Svitlana has 17 years of experience in agri media and agribusiness consulting and media, and she has a wide network of agri industry contacts in Eastern European countries as well as in the Middle East, China and India.
For 10+ year Svitlana was a marketing director of APK-Inform, one of the most significant agri media and consulting companies in Eastern Europe. APK-Inform produces wide range of agribusiness periodicals, as well as market research services and big industry events (conferences). Svitlana was responsible for sales strategy of the company, developing new markets and services, for guiding key clients of the agency; she was a producer of international events of APK-Inform (Middle East Grain Congress, Oilseeds&Oils etc).
Also, in 2016-2019 Svitlana was co-founder and Secretary-General of the International Sunflower Oil Association (ISOA). Founded in Italy, ISOA was an international industry body responsible for the promotion of sunflower oil on the global level.
Svitlana is also working as a columnist (making regular publications about main agribusiness trends for Eastern European and international media). Also, she is a frequent speaker for numerous international agribusiness events in China, India, the USA, Turkey, Egypt, etc. She is a member of ESOMAR (the leading international organization for market research specialists) and the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists.
Dr. Seth Meyer was appointed USDA’s Chief Economist in January of 2020, returning to USDA after two years. Prior to his return, Seth was a Research Professor and the Associate Director for the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri. FAPRI is well known for is agricultural policy and market analysis, being called on by Congress and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for its insight into commodity production, price, farm income and trade impacts from various agricultural policies including Farm Bill proposals, trade agreements and disruptions, and crop insurance.
Dr. Meyer was previously the head of the World Agricultural Outlook Board (WAOB) in the Office of the Chief Economist (OCE), the agency at USDA charged with bringing together USDA resources in the assessment of crops around the world. The OCE also publishes those finding in the ‘WASDE’ report which is closely watched by agricultural markets here and abroad.
For the last 20 years, Brian has been working for and advising many of the major exchanges and clearing houses, specialising in commodities. Over the past four years he has been helping Euronext in looking at new contract launches and also improving the contract delivery processes.
Previously, Brian was the architect for a number of leading commodity warrant systems, a key player in commodity finance to several industries, and now consulting with Euronext who are part way through the introduction of an electronic warrant system in the Agri arena that will be a significant help in commodity finance.
Luis María Zubizarreta has been working for companies dedicated to the export and industrialization of grains and oilseeds for more than 35 years.
He has worked for Louis Dreyfus Comercial for more than 20 years, currently as Regional Director of institutional relations and responsible for river logistics. Previously he was the Origination Manager. Also:
He has a degree in Economics from the University of Buenos Aires.
Libin Zhou is the Agriculture Research Manager within Refinitiv’s Agriculture & Weather Research team. She has been leading crop production forecasts across the world for over ten years. Libin also monitors global agricultural trade flows and provides insightful analysis of global grain/oilseed supply & demand. She holds a Ph.D. degree in Geography from Florida State University and has over ten years of experience in satellite imagery processing, geospatial analysis, and statistical modeling in agriculture research
CIARA-CEC Associations represents exporters and crushing industry reach-ing 48% of national exports and 30 billion u$d trade on annual basis. Gustavo Idigoras has a degree on political sciences and a master degree on international affairs and business and a PhD in Agricultural Business Admin-istration.
He used to work as Public Affair manager for MONSANTO as well as he was Director of Business Issue Management (A Consultant group on agribusi-ness and bioenergies in Argentina) working for different chambers and companies related to food business and biofuels.
He is also International Consultant working for WTO, IDB and FAO on SPS and agriculture trade including sustainability. He was government negotiator for 18 years on market access negotiations at WTO, MERCOSUR, FTAs, CODEX, OIE, IPPC, IGC, OECD as well as he served as Argentine Agricultural Minister at European Union, based in Bel-gium, for 5 years.
