- Syngenta announced David Flakne has been named team lead for U.S. state affairs. Flakne succeeds Dennis Kelly who retired on April 1 after 44 years of service with the company.
- The Packer and PMG announce the launch of ProduceEDU, an online education platform offering courses tailored for both the buy-side and supply-side audiences of the produce industry. ProduceEDU coursework is developed by The Packer and PMG editorial team in conjunction with subject matter experts within and outside the industry.
- The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture has launched a first-of-its-kind online platform for K-12 and STEM educators who seek to bring science to life through the lens of agriculture. The Food and Agriculture Center for Science Education supports educators who teach, coach or advise K-12 science coursework in public and private, formal and informal educational spaces through a three-pronged approach consisting of classroom resources, professional development and partnerships.
- The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR), a nonprofit that builds public-private partnerships to fund audacious food and agriculture research, announced that its Board of Directors selected Dr. Saharah Moon Chapotin as FFAR’s executive director.
- No Farms No Food: Uniting Farmers and Environmentalist to Transform Agriculture by Don Stuart, published by Island Press, recounts the history of American Farmland Trust and its success uniting disparate interests to bring about the protection of farmland and ranchland and the conservation of environmental resources on which our food, fuel, feed and fiber production rely—on which society and the planet relies.
- Bayer announced that the company is pursuing an agreement whereby Ginkgo Bioworks will acquire Bayer’s West Sacramento Biologics Research & Development site and internal discovery and lead optimization platform. The contemplated transaction, projected to close before the end of 2022 pending final negotiation of the agreement terms and subject to regulatory approvals, would also bring Joyn Bio’s nitrogen-fixing technologies to Bayer, successfully closing the joint venture created between Leaps by Bayer and Ginkgo Bioworks in 2017.
- In the latest episode of Something Greater, Land O’Lakes, Inc. Chief Marketing Officer Heather Malenshek shares how Land O’Lakes is bringing to life the stories of the cooperative as a powerful engine working in service of its farmer and retailer owners.
- The new ASTA Leadership Summit is coming this June in Indianapolis. In designing this program, the ASTA Board of Directors and staff have focused on developing the professional skills and educational needs to further the future leaders of the seed industry.
- Mickie French, an accomplished global expert in food value chain communications and marketing strategy, is the new executive director of The Center for Food Integrity (CFI). CFI is a not-for-profit with a diverse membership whose sole mission is to help today’s food system earn consumer trust.
- The Renewable Fuels Association announced that GreenAmerica Biofuels Ord LLC has joined the organization as its newest producer member.
- Video interviews explaining the role and value of professional farm managers and rural appraisers are now available for public viewing at the website of the Illinois Society of Professional Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers. Videos are free to watch and are behind the Video Series link on the website.
