Yesterday on National Ag Day, AgGrad announced winners of the first ever AgGrad 30 Under 30 Awards, a program created to celebrate the young professionals shaping the future of agriculture.
Fourteen judges selected winners from peer and self nominations based on contributions in their career, community, and the industry at large. Winners will be featured on AgGrad’s social media channels and in a special print and online publication.
AgGrad 30 Under 30 2019 Winners By Category Include:
Production
Ethan Smith, Farm and Ranch Manager, Farmers National Company
Griffin Huelsman, Farm Management, Mulberry Orchard/ Gajdzik Farms
Jarrod Creasy, Owner, 920 Cattle & Company
Jonathan Williams, Sales Agronomist, Hoegemeyer Hybrids
Kaden Eisenbraun, Ranch Hand/ Livestock Producer, Farm Bureau Financial Services
Innovation & Technology
Bharath Sudarsan, Director of Artificial Intelligence, SomaDetect Inc.
Bo Harstine, Director of Research, Select Sires Inc
John Farmer, Chief of Staff, Clara Foods
Lynn Wischmeyer-Moore, Innovation Specialist, Nestle
Yael Cypers, Animal Welfare Program Manager, Chipotle Mexican Grill
Entrepreneurship
Colin Hurd, Founder CEO of Smart Ag
Connie Bowen, Director of Operations, The Yield Lab Institute
Jonathan Hua, THRIVE AgTech Accelerator Program Manager, SVG Partners
Karoline Rose, CEO of KRose Marketing and KRose Cattle Co.
Matthew Rooda, CEO, SwineTech, Inc.
Steven Brockshus, Founder & CEO, FarmlandFinder
Education & Advocacy
Allyson Jones-Brimmer, Director of Industry Relations, Animal Agriculture Alliance
Caleb Wright, Chief Operating Officer, Versant Strategies
Elizabeth Burns-Thompson, Corporate Affairs, Renewable Energy Group
John Romo, Director of Programs in West Africa, AgriCorps
Riley Pagett, Director of Advocacy & Government Relations, National FFA Organization
Agribusiness
Alexander Fotsch, Vice President of Agricultural Operations, Locus Agricultural Solutions
Andrew Lauver, Industry Relations Manager, North America – Syngenta
Jessica Kueffer, Recruitment & Employee Development Manager at MFA Incorporated
Levi Hall, General Manager – Beach Cooperative Grain Company; General Manager – Golden Valley Ingredients; Partner – Hall Stock Farm
Lucas Fuess, Director of Market Intelligence, HighGround Dairy
Mackenzie Dierks, Sustainable Ag Consultant, KCoe Isom
Meg Becker, Marketing Specialist, Cargill Animal Nutrition
Mindy McBee, U.S. Pricing and Formulation Manager, Cargill
Seth Pratt, Senior Business Analyst, The Context Network
“We are very excited to recognize our first class of AgGrad 30 Under 30 winners,” says Tim Hammerich, Founder of AgGrad. “These 30 individuals are at the forefront of agriculture and will one day be the leaders in agribusiness, innovation and technology, education and advocacy, entrepreneurship, and production.”
AgGrad was established in 2015 with the mission of “helping young professionals find their place in modern agriculture.” The company accomplishes this mission by providing a job board, blog posts, career profiles, “AgGrad Live” (a Facebook Live show), daily snapchat stories, and a weekly podcast called the “Future of Agriculture.” All is provided at zero cost to students and young professionals and supported by participating agribusinesses.
For more information or to receive the AgGrad 30 Under 30 publication, visit 30under30.ag. For advertising opportunities or more information on AgGrad, contact Tim Hammerich at Tim@AgGrad.com or 737-203-5172.