Co-Secretary of the Committee on Agriculture in Special Session since 2017, Cédric Pène is more specifically in charge of Export Competition, Export Restrictions and Cotton Trade Related aspects. He has in particular been involved in the preparation and implementation of the Bali 2013 and Nairobi 2015 Ministerial Decisions on Cotton and Export Competition. He participated in the 2011 work undertaken in the G-20 context on agricultural commodities price volatility that notably led to the creation of the Agricultural Market Information System in 2012.
Kunal is currently with Olam, initially trading corn and wheat into Asian markets from 2016 to 2018, now focused on covering/coordinating global wheat trading and wheat trading to Asia.
Prior to this, Kunal worked with Nidera for 3 years based out of the Singapore office, focused on the Asian/Middle Eastern and East African markets. Prior to this he worked with Olam International, trading rice into West Africa.
Moderator
Veronica runs the EMEA Commodities and Energy news file at Reuters from London. Veronica has spent the majority of her 20 year Reuters career covering commodity markets, including agricultural commodities, energy, precious and base metals. She punctuated her commodities coverage with a four year period reporting foreign exchange and government bonds, encompassing the 2008 financial crisis.
Ambassador Gloria Abraham Peralta is the Chairperson of the WTO Agriculture negotiations. Ambassador Abraham Peralta has dedicated her life to agriculture, trade, and trade negotiations. Before taking up her position as Ambassador of Costa Rica to the WTO, she was the Office Director for Mexico of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), and also the first woman ever to be appointed as Minister of Agriculture and Husbandry of Costa Rica, a post she held between 2010-2014. She has been the lead Agriculture Negotiator for many free-trade agreements that Costa Rica has negotiated. Ambassador Abraham Peralta has also a wide experience in international and regional organizations, having occupied different positions within IICA, UNDP, the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE), the World Bank and the Central American Institute of Public Administration. She has executed important training projects in Agricultural Trade Policy for the Ministries of Agriculture of Central America. She taught at the University of Costa Rica and the National University, and has a long list of technical publications in her areas of specialization.
Born in Rio de Janeiro (RJ), Juliana de Lavor Lopes is currently responsible for AMAGGI’s ESG, Communications and Compliance Board. She is also an executive at the André and Lucia Maggi Foundation, the institution responsible for the company’s Private Social Investment.
Juliana joined AMAGGI in January 2006 as a Social Development Coordinator. In 2009 she was promoted to a managerial position. In 2013, she took over AMAGGI’s recently created Sustainability Board, proof of the company’s commitment to sustainable development and also of the confidence in Juliana’s work. In 2016, she also took on a leading role at AMAGGI’s Corporate Communications department. By the end of 2017, Juliana took over the new AMAGGI’s Compliance Directorship. In 2021, the board under Juliana’s leadership was renamed ESG, Communications and Compliance.
Juliana holds a degree in International Relations from the Estácio de Sá University, an MBE (Master Business Economics) in Social Responsibility and the Third Sector from UFRJ, an MBA in Corporate Communication from UNESA/RJ, a Specialization in Sustainability Leadership from Berkeley University in California, and a Specialization in Leadership and Learning for Sustainability from the Organizational Learning Society founded by Peter Senge.
Her team was responsible for some of the company’s most important achievements, such as the Round Table for Responsible Soy (RTRS) certification and the Forest Footprint Disclosure (FFD) recognition. Juliana also represented AMAGGI throughout the process of elaborating the Business Principles for Food and Agriculture in the UN Global Compact and is currently a coordinator at the UN’s Brazilian Global Compact, Food and Agriculture Thematic Group (GT).
Paul Cauberg is since 2015 responsible for ABN AMRO's EMEA soft commodities activities which are currently being carefully unwound. Prior to this role, Paul was active in various international banking roles in Brussels, Madrid, and Paris focusing mainly on derivatives transactions.
