To help Alabama producers better understand the nature of this competition, the Office of International Agriculture at Auburn University will conduct a two-week agricultural study tour of Argentina. The tour is targeted for November.

"This marks the second time this year an Alabama delegation has toured Argentina," says George Young, an Alabama Cooperative Extension System economist and Auburn University professor of agricultural economics.

"Producers taking part in the most recent tour, held last spring, were amazed at both the size and efficiency of Argentine farming operations," he says. "And they stressed how much other farmers could learn from visiting these enterprises."

"Argentine agriculture not only is very similar to Alabama but is in direct competition with the state for many of the same export markets," says Dr. Diego Gimenez, an Alabama Cooperative Extension System animal scientist and Auburn University associate professor of animal science who will conduct the tour.

"In normal years, Argentina exports about 60 percent of its agricultural production, mostly to Europe," he says. "However, with the currently weak peso compared to the dollar, they expect a larger than normal demand for their exported goods."

The majority of Argentine farms and ranches are huge compared with Alabama farm size, Gimenez says, and, like Alabama farms, they are operated efficiently.

Argentine agriculture also enjoys the added advantage of good soils, world-class production technology in the raising of grass-fed cattle. Row-crop agriculture is also diverse, with producers specializing in peanuts, cotton, corn, soybeans, sunflower and potatoes.

"All they lack is a stable monetary system," Gimenez says.

This tour, set for November 10 through 24, will visit both the wet pampas region, where the Argentine cattle industry is centered, as well as the dry pampas region, where major crops are produced.

Cost of the tour is $2,800. For more information, contact the Office of International Agriculture at Auburn University at 334-844-3205.