MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — The director of the U.S. Agriculture Department agency that oversees fair and competitive trading is headlining this year’s annual meeting of the Kansas Farmers Union in Manhattan.

Kansas Farmers Union has more than 20 speakers on tap for a three-day event it calls “Thinking Outside The Box” that begins Thursday in Manhattan.

Among the headliners is Larry Mitchell, director of USDA’s Grain Inspection Packers and Stockyards Administration. He is expected to speak Friday on how his agency’s programs affect the livestock and grain markets. He is also expected to provide his insights into those sectors of the agriculture economy.

Other convention topics include agricultural advocacy, history, new farming practices, farm succession and cooperatives.