Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on Saturday announced a slate of new nominees for leadership positions at the department, including undersecretary picks for Rural Development and Food safety.
Glen R. Smith, a member of the Farm Credit Administration's board of directors, is the administration's nominee for Rural Development undersecretary. He hails from Atlantic, Iowa.
Mindy Brashears has been nominated to be the next USDA undersecretary for Food Safety, a position that oversees the Food Safety and Inspection Service. Brashears served in the same role during the first Trump Administration following a career as a professor of food microbiology and food safety at Texas Tech University.
Yevette Herrell has been nominated to be assistant secretary of the Office of Congressional Relations. Herrell represented New Mexico's second congressional district from 2021 to 2023 and served in the New Mexico legislature from 2011 to 2018.
Neal Robbins has been appointed as deputy undersecretary for Rural Development. He previously worked for the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.
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Michael Pape, a former district director for Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.), has been chosen as administrator of USDA's Rural Utilities Service.
Anna Pilato has been picked to be the new chief of staff for the Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement. During the first Trump Administration, Pilato was deputy assistant secretary and senior advisor of external affairs at the Administration for Children and Families.
Jason Allen will be senior advisor for the Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement. He was Rural Development's state director for Michigan from 2016 to 2021 and currently owns a consulting company.
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Editor's note: This article has been updated to reflect that Smith is currently a member of the Farm Credit Administration's board of directors.
