The Animal Health Institute hired Martha Scott Poindexter as chief executive officer. She was chief operating officer at the U.S. Dairy Export Council. Poindexter has held numerous positions on Capitol Hill, including as staff director for both the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. She was the first woman to hold both positions. Poindexter grew up on a cotton, rice and soybean farm in the Mississippi Delta.
Erin Morris has been appointed to lead the Agricultural Marketing Service after Bruce Summers retires. She has worked in leadership roles at AMS for over 25 years, most recently as associate administrator of the agency. Summers leaves at the end of May after a 40-year career at USDA. Prior to leading AMS, he worked in the fruit and vegetable program area of AMS.
Kelsey Freeman Saelens was promoted to senior vice president and head of global government relations at Cargill. She has been with the company for five years, recently as vice president of North America government relations. Saelens earlier was manager of corporate and government affairs at Nestlé.
Kelsey Freeman Saelens, Cargill (LinkedIn photo)The Senate Agriculture Committee Democratic staff named Cindy Lesser deputy chief counsel. She worked at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for 12 years, most recently as assistant litigation deputy in the Office of Enforcement. Earlier in her career, Lesser was counsel for the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Democratic staff.
Susan Skiles Luke is launching her own consulting firm, Farm Bridge Communications. She worked for Bayer, Farm Journal Media and the United Soybean Board. Most recently she was senior manager of U.S. crop protection and corporate communications at Syngenta.
Mariangela Hungria, a renowned microbiologist in Brazil, has been named the 2025 World Food Prize laureate for her work on biological nitrogen fixation. “The low-cost technologies and products that she has developed have increased crop productivity affordably and sustainably across tens of millions of hectares. By harnessing symbiotic soil microorganisms as an effective alternative to synthetic fertilizers, she has not only improved plant nutrient uptake but also enabled farmers to save billions of dollars while mitigating environmental risks associated with pollution and emissions—producing more with less,” according to the World Food Prize Foundation. Hungria, a professor at the State University of Paraná and the Federal University of Technology of the State of Paraná, is now using her research to restore degraded pastureland. Stanford University has listed her in the top 1% of agricultural scientists since 2020.
The North Dakota Grain Growers Association hired Nick Sinner as executive director. He was previously program manager at the Northern Crops Institute, where he developed educational courses. He has been president and CEO of the Minnesota-South Dakota Equipment Dealers Association and executive director of the Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Association.
Bruce Kettler, president and CEO of the Agribusiness Council of Indiana, announced he will be moving on from his role at the end of July. He has led the council since January 2023.
Chris Esparza returned to USDA as senior adviser to the secretary. He was senior counsel in the Office of the General Counsel during President Donald Trump’s first term. Esparza has worked on Capitol Hill at the House Small Business Committee, House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Subcommittee, and the House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Interior, Energy and Environment.
Butterball hired longtime Cargill Protein employee Scott Vinson as executive vice president of sales and marketing. He worked at Cargill for 25 years, most recently as chief of customer experience for Cargill Protein North America. He will begin the new position on June 9.
Paul Rea, BASF (X photo)Paul Rea, senior vice president of agriculture solutions North America at BASF, was appointed chief of the CropLife America board of directors. He previously served in the role from 2020-2022.
Derris Burnett was promoted to Agriculture and Environmental Sciences department head at Tuskegee University. He’s been with the school for six years, recently as director of the meat and poultry processing technical assistance program. Burnett was national president of the Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences in 2023-2024.
Idealyst Innovation hired Sarah Tveidt as executive vice president and chief alliance empowerment officer. She will be focused on empowering farmer-centric organizations to deliver solutions that will help optimize grower risk and resiliency. Previously, Tveidt was vice president of agri-food client services at Aimpoint Research and The Directions Group.
Addie Spolyar was promoted to demand generation manager at Bayer. She was previously a marketing solutions manager.
Foremost Farms USA named Brenda Dehart president and chief executive officer. She has been with the company a year and a half, recently as senior vice president and chief financial officer. She has held positions with Edlong, Sensient Technologies Corp. and Kerry.
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Kristen Rutgers is returning to Cargill as a senior change management and training specialist. She worked at Nutrien for three years in training manager and learning lead positions. Earlier in her career, Rutgers was a training manager at Cargill.
Sen. Ben Ray Luján hired Carmen Scurato as senior policy counsel. She worked for the Federal Communications Commission as associate division chief for operations and emergency management.
Becca Salter returned to the office of Rep. Adrian Smith, R-Neb., as deputy chief of staff. She was deputy chief operating and financial officer at Convergence Media. Earlier in her career, she worked for Smith five years as scheduler and operations director.
The North American Renderers Association hired Amy Moulden as director of operations and member relations. She will oversee day-to-day functions of the organization and lead member support efforts. An Oklahoma State University graduate, Moulden previously worked for Darling Ingredients.
Sonja Thrasher is now press secretary for Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich. She was a press aide in the White House for President Joe Biden and a trips communications director on the Kamala Harris campaign.
Meristem Crop Performance added
David Schumacher, Meristem Crop Performance (Meristem photo) David Schumacher to the senior management team as chief commercial officer. He has more than 30 years of diverse experience leading teams both in the U.S. and globally at agriculture companies, including HELM AG, Winfield United and Dow Agrosciences.
William Kelleher was named counsel on the House Natural Resources Committee Federal Lands Subcommittee. He was senior government relations representative for the Conservation Fund.
Johnny Drana is now district director for Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis. He was previously a field director for the National Republican Congressional Committee.
Former U.S. Senator and Missouri Gov. Christopher S. “Kit” Bond died on May 13. He was 86. Bond was first elected state auditor in 1971. By 1973 he was elected for the first of two non-consecutive terms as governor, flipping the seat Republican for the first time in 28 years. Bond was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1987 and won three reelections before choosing to retire in 2011. Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., was elected to fill his seat. After completing his tenure of public service, Bond became a partner at the Thompson Coburn law firm. “Kit, always with his trademark smile and sense of humor, was a fierce advocate for Missouri throughout his accomplished 40-year career of public service,” said current Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe in a statement announcing Bond’s passing. “Whenever he was thanked for his service, Kit's response was always, 'Serving the people of Missouri was the honor of my life.'”
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