AgGateway is ready to move forward in 2017.  The organization, which now claims more than 230 member companies, recently announced its Board of Directors and Leadership positions for its 12th year in promoting and expanding eBusiness in agriculture.

The new year also brings an updated organizational structure to accommodate recent growth.  This makes it possible for council leaders to focus on their councils while a Strategic Board focuses on overall planning and management. The Operational Board handles day-to-day organizational needs.

“This new structure accommodates our growth and better positions us for a vibrant future in enabling eConnectivity,” said AgGateway President and CEO Wendy Smith. “We have an exemplary slate of directors and leaders moving into 2017, and I’m excited about the sharpened focus we’ll be able to give to increasing eConnectivity in the ag industry. AgGateway and its members thank these individuals and the companies they work for, which have recognized how essential eConnectivity is to the ongoing success of the ag industry.”

2017 Leadership members include:

2017 Strategic Board of Directors
Chair: Doug Mills, Chief Information Officer, The Mosaic Company
David Black, Senior Vice President and CIO, CHS Inc. (Past Board Chair)
Dan Willey, Chief Information Officer, Wilbur-Ellis
Dennis Daggett, Senior Vice President, ProAg Management
Doug Farrington, Head of Information Systems Business Partnering, Syngenta
Jeff Belding, Business Excellence Champion, RiceTec
Mark Trostle, Director, Global Registrations and & Regulatory Affairs, Agrium/CPS
Teddy Bekele, Vice President, IT, for WinField/Land O’Lakes
Tim McArdle, Chief Operating Officer, Brandt Consolidated
Wendy Smith, President & CEO, AgGateway

2017 Operational Board
Jeff Griffeth, Co-Alliance, LLP (Ag Retail Council)
Randy Kasparbauer, John Deere, (Allied Providers Council)
Mike Carrabine, International Raw Materials LTD (Crop Nutrition Council)
Stephanie Frazier, Dow AgroSciences (Crop Protection Council)
Mike Thronson, Heartland Cooperative (Grain & Feed Council)
Aaron Berger, AgSense (Precision Ag Council)
Randy Fry, Ceres Solutions (Seed Council)
Sarah Moster, BASF Corporation (Specialty Chemical Council)
Brent Kemp, Executive VP and COO, AgGateway
The 2017 Council Leadership
Ag Retail Council
Eric Hoefing, ACS, Chair
Natasha Lily, Effingham Equity, Vice-Chair

Allied Providers Council
Jody Costa, Barcoding Inc., Chair
Steve Daigle, Elemica, Vice-Chair

Crop Nutrition Council
Tammy Creswell, The J.R. Simplot Co., Chair
Marge Nerness, United Suppliers, Vice-Chair

Crop Protection Council
Alissa Allard, Wilbur-Ellis, Chair
Julie Benick, Winfield, Vice-Chair

Grain & Feed Council
Phil Kubesh, Vita-Plus, Chair
Rich Adams, Key Cooperative, Vice-Chair

Precision Ag Council
Jeremy Wilson, Crop IMS, Chair
Ben Craker, AGCO, Vice-Chair

Seed Council
Ann Vande Lune, Key Cooperative, Chair
Anthony James, Syngenta, Vice-Chair

Specialty Chemical Council
Carol Contino, Bayer CropScience, Chair
Theresa Smith, BASF Corporation, Vice-Chair

Members should also mark their calendars for the 2017 Mid-Year Meeting on June 12-15 at Prairie Meadows in Altoona, Iowa.  The 2017 Annual Conference is slated for November 6-9 in San Diego.