    • The Electric Cattle ID Debate 
    • How Agricultural Food Systems Can Transform the Industry
    • The Blue Flu Resurgence: Bird flu A rare human case of bird flu was detected in the US, and five Missouri healthcare workers were tested for bird flu after experiencing respiratory symptoms
    • The 2024 Farm Bill: The House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee passed a bill that cuts agricultural funding by 30% for the 2024 fiscal year
    • Feedlots Defying Gravity?
    • How Freight Rail Legislation Would Improve U.S. Wheat Market
    • The Expanding Local Meat Processing Act
      • Midwest Drought Causing Food Shortages: In Indiana, corn “virtually died” at the end of August due to drought stress.
      1. The Enemy From Within: Dealing with Wedge Issues in the NCBA
      2. Prussic Acid Toxicity, How an Oklahoma drought can affect your herd
      3. Oklahoma’s Rural Vet Shortage: Can we meet the demand?
      4. Hurricane Helene: Crops were in danger after Hurricane Helene made landfall, and farmers in South Georgia assessed damage to their cotton and pecan crops. What will the aftermath be?
      5. Identify Theft on the Farm? How do prevent farm data from being stolen by improving ag technology?
      6. WiFi on the Farm: Improving Internet for Rural Oklahoma
      7. How do we handle Non-traditional products introduced to the ag industry?
      8. Soil Health and the Growing Push for Better Plant Environment
      9. What can Farmers and Ranchers do to help in the birth of new antibiotics? 
      10. The Virtual FFA Member: Could Ag-Ed classes be offered online?
      11. Is there a benefit to a Nitrogen Based Economy? 
      12. Sorghum in Vietnam? How the industry is evolving. 
      13. How Read an Accurate Ag Book Week is Helping Ag Education
      14. Milking The Story: How to prevent Listeria Outbreak in the Dairy Industry
      15. Is the Future of Offshore Wind Energy Viable?
      16. Fraudulent Foods. How Food Transparency is Critical to Consumers
      17. Recent California Pig Welfare Rule and its Impact on Small Farmers
      18. China and the Hot Pursuit of Land Ownership in the U.S.
      19. How the 2024 Elections Could Affect the Ag Industry
      20. What is “The New Agriculture Advanced Research and Development Authority”?
      21. Local Schools Adopt a Cow: Get a Free Year-Long Cow for your Classroom
      22. Feral Hogs and the impact on the local pork producer 
      23. Lack of Hospitals in Rural Oklahoma
      24. The Impact of the Opioid Crisis and how it has infiltrated our food supply
      25. Organic Farming vs. Non-Organic
      26. Agroterroism and the War on Food
      27. GMOs vs. Non-GMOs: Educating the public
      28. Lack of Agricultural Literacy and the need to know where our Groceries come from
      29. Urban Sprawl & the Erosion of Farmland
      30. Combating World Hunger
      31. Emerging Science of Plant-Breeding Technology
      32. U.S. Trade and new Import Laws
      33. FarmBot and the innovation of Robot Farming
      34. Vertical Farming and Skyscrapers Growing Our Food
      35. Agriculture and the Cosmetic Industry: The Push for Sustainable Beauty
      36. Robotic Milking & the Dairy Industry
      37. The Costly Curse of Fake News on today’s Agricultural Messaging
      38. How FFA Chapters are Using Local Greenhouses to Feed their Communities
      39. The Current Debate of Ag Monopolies
      40. The Processed Food War
      41. Improving Beef Advocacy
      42. Eradicating Invasive Species
      43. Urban Farming: Rooftop Gardening
      44. Protecting Agriculture & Rural Prosperity
      45. Challenges facing Agricultural Education
      46. New steps to improve Farm BioSecurity
      47. Animal Welfare vs. Animal Rights
      48. How the legalization of Medical Marijuana could affect Agriculture
      49. The Evolution of American Agriculture Careers
      50. Hunting, Fishing,& less TV, more agricultural exposure.
      51. Ethanol or No Ethanol?
      52. Solar Energy, Wind Farming, & Other Energy Resources
      53. Local Farmer’s Markets & the need for more food.
      54. SMART Farming: Using the power of apps to do more.
      55. Oklahoma Mesonet & Monitoring the Environment
      56. Improving Modern Aquaculture & Fish Hatcheries
      57. Christmas Tree Farming and the Benefits or Local Ag Production
      58. How Agriculturalists Deal With Drought or Natural Disasters.
      59. Agricultural Easements: How to Legally Save Farmland
      60. Future of Irrigation and Water Supply
      61. Greenhouse Emissions & the Public Debate
      62. Purpose & History of Agricultural Extension and Education programs
      63. Precision Agriculture
      64. The Secretary of Agriculture & the vision for USDA
      65. Community Gardens in Rural & Urban Areas
      66. NAFTA & Global Agriculture
      67. New American Pork Exports: Argentina and Beyond
      68. E. Coli & Preventing Bacterial Outbreaks in Food
      69. Supporting young/BIPOC farmers
      70. Protecting Food Chain Workers
      71. Starting Tradition/Setting Chapter Standards