Nick Major graduated from Adams Harper University in 1985 with a BSc in Agricultural Technology and joined BOCM PAULS the same year. Since then, Nick has had a number of roles with the Company in sales, general management and marketing across all species groups. In July 2012, BOCM PAULS became part of ForFarmers which is now the largest animal feed company in Europe operating in the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Poland and the UK. Nick has responsibility for Corporate Affairs across the company. In this role, he leads on sustainability and policy development and represents the Company on a number of national and European industry organisations. Nick is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing.
In addition to his roles within ForFarmers, Nick is a member of the Board and a former Chairman of AIC (Agricultural Industries Confederation) which is the UK agri-supply industry’s leading trade association and a Non-Executive Director of CIELivestock Limited, a livestock agri-tech innovation centre in the UK. Nick is a Board Member and immediate past President of FEFAC (European Feed Manufacturers Federation) and Chair of GFLI (Global Feed LCA Institute).
Dr Bettina Baruth has many years of experience in crop monitoring and crop yield forecasting as well as scientific advise with respect to the Common Agricultural Policy. She is actively engaged in the agricultural monitoring community with Earth observation data through her co-chair role in the GEOGLAM initiative. Before joining the JRC she worked at the German Aerospace Centre.
Maurits van den Berg (PhD, Wageningen, Utrecht) is the main editor of and manages the activities that lead to the monthly JRC MARS Bulletin Crop monitoring in Europe. Before coming to the JRC (in 2013) he worked as crop & land use systems modeller, agronomist and soil scientist in several research and lecturing positions in the Netherlands, southern Africa and Brazil.
Cesar de Castro Alves is an Agronomist Engineer graduate from São Paulo State University (Unesp) - Ilha Solteira Campus (2001) with a Master's in Applied Economics (2005) from Luiz de Queiroz Agricultural College, São Paulo University (Esalq/USP). He has 12 years' experience as Senior Meats and Agribusiness analyst at MB Agro Consulting (2007-2019) until joining Itaú BBA in October 2019.
As an educated farmer I studied Agricultural Economics in Göttingen (Germany) and Uppsala (Sweden) and graduated with a Master of Science Agricultural Economics. 2011-2014: I worked at Toepfer International at various departments (Finance, Business Development, Soybean Trade and Economic Research) in Hamburg. 2014-15: Delegated by the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture in collaboration with the Thünen Institute of Market Analysis to the FAO in Rome to support the Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS). Since 2015: Senior Market Analyst at Economic Research of Archer Daniels Midland Company with the responsibility of the global grain analysis.
Mr. Liu Shilei is a researcher at the National Grain and Oil Information Center of China, responsible for rice market research and decision-making service through compiling rice market reports and supply-demand balance sheets. He has worked on research subjects like Outlook of China's Grain Supply and Demand Trends in the Medium and Long Term, and has been one of the co-authors of publications such as China's Grain Development Report and China's Strategic Commodity Development Report.
Justin leads Rabobank’s global research, client engagement and profiling in the animal protein sector. His team of 15 analysts spans the globe, covering developments with all the major animal protein species. Justin’s work is directed at challenging current thinking and advising animal protein companies on investment risks and opportunities from strategic issues on tomorrow's agenda. He regularly engages with the leaders of animal protein companies and farms on emerging growth opportunities and risks. Justin focuses on the issues shaping growth opportunities, such as consolidation, consumer trends, biosecurity, trade, supply chain models, sustainability and innovation. Justin has worked at Rabobank for over a decade, currently in the Netherlands and previously in Australia.
Dr. Annelies Deuss is an Agricultural Policy Analyst at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), where she leads the work on agricultural trade and manages and conducts economic research on agricultural policy issues. She is the OECD representative for the Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS) Initiative. Her recent work focuses on public stockholding policies, agricultural export restrictions, marine transportation costs and SPS measures. She also contributes to the annual OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook, which provides market projections for major agricultural commodities, and to the Review of Agricultural Policies in India.
