Earlier this year, Meriruth Cohenour, of Yukon, was named director of the market development division at the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry by Secretary of Agriculture, Blayne Arthur. Cohenour’s agriculture roots run deep, beginning early with involvement in 4-H through horse, leadership and citizenship projects. She has bachelor’s degrees in agricultural communications and animal science from Oklahoma State University.
Ranchland Trust of Kansas has named Lynn Gentine as executive director. Gentine, a native of Little River, brings 20 years of experience in grant writing and project start-up, promotion and marketing to RTK. Gentine has seven years of experience in supervision and management. She is responsible for professional leadership, management and growth of the organization and will lead RTK’s voluntary land conservation programs.
Jeff Wilkerson was hired earlier this year as director of market development for the Nebraska Corn Board, Lincoln, Nebraska. Wilkerson will work on behalf of the state’s corn farmers to contribute to the mission of the Nebraska corn checkoff, which is to promote the value of corn by creating opportunities. Wilkerson will work with corn farmers and industry partners to coordinate all facets of the Nebraska Corn Board’s market development efforts.
Western Kansas Manufacturers Association, Dodge City, Kansas, sponsor of the annual 3i SHOW, has hired Renee Ricke an administrative assistant. Ricke will be responsible for contacting and communicating with exhibitors regarding contracting 3i SHOW space. Ricke will also perform other general office duties as necessary.
Trail King Industries, Inc., Mitchell, South Dakota, a trailer manufacturer of open deck and materials hauling trailers, has hired Joe LeBresh as a district sales manager. Within this role, LeBresh will support sales and dealer relationships in the states of Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Oregon and Washington.
Gerber Commodities of Garden City, Kansas, is now under the umbrella of services of CommStock Investments, Royal, Iowa, and Lori Carter, a longtime Gerber employee and resident of Garden City, has been named branch office manager for this Garden City location.
Levi Landers, Minden, Nebraska, native has been selected as the American Angus Association, St. Joseph, Missouri, as regional manager for Nebraska and Colorado. He joins the Association from the American Hereford Association where he has been a field manager for Nebraska, South Dakota, Kansas, North Dakota, Minnesota and Saskatchewan since 2008. Landers earned a bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma Panhandle State University in animal science.
Osborne Industries Inc., Osborne, Kansas, has added Ron Smith to its North American staff for livestock equipment. Smith will work closely with Osborne Industries customers and equipment dealers promoting the company’s swine management equipment in the eastern United States and Canada. Smith has over 25 years of experience in managing pork operations in Indiana and most recently worked at WLC Company Inc., of Sedalia, Indiana.
National Sorghum Producers, Lubbock, Texas, recently welcomed AgBiTech to the NSP Industry Partner program as a Bronze Level sponsor. AgBiTech is dedicated to providing commercial products that make pest management more sustainable and farming more profitable. AgBiTech originated in Australia, but recently completed construction of a state-of-the-art production plant, laboratory and global headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas.
The Texas Wheat Producers Board, Amarillo, Texas, held its biennial election to fill five expiring seats and four nominees were re-elected and one nominee was newly elected to serve six-year terms on the board. Members reelected to the board include Bryan Clift of District I, Tommy Womack of District II, Chet Creel of District III and Ken Davis of District IV. Tyler Norman of Howe was elected to fill a vacant seat representing District IV, which was previously held by Jack Norman who retired after 34 years on the board.
The Iowa Soybean Research Center at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, has announced Syngenta as its latest industry partner. In this role, Syngenta will have a seat on the ISRC’s industry advisory council, which advises the center on its research priorities.
Benson Hill Biosystems, a crop improvement company unlocking the natural genetic diversity of plants, announced its plan to make St. Louis its official headquarters by celebrating a ceremonial groundbreaking at the future site for a 160,000 square foot building, on the Danforth Plant Science Center’s campus, pending finalized local approvals. The company is undergoing rapid growth and selected the 39 North innovation district as the preferred location to serve as an integral part of a broader agtech corridor.
