The Natural Resources Conservation Service in California has appointed Anthony Sunseri as the new assistant state conservationist for field operations (ASTC-FO) for Area 1. Sunseri joined NRCS in 2006, first serving as a soil conservationist in Grass Valley, Calif., and then as a district conservationist in Mount Vernon, Wash. Most recently, he served as ASTC-FO for NRCS in Moscow, Idaho. He has also served as acting state conservationist in Idaho. He succeeds Jim Spear, who retired in January, and will start working at the Area Office in Red Bluff, Calif., on July 21.
Simon Groot, a Dutch seed developer known for his work with vegetable production in over 60 countries across Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America, has been named the 2019 World Food Prize Laureate. World Food Prize President Kenneth Quinn made the announcement Monday in Washington. To read more on Groot, click here.
Heath Tarbert has been confirmed by the Senate to serve as the chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Tarbert has been serving as the Treasury Department’s assistant secretary for international markets since 2017, and will replace Chris Giancarlo as chairman of the CFTC. To read more on Tarbert’s confirmation, click here.
Former FDA Commissioner David Kessler has been elected to serve as the board chairman for the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest. Kessler has served as a member of CSPI’s board since 2010. He served as the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration from 1990 to 1997. After that, he went on to serve as dean of the Yale School of Medicine and dean and vice chancellor of the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine.
Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer announced the appointment of 140 private-sector members to the Agricultural Policy Advisory committee for Trade and to six Agricultural Technical Advisory committees for Trade. To read the full list, click here.
Dan Meyer is the new chief of staff for House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. He succeeds Barrett Karr, who is now a partner for Silver Lake Private Equity.
Heath Tarbert
Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., announced new staff changes and promotions last week. Wayne Stoskopf is the new senior professional staff member for commodities, crop insurance, dairy, and grain standards. He previously served as professional staff for the Committee for four years, and before that worked as a legislative assistant for Roberts and Rep. Lynn Jenkins, R-Kan., handling agriculture issues in each office. Haley Donahue and Chance Hunley were promoted to legislative assistants from joint staff assistant-legislative correspondent roles. They both have been on the committee staff since 2017. Succeeding Donahue and Hunley are Christine Rock and Lane Coberly, following their graduations from Kansas State University.
Spencer Nelson is now a professional staff member and Abigail Hemenway is the new staff assistant on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee under Chairman Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska. Nelson previously served as the program director for ClearPath, and Hemenway served as a program assistant at the North Star Group.
Covering the portfolio of energy, environmental protection, and public lands and natural resources for Rep. Debbie Lesko, R-Ariz., is Ron Donado as legislative director. He previously served as a legislative counsel and policy assistant for Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas.
Jason Johnson is now the press secretary for Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas. He comes from the office of Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., where he was a press intern for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
FMC Corporation announced that it is realigning the leadership structure for its North America and Latin America regions. Ronaldo Pereira, president, FMC Latin America, is the new president of the company's new Americas Region, which encompasses the U.S., Canada, Central America and South America. Pereira will continue to report to Mark Douglas, FMC president and chief operating officer. Due to this leadership realignment, Amy O'Shea, vice president and business director for North America, will leave the organization to pursue other opportunities. Douglas praised O'Shea for "successfully integrating the U.S. and Canada commercial teams as part of the DuPont crop protection transaction." FMC has also announced that Marcelo Magurno, Brazil commercial director, north region, has been appointed business director, Brazil.
Collette Schultz Kaster
Collette Schultz Kaster has been selected to serve as the new CEO of the American Meat Science Association (AMSA), effective July 1. She most recently served as the executive director of the Professional Animal Auditor Certification Organization and will continue to lead PAACO in this role in addition to her new responsibilities. Kaster is trained as a meat scientist, has been a member of AMSA for 28 years, is a past president of AMSA, and currently holds the rank of AMSA Fellow.
Jordan Henry has started a new job with the American Farm Bureau Federation as the new director of leadership and organizational training. She comes from the National FFA Organization, where she worked as the education specialist.
The Agricultural Retailers Association hired Andrea Mowers as manager of communications and member engagement. Mowers comes to ARA from the Lean Construction Institute.
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