SNAC International hired Matt Grill as vice president of advocacy to lead the snack industry trade association’s advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill and with federal agencies. Grill was previously senior director of congressional relations for the National Pork Producers Council. Earlier, he was director of federal relations at George Washington University and worked on Capitol Hill as a non-partisan Senate floor staff member and for then-Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa.
Ohio corn and soybean farmer Jed Bower begins his tenure as president of the National Corn Growers Association Wednesday. He serves as chair of the NCGA resolutions committee and has been a member of the organization’s finance committee. Previously, Bower served as board liaison to the National Pork Producers Council and the Waterways Council, and is a past president of the Ohio Corn and Wheat Growers Association. Bower recently joined Agri-Pulse Newsmakers at the Farm Progress Show to discuss the expected bin-busting corn crop and opportunities for biofuels.
Former Housing and Urban Development secretary Ben Carson was named a national nutrition, health and housing adviser at the
Jed Bower (NCGA photo) Agriculture Department. Carson, who is now retired, was director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Children's Center for nearly 30 years. He ran for the 2016 presidential election before dropping out of the race midway through the primaries. “With six in ten Americans living with at least one chronic disease, and rural communities facing unique challenges with respect to adequate housing, Dr. Carson’s insight and experience is critical,” said Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins. “Dr. Carson will be crucial to implementing the rural health investment provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill and advise on America First policies related to nutrition, health, and housing."
The Family Farm Alliance elected new 2026 officers. Mark Hansen, who raises irrigated forage crops and cattle in Washington’s Kittitas Valley, was elected president. Native to his family’s California farm, he worked as a crop consultant after graduating from Cal Poly. Additional officers include Clinton Pine of Idaho as first vice president, Nate Eckloff of Nebraska as second vice president and Marc Thalacker of Oregon as treasurer. Additionally, Don Schwindt of Colorado was named chairman of the board.
Nick Paster joined the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee Republican staff as trade counsel. He previously was an international trade associate at the law firm of King & Spalding. During the first Trump administration, Paster was assistant general counsel at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
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Farmers National Co. promoted Grant Fitzgerald to senior vice president of farm and ranch management to lead the company’s nationwide farm management operations. Fitzgerald will oversee a team of over 100 professional farm managers across the country, focusing on delivering customized solutions that maximize land value and productivity for clients. He has been with the company nearly 12 years, recently as regional vice president.
Grant Fitzgerald (Farmers National photo)Jason Henshaw was named vice president and general manager of Perdue Specialty Meats. Previously, he was founder and chief executive officer of ultra-premium dairy brand, Zeal Creamery, before merging the company with Neutral Foods. Henshaw has also held roles with Coles Supermarkets, Origin Energy Limited and Windsor Management and Consulting.
Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., hired Bebe Anver as general counsel. She was an immigration senior policy adviser to then-Vice President Kamala Harris. Earlier, Anver was a senior adviser at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and a policy staff attorney at the National Immigrant Women's Advocacy Project.
UNICEF USA hired Graham Markiewicz as assistant director of global policy. He was previously investigations counsel at the U.S. Agency for International Development.
The Agribusiness Council of Indiana hired Melissa Rekeweg as the group’s new president and CEO. She was previously managing director of the National Council for Agricultural Education, where she led national initiatives in agricultural education, strategic planning, governance and partnerships. Earlier, Rekeweg held senior leadership roles at the Indiana State Department of Agriculture, National FFA Organization and AgriNovus Indiana. She will begin her new role in October.
Lauren Kaldenberg is now a legislative assistant for House Ag Committee member Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill. She covers agriculture, food, energy and natural resources issues. An Iowa State University alumna, Kaldenberg was previously a legislative correspondent for Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa.
Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., hired Emilio Contreras as a senior legislative assistant covering agriculture, food and energy issues. He previously worked for then-Rep. Jennifer Wexton, D-Va., and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.
Seth Barsky joined Bracewell’s environment, lands and resources department as a partner in the Washington office. He worked for the Department of Justice the past three decades, including recently in the position of deputy assistant attorney general in the environment and natural resources division. At Bracewell, Barsky will advise clients on federal environmental and natural resources law including permitting, regulatory counseling and litigation, and interagency policy coordination.
Seth Barsky (Bracewell photo)Mariah Kessler joined the office of Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., as a legislative aide covering agriculture, public lands and environmental protection issues. She worked as communications director for the South Dakota Soybean Research & Promotion Council and South Dakota Soybean Association for the past five years. Kessler is a graduate of South Dakota State University.
Jackie Weyerhaeuser was hired as executive assistant for House Ag Committee ranking member Angie Craig, D-Minn. A former intern for Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Weyerhaeuser graduated from Yale University this year.
Foster Farms appointed Riz Akbar to be chief commercial officer. He previously held roles at Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., Kraft Foods, Mondelez, Neo WPP and Publicis Group. Akbar will report to CEO Jayson Penn.
The Iowa FFA Foundation named Shannon Latham as executive director. She is a member of the Iowa House representing a district in the north central part of the state and vice president and co-owner of her family’s company, Latham Quality.
Longtime sustainable agriculture leader Fred Kirschenmann has died. He was 90. An organic farmer and college philosophy and religion professor by trade, Kirschenmann served as the director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University. He was also the first president of the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Pocantico, New York. Kirschenmann was a longtime supporter of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition’s work from the 1980s until his passing.
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