Gem-Pack Berries hired Tom Smith as its vice president of food service. In the newly created role, he will focus on delivering a quality year-round supply of fresh strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries to customers in the U.S. and international markets.
Fresno-based Baloian Farms hired Bonny Iten to lead the company’s business development. She previously led business development for Live Oak farms. Earlier in her career, Iten was an organic vegetable sales representative for West Fresh Distributing.
Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., hired Carmen Scurato as senior policy counsel. She worked for the Federal Communications Commission as associate division chief for operations and emergency management.
Skip Hulett, NatureSweet (LinkedIn photo)NatureSweet chief legal officer Skip Hulett was appointed to the Controlled Environment Agriculture Alliance board of directors. Earlier in his career, Hulett was a state district court judge and founded a law firm. He is a member of the State Bar of Texas and the Association of Corporate Counsel.
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 Agriculture Committee 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.
William Kelleher was named counsel on the House Natural Resources Committee Federal Lands Subcommittee. He was senior government relations representative for the Conservation Fund.
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.
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.
Alexa Bishopric joined the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Democratic staff as a professional staff member. She was previously House legislative affairs adviser for the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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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.
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.
Jennifer Michael returned to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Democratic staff as a senior professional staff member. She was associate director of the Center for Energy Impact at Boston Consulting Group and senior adviser at Resources for the Future. Earlier in her career, Michael was a professional staff member and chief economist for the committee.
Christopher S. “Kit” Bond, a former Missouri senator and governor, 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 leaving the Senate, 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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