Prior to joining OECD, Dr. Deuss was a Visiting Professor of Economics at Carnegie Mellon University and served as an Agricultural Economist with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. Dr. Deuss is a Belgian national. She holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from Cornell University (USA), an M.A in Development Economics from the University of Bologna (Italy), a M.Sc in Agricultural Engineering and B.Sc in Bio-engineering from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium).
Dr. Tatsuji Koizumi is an Agricultural Policy Analyst at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), where he contributes to the annual OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook, which provides market projections for rice and biofuels.
Dr. Koizumi is a secondment from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), Japan. He served as a senior economist for MAFF, Japan and a project coordinator and agricultural Economist with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, and a guest researcher at the Economic Research Service, USDA. Dr. Koizumi is a Japanese national. He holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from Nihon University (Japan) and a B.A. in agricultural Economics from the University of Tsukuba (Japan). He has teaching experience in Japanese, South Korean, the Philippine and Peruvian University. He has published more than 20 books, 50 academic journals and 120 reports for biofuels and agricultural commodity markets.
Since 2000 Milo Hamilton has been President of Firstgrain, an advisory service for the world rice industry. From 1981-2000, he ran one of the largest rice-buying teams for retail food products in the world. He has degrees from Stanford University (BA English) and in agricultural economics from the University of Missouri (BS) and Minnesota (MS).
Mr. Hamilton has been involved, in one way or another in the rice markets for 40 years. He has been instrumental in the birth and development of the CME Group’s rice futures contract in Chicago. He has served on the boards of many rice associations, advises customers throughout the global rice marketing chain, and is senior editor of the weekly publication, the Firstgrain Rice Market Strategist. He wrote a book in 2014 on the world rice industry, When Rice Shakes the World. It explains how the world rice market really operates and where it may be headed."
Pradeep Ghorpade, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer of India Pulses and Grains Association, the apex body for the pulses trade in India, has over 35 years of experience working across varied genres like Corporate Communications, Sales, Marketing, Corporate Affairs and Event Management.
He has been associated with India Pulses and Grains Association for close to 6 years now and is mandated with growing the Association’s member base, plan activities to create wider awareness of IPGA, its activities and future plans. He is also responsible for establishing communications with Government Officials at various levels across Ministries of Agriculture, Consumer Affairs, Commerce, Finance, etc. that directly and indirectly affect the Pulses Trade.
Pradeep is also a part of the core team that plans and executes “THE PULSES CONCLAVE”, the world’s largest conference on pulses held every two years. He has also been instrumental in planning and executing the highly successful IPGA Knowledge Series which is a series of webinars organised by IPGA on various pulses featuring Indian and International Speakers as well as senior Government Officials from India. This year, he successfully planned and executed the NATIONAL PULSES SEMINAR 2021 that was held virtually and had over 1,500 participants from across the world.
Pradeep is also the lead in establishing and maintaining relationships between IPGA and major pulse associations and trade bodies across the world including GPC, Pulse Canada, Pulse Australia, USDA, USDPLC, IGTC, GAFTA, EPOSPEA, IMCC and OATAM to name a few.
Pradeep has also been responsible in leading the various CSR efforts of IPGA which included a Water Rejuvenation Project, Distribution of food grain kits during the COVID-19 pandemic and equipping six schools in rural Maharashtra with Computer training centres and training centres to teach sewing.
Apart from his responsibilities at IPGA, Pradeep is also an independent Communications Consultant advising clients on PR and Marketing strategies.
Jim Sutter joined USSEC as its CEO in 2010 after over 30 years of industry experience with Cargill, Inc. Since joining USSEC, Sutter has led strategy development to ensure that the organization’s key focus is on differentiating and building a preference for U.S. Soy, while also ensuring market access.
Rosalind (Roz) Leeck is the Senior Director for Global Market Access and Northeast Asia Regional Director at the U.S. Soybean Export Council. She is responsible for worldwide activities monitoring and addressing trade barriers and other market access issues that impact the U.S.’s ability to export soy and soy products. She is also the Regional Director for North Asia responsible for Korea and Japan.