      72. Being a Team Player
      73. Horizontal Drilling
      74. Economic Impact of Oklahoma Agriculture
      75. Land-Grant Universities: The past, present, and future role of preparing students for the Ag Industry.
      76. Food Sustainability
      77. NAFTA & Global Agriculture
      78. New American Pork Exports: Argentina and Beyond
      79. E. Coli & Preventing Bacterial Outbreaks in Food
      80. Supporting young/BIPOC farmers
      81. Protecting Food Chain Workers
      82. Starting Tradition/Setting Chapter Standards
      83. Being a Team Player
      84. Horizontal Drilling
      85. Economic Impact of Oklahoma Agriculture
      86. Land-Grant Universities: The past, present, and future role of preparing students for the Ag Industry.
      87. Food Sustainability
      88. Agritourism: Economic, Industrial, and Rural Impact
      89. New Technology in Seed Production
      90. Reducing Foodborne Illnesses
      91. New uses of Biocontrol Fungus
      92. USDA Services for Farmers & Ranchers
      93. The Rising of World Wheat Consumption
      94. Potential Shifting of U.S. Farm Tariffs
      95. Ag Gag Laws
      96. The Battle for Beef: Food Insecurity around the globe
      97. School Lunch Programs & Fighting Food Insecurity during COVID-19
      98. Protecting Agricultural Education, Research, and Literacy Beyond 2020
      99. How to recruit new Ag Teachers into the profession
      100. Smart Growth Policies
      101. California’s Ban On Plastic. What could it lead to?
      102. Addressing today’s skill gap and what is needed in the Ag Industry
      103. Real or Unreal? The possibilities of Lab Grown Fake Meat
      104. Improving Ag Literacy in Urban Areas
      105. Factory Farming vs. Family Farming
      106. How we can articulate the message of Agriculture
      107. Exploring Nutritional Research
      108. Food Identification Among Consumers
      109. The Future of Auctioneering
      110. Drought-Resistant Spinach: Gene-editing in Agriculture
      111. Developing Local Sustainable Food Systems
      112. The Affordable Clean Energy(ACE) Rule’s impact on CO2 emissions
      113. Decreasing the Risks of Food-Borne Illnesses
      114. Defining the Millennial Farmer
      115. What is Warehouse Farming?
      116. Using Drones to Fight Crop Diseases
      117. Chocolate Farming? Why Cocoa Production is at Risk.
      118. The Negative Role of Fake News in Agriculture
      119. Apps in Agriculture? The Revolution of Agriculture Technology
      120. Finding Your Voice: How FFA Helps Students Overcome the Number 1 Fear
      121. Intercropping: The War on Weeds and Pests
      122. The Ogallala Aquifer: Making Every Drop of Water Count
      123. The Importance of Ag in the Classroom and Other Ag Literacy Programs
      124. The Rise of Disruptive Technology and the impact on the Beef Industry
      125. How to Recruit New FFA Members into Your FFA Chapter
      126. How Online Grocery Shopping Could Impact Consumers & Producers
      127. No Wheaties for Me: The Growing Trend of Eating Gluten-Free
      128. Meatless Meat: Could this Alternative Meat
      129. Farming in Outer Space
      130. Maintaining Ag Research Funding
      131. How Ag Influencers are Using Podcasting to Promote the Ag Industry
      132. Food availability in 2024 and beyond
      133. Building our Rural Electric Infrastructure
      134. The Use of Ivermectin and the Doorway to Clinical Trials
      135. The Supreme Court & California’s Proposition 12 Animal Welfare Law
      136. Can AI Farming Make Agriculture More Sustainable?
      137. Bill Gates and Silicon Valley’s Green Tech Fund
      138. Farm to Fork Agriculture Program
      139. The Government Taxing Your Livestock
      140. McGirt Tribal Case and the Impact on Oklahoma’s Agriculture
      141. The future taxation of the US family farms
      142. How FFA equips leaders to fill a desperate labor force
      143. How Online Shopping is Changing the Agriculture Industry
      144. Farmer’s Markets Going Online!
      145. Down on the Farm: Could the next Agriculture Recession be on the Horizon?
      146. Future of Farming and the Border Crisis
      147. What could be the Next Animal Pandemic?
      148. Usage of Digital Tools to Communicate with Plants
      149. Vaccines in your Salad? Edible Vaccines Coming to a Store near a you!
      150. Do indoor plants purify the air?
      151. Farms and Vaccine Requirements
      152. The Taliban and Food Security in Afghanistan
      153. Xenotransplantation: The Industry and the Science
      154. Improving Food quality and production efficiency
      155. Recent Food Changes for Charity laws
      156. Managing Mental Health on the Farm: Relieving Stress for our Farmers
      157. The Effect of Illegal Immigration on the Agriculture Industry
      158. “There’s an App for That!” How Farms are being controlled by smart phones
      159. How Overzealous Regulatory Proposals are Impacting the Local Farm
      160. Rising Input Costs: How Today’s Economy is Making Farming Less Profitable