Heather Soubra is returning to the International Dairy Foods Association as senior vice president of strategic initiatives and industry relations. She was previously with the association for over 10 years, most recently as senior vice president of strategic initiatives. Soubra is also currently the director of the George Washington Leadership Institute at Mount Vernon.
There have been several new leadership appointments at USDA. Neal Robbins transitioned roles from deputy undersecretary for rural development to senior adviser for rural engagement. The chief of staff at the agency, Joe Gilson, was promoted to deputy undersecretary for rural development. Gilson previously worked at the American Farm Bureau Federation. Monica Mason was promoted to regional operations manager for rural development. Gimmie Jo Jansonius was appointed to chief of staff for the Rural Business-Cooperative Service for Rural Development. Robert Hosford was appointed director of state operations for rural development.
The International Fresh Produce Association’s new director of the supply chain is Erik Larsen. He comes from New Era Partners, where he was a traceability adviser. He also founded TransformIT and served as principal.
Invariant’s Food and Agriculture practice hired Christian Lovell as a senior manager. He was formerly executive director at the Illinois Grazing Lands Coalition, and earlier the legislative director for Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn.
Macy Lemon is the new vice president of state government affairs at the National Grocers Association. She was with Share Our Strength for over two years as an associate director of state government relations.
The Meat Institute promoted Michael Schumpp to be the vice president of international affairs. He was most recently the group's senior director of international affairs and has been with the institute for over seven years. He also previously worked for the North American Meat Institute for five years.
The World Food Prize Foundation named 40 people as the 2026 Top Agrifood Pioneers. The award was given to people from 30 countries over six continents, with ages ranging from 16 to 81, who are addressing food security issues around the world. The pioneers will be officially recognized October 20-22 at the Norman E. Borlaug International Dialogue in Des Moines, Iowa.
Abigail Buckwalter (LinkedIn photo)Abigail Buckwalter was appointed president and CEO of Ocean Spray Cranberries. She has spent over 15 years at Nestlé Health Science, most recently as CEO.
Beth Viola is the chair-elect of the National Wildlife Federation, and will move into the role of chair in 2027. She has been on the board of directors since 2016. Viola is currently a senior policy adviser at Holland and Knight, and is the chair for the group's energy team. She was previously a senior adviser to the White House Council on Environmental Quality and was one of former President Bill Clinton’s chief environmental advisers.
The Sorghum Checkoff selected 15 participants for Leadership Sorghum Class VIII. The program, which begins in September, runs for 14 months and will have industry tours and engagement opportunities, as well as professional development opportunities for participants.
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Sean Cox was hired by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization to be secretary of the committee on agriculture and senior technical adviser to the deputy director-general. He has worked with USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service for 12 years, most recently as the director of the agricultural trade office at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico.
CME Group’s new executive director of corporate communications is Isis Almeida. She will be focused on global energy and commodities issues. Previously, Almeida was with Bloomberg for over 15 years, most recently as the Chicago bureau chief and deputy managing editor of private companies.
Kincannon and Reed, a recruiting firm for the food and agriculture industry, hired Dan Evans as vice president of marketing and business development. Evans worked most recently as a strategic adviser for Private Capital Global.
The University of Illinois’ Department of Agricultural Sciences appointed Dan Shike to be its head. He has been the interim head of the department for two years, and with the university since 2011.
Megan Sandy has been promoted to communications specialist at CropLife America. She has been with the group for almost a year, and previously held the role of communications coordinator.
Associated Wholesale Grocers has elected Joe Polizzi to its board of directors. He is the president and CEO of Town and Country Supermarket, which operates 28 grocery stores and four ACE Hardware stores.
The Consumer Brands Association hired Brian Phillips Jr. as media relations manager. He was previously a political appointee as the deputy director to the Office of Media Relations at the Federal Communications Commission. He has also held several roles as press secretary for members of Congress, congressional committees and campaigns.
Brian Phillips Jr. (LinkedIn photo)Texas Corn Producers named Bryce White as executive director, effective Sept. 1. He has been with the organization since 2017 as the producer relations director. White continues to be active in his family operation, White Land and Cattle Company.
Billy Dwyer is the new senior manager of government relations at Kroger Health. He previously worked for Rep. Robin Kelly, D-Ill., for seven years.
The Russell Group has hired Andrew Angulo as a legislative assistant. A recent agricultural communications and agricultural policy graduate of California Polytechnic State University, he previously completed an internship with CropLife America.
Jane Dempsey is a new partner at Cassidy Levy Kent, a law firm focused on international trade and investment. She was formerly an attorney adviser for the U.S. International Trade Commission.
Gregory Jaffe joined growth[period], an international strategic business development firm, as a strategic client adviser to work on policy and regulations for food, agriculture and the environment. He was a senior adviser to former Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack during the Biden administration.
The new senior philanthropy officer for the southeast region at American Farmland Trust is Cotie Bailey. She was with the Nature Conservancy for almost nine years, most recently as its deputy director of philanthropy.
Southern AgCredit promoted Paul Landry to vice president of enterprise risk management and compliance. He has been with the company for almost 15 years.
Austen McCue joined the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association as a manager for sales and corporate relations. He is a recent Colorado State University graduate with a degree in livestock business management.
Margaret Nagai-Singer is now a senior research associate at the Food Security Leadership Council. She has worked at the National Institutes of Health, the National Breast Cancer Coalition and Virginia Health Catalyst.
Margaret Nagai Singer (LinkedIn)Bailey Pfeiffer has joined DTB AgriTrade as a communications and member services manager. She previously held roles in agriculture education and program development.
Jordan Strahle is National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s new associate director of trade show and events. She previously worked in communications at the National Environmental Health Association and the Colorado Contractors Association.
The Ohio Soybean Council and Ohio Soybean Association promoted Kiley Holbrook to manager of policy and demand. She has been with the group for almost two years and was previously a legislative aide in the Ohio House of Representatives.
Farm Credit of Central Florida has reelected three of its board members: Erin Archey, Keith Mixon and Reed Fischbach.
The Illinois Soybean Association hired Kylee Zoran as the market development team coordinator. She previously was an agriculture teacher and FFA adviser at Marquette Academy, and was a youth development program coordinator at the University of Illinois.