Ryan LeGrand serves as the President and CEO for the U.S. Grains Council (USGC), a non-profit organization that promotes the global use of U.S. barley, corn, sorghum and related products including ethanol and distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS).
LeGrand joined the Council in 2015 as the assistant director and then director of the Council’s Mexico office where he identified and addressed all relevant trade, technical and policy-related factors relevant to building and maintaining the market for U.S. grains and co-products in Mexico. Before joining the Council, LeGrand worked for Gavilon as the director of ingredients, located in Guadalajara, Mexico. In this capacity, he managed the company’s feed ingredients trading, import and distribution throughout Mexico. LeGrand also served as the director of exports for Hawkeye Gold, LLC where he exported DDGS to Latin America and Asia.
LeGrand earned a bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma State University in international business.
Alejandra Danielson Castillo serves as the regional director for South Asia for the U.S. Grains Council, a non-profit organization that promotes the use of U.S. barley, corn, sorghum and related products worldwide. In this capacity, Danielson Castillo evaluates, plans, coordinates, implements and manages the Council’s market development programs in the South Asia region which includes India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal.
Prior to the Council, Danielson Castillo worked in trade execution with Cargill focused on trade risk management as well as vessel and container logistics for cotton, grains and oilseeds. Danielson Castillo also gained experience as an international freight forwarder prior to entering trade execution. Before joining Cargill, she worked as a project manager for the Mayo Clinic and an associate director of admissions for St. Catherine University.
Danielson Castillo holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in strategic management and organizational leadership, both from St. Catherine University.
Ronnie Tan serves as the Regional Aquaculture Consultant – Southeast Asia for the U.S. Grains Council, a non-profit organization that promotes the use of U.S. barley, corn, sorghum and related products worldwide. In this capacity, Tan assists in the Council’s market development work related to aquaculture, including activity planning, coordination and implementation.
Prior to the Council, Tan worked as the vice president for Blue Archipelago, the largest integrated shrimp enterprise in Malaysia. In this capacity, he was responsible for the downstream operations and corporate strategy. Tan also previously served as the non-executive director for Regal Springs Group, the largest integrated tilapia company in the world, where he was a board member and held a supervisory role of the Indonesian legal entity.
Tan earned a degree in environmental biology from King’s College, University of London, UK and a master’s degree in aquaculture from the University of Stirling, Scotland.
Mr. Zoltán Pulay was born in Hungary on 16 May 1961. He has got a MSC in Agronomy and is also a post-graduate in Economics and Trade. Since 2014, he has been Director of Purchasing - UBM Feed Kft. He is the permanent delegate of the Hungarian Grain and Feed Association (HGFA) to FEFAC since 2014 and a member of the FEFAC Board since June 2020. He is married and has got 2 daughters.
Philippe Mitko started his career in 1985 as an internal physical broker for the national federation of grain cooperatives (UNCAC), then became an oilseed trader in 1992 and participated actively in the foundation of Euronext futures commodities contracts, and in the management of the executing and clearing house SIGMA Terme, subsidiary of French cooperative group SIGMA. After being in charge of the national management of the relations with cooperative members of Union InVivo for grains from 2004 to 2011, he moved afterwards to a business development position for South Eastern Europe.
He is now head of public affairs of InVivo Trading, has been a GAFTA Council member from 2017 to 2019, was elected as treasurer of Synacomex, the French Union of grain and oilseeds traders, as well as President of Coceral in May 2019.
He was elected Chair of the European Commission Civil Dialogue group on “arable crops” in September 2020.
JF is Founding Partner of Lambert Commodities, a consultancy on commodity trade and structured finance for producers, traders, banks and investors. Capitalizing on his 35-year international experience, he is also adviser on industry trends, strategic positioning, organization, risk and governance issues.
