The International Food and Agribusiness Management Association (IFAMA) conference is where agribusiness professionals ranging from industry leaders to researchers get together to evaluate sustainable technologies and practices within agriculture. Participants come from over 50 countries to be a part of this conference and this year's was held in Brazil!
Jaci Wentz, a grad student pursuing her Master's under Dr. Guilherme Signorini, was able to attend and present at this conference in the Academic Symposium portion. Luckily she had a minute to tell us about her research and her experience at this conference...
What is your Master's research project?
It concerns mapping the purchase decision-making process in B2B scenarios and then applying that work to high-technology purchases in controlled environmental agriculture.
What inspired you to pursue this research?
I come from an unconventional background. I have a bachelor's in business economics, but while getting my undergrad, I began working at a public garden in the greenhouses. I feel in love with horticulture and wanted to combine my business skills with the horticulture industry. I talked to different people in the department, which led me to my advisor, Dr. Guil Signorini. He is similar to me in that he combines horticulture with elements of economics and business analysis. He brought me onto the ADVANCEA project to study how high technology is adopted in greenhouses. So, I did not specifically choose this research. I chose to find an area that was exploring horticulture through a business lens, which led me to my project.
How did you hear about and get involved in the Academic Symposium portion of IFAMA?
My advisor has been attending IFAMA for several years. He told me about their work and encouraged me to apply to present my research. I was drawn to this particular conference because it is agribusiness focused. From my perspective, it is more multidisciplinary than other conferences and allowed me to explore more aspects of the field. Because I have a unique research project and background, I often feel disconnected from my cohort. It can be difficult to obtain constructive feedback, so IFAMA presented me with an amazing opportunity to connect with my field, learn from others, and present to an audience that would value my contribution.
How does your project tie into the Key Topics at IFAMA?
IFAMA, which stands for International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, builds a community to unite in the goal of promoting a strong global food system. Within the United States, we have been witnessing increasing fresh produce demand. However, we have also been seeing a strong reliance on imports to meet this demand. At the same time, greenhouse businesses have been shutting down in the United States over and over again. This phenomenon is puzzling as the US has the demand, the resources, and the funding to create successful domestic greenhouses to feed its citizens. Although this is a complex and nuanced issue, my research project explores the guiding theories and models that guide decision makers. We are creating a more comprehensive and appropriate framework to guide decision-makers in their purchase process. Additionally, it allows markets to effectively integrate emerging technologies into the CEA market. Overall, my work promotes food systems, technology producers, and decision-making academics. Most directly, this connects with three of the 2025 IFAMA conference key topics: Innovations in Agriculture and Sustainability, Global Market and Food Security, and Digital Transformation and Automation. Specifically, during the academic symposium, I presented on Digital Transformation in Agribusiness.
What were some highlights of presenting and attending this conference?
I loved the opportunity to engage with like-minded individuals. Although I love the diversity of my program here at OSU, I experience obstacles in developing my work with peers. This conference created an informal yet professional environment for me to share my research, gain feedback, and learn from the work of others. I have gotten used to only being exposed to the very technical work of the horticulture and crop science department here at OSU. So, it was such an amazing opportunity to be exposed to the amazing work that is progressing in the agribusiness realm. I met so many unique and amazing people from all around the world, each was skilled in something different, but all promoted the agriculture and food industry worldwide. My overall highlight was connecting with diverse agribusiness individuals from all around the world while also learning about the amazing work happening in Brazil (where the conference was held).
What is one of the most interesting things that you learned?
Throughout the conference, I learned about consumer preferences, food waste, trade, and much more. Most interesting for me was learning about the interaction of technology and sustainability. Technology can have many purposes, but when it is developed with intentions surrounding resiliency and sustainability, I think it is changing the future. For example, we learned from Leontino Balbo Junior, Vice President of Native Organic Products, about his decades of developing technology, automation, and practice within the sugar cane industry in Brazil. He has focused on making choices that create regenerative agriculture. His work has not only helped the environment, but it has also changed the industry. He methods increase quality and yield while thinking of the land and the future. It was such an honor to learn about how technology and sustainability can interact on a very practical level.
Interested in more? Check it out here!