Prior to that, JF was Managing Director, Global Head of Commodity and Structured Trade Finance for HSBC Group. Under his 6-year stewardship, HSBC became one of the major financial players supporting commodity supply chains. JF was notably instrumental in expanding HSBC’s geographical presence to over 15 countries with a team of 160+ frontline specialists. He also initiated institutional investor participation in commodity trade financing under a balanced co-investment model.
JF holds a Master Degree in Finance from the Université Paris IX Dauphine. He is a reputed Basel 3+ expert and key industry voice on commodity and trade matters. He writes frequent columns for industry magazines and is a regular speaker on the international professional conference circuit. JF teaches a Commodity Market Dynamics Course at Sciences Po, an international research university in Paris and is also the author of the ICC (International Chamber of Commerce) Trade Academy course on Advanced Commodity Finance. JF regularly speaks at the London Business School.
Elen Lemaître-Curri, agricultural economist, specialised in public policies, joined CIHEAM Montpellier in September 2020 as deputy director. She is seconded by the French Ministry of Agriculture and Food and will support MED-Amin network developments and partnerships. Formerly as an economist at the French ministry in charge of sustainable development, the FAO Investment Centre, and as Director of Plan Bleu for the environment and development in the Mediterranean, she contributed to sustainable development strategies and policies, and active science-decision interfaces in the region.
Darren has spent more than two decades in the commodities sector, covering different markets and industries, including mining and metals, tropical commodities and agriculture, notably grains, rice and oilseeds. He is a Senior Economist at the International Grains Council, and has experience spanning all of the body’s activities. He has presented and chaired at many international events.
Joined the IGC as an Economist in January 2016. While Alexander is involved in most of the organisation’s activities, his major focus has been on the global maize market and ocean freight of grains and oilseeds. Prior to joining the IGC, Alexander spent almost a decade in consulting and investment banking spheres in Moscow, as well as trade-related diplomatic service in London.
Leo Bastos is the Carbon Business Model Head and serves on the North America Crop Science Leadership Team. In this role, he leads a dedicated, cross-functional team that drives decisions relating to building a business in carbon for Bayer. This work includes the development of carbon markets for agriculture, prioritizing the North American Crop Science marketplace while partnering with similar teams in other regions.
Bastos has been at Monsanto, now Bayer, since 2008. Prior to taking this role, he was the Head of Global Marketing for the Centers of Excellence, based in St. Louis. Bastos also served as the Head of Marketing and Product Management for South America and was the Head of Sales in corn, soybeans and crop protection in Brazil. Before joining Monsanto, Bastos had led marketing for Johnson & Johnson’s baby brands in Brazil and worked as a consultant for McKinsey & Company.
Bastos holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Federal University of Rio de Janeiro – Brazil and an Executive M.B.A. from Duke University. He has previously held a position as a member of the Marketing Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce.
Bastos resides the St. Louis area with his wife and three children. In his spare time, he enjoys coaching his kids’ soccer teams, experimenting with Brazilian barbecue, and learning and playing guitar.
Dr. Bertuzzi has been Barilla’s Purchasing Senior Manager for Durum Wheat and Semolina for 15 years. Since 2018, he has been working for Areté as Senior Analyst. Among other markets, he is responsible for Durum Wheat Forecasting Services.
Nathan’s career to date has been centred around financial and commodities markets, working in both private and public sector capacities. After his first role as a junior economist in the investment banking sphere, focusing mainly on macroeconomic fundamentals and their impact on currency and bond markets, he joined the London-based International Grains Council (IGC) in 2003. As one of a small team of economists, his main focus is overseeing the Council’s grain production analysis, the global maize market, national policy developments and price reporting.
Peter is a market analyst at the International Grains Council (IGC), with a focus on assessing global supply and demand for rice as well as monitoring other markets such as oilseeds. Before joining the IGC in 2017, Peter was editor of the Live Rice Index, a specialist market publication and price reporting agency focussed on providing news and prices for the international rice market.
Diana joined the International Grains Council (IGC) as a Market Analyst in September 2016. She is mainly involved in the work on developing market information/outlook for pulses. Her other specialisation includes the sorghum and oats market. Before joining the IGC, she worked in the food sector, in both public and private organisations.
Ricardo has been Executive Director of the Agricultural Products Providers Association of Mexico (APPAMEX) since 2002. His professional experience includes: • Technical Under-Director and Director of Foreign Agricultural Markets at the National Market News Service in the Mexican Federal Government • External Consultant to the U.S. Grains Council for Technical Support, Outlooks, and Market Projections for Mexico He has been an active member of: • the private sector advisory group (“Side Room”) of the NAFTA 2.0 Renegotiation process, under the (Mexico’s) National Agricultural Council (CNA) lead, • the National Agricultural Council (of Mexico) Livestock, Poultry & Feeds Commission, Agri-Food Industry Commission, Foreign Trade Commission, the Trans-Pacific Partnership Negotiations Working Group, and the Standards Committee • the North American Plant Protection Organization Mexican Industry Advisory Group • the Mixed Consultative Council of the Mexican Intersecretarial Commission on Biosafety of GMOs (CIBIOGEM) • and member of the Management Council of the International Grain Trade Coalition (IGTC) • Participant at the International Agri-Food Network: Private Sector Mechanism for the Committee on World Food Security (FAO) and the United Nations Food Systems Summit
Adriana Herrera will represent Mexico as the incoming Agricultural Marketing Information Service (AMIS) Chair for 2021-2022. In 2020, she was appointed as Agricultural Counsellor to the European Union. Adriana has participated in the Committees of Agriculture at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the World Trade Organization (WTO), following domestic policies and discussions about international trade markets. She was previously General Coordinator of Trade Negotiations and Economic Studies in the Ministry of Agriculture from 2008 to 2018, participating in Mexico’s free trade agreements (FTAs) with the US and Canada, Japan, and modernization of the FTA with the European Union. She has a master’s degree in international public policy from the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor’s in Economics from the ITAM (Mexico).
Mr. Tyler Babcock assumed the role of Agricultural Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2019. Prior to serving in Bangladesh, Tyler was the Deputy Director of the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) Agricultural Trade Office in Shanghai, China where he was responsible for promoting U.S. agricultural products in the five provinces of Eastern China. He was also an Agricultural Specialist in the Office of Agreements and Scientific Affairs – Animal Product Division where he covered the North Asia region. He joined FAS in 2015. Over his career, he has worked on a wide range of issues from international food and health regulations to market promotion. Tyler earned a Bachelor of Science degree in East Asian Studies and Business Administration from the University of Arizona in 2010 and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Georgetown University in 2015. He is originally from Schuyler, Nebraska.
Corinne Roux has been working for the Swiss Federal Office for Agriculture (FOAG) since March 2008. She currently works as a policy advisor in the Trade Relations Unit where she is mainly responsible for the relations between Switzerland and the EU in the area of agriculture. She has served as Switzerland's representative to the IGC since 2014 and was previously involved in the negotiations of the new Food Assistance Convention, which came into effect in 2012. In June 2020, she was announced as IGC’s Chairperson for 2020/2021. She studied law at the Universities of Fribourg (CH), Bern (CH) and Strasbourg (F) and obtained her Master of Law in 2008.
Canada is the world’s largest exporter of peas and lentils and major player in bean, chickpea and special crops markets. Greg is the President of Pulse Canada; a national industry association that represents over 30,000 growers and over 100 processors and exporters of pulses and special crops in Canada. In Greg’s 17 years with the organization, he has led market development programs, market access and trade policy files, served as the organization’s director of transportation and administered trade rules, arbitration and appeals processes. As President, Greg and his team work diligently to keep markets open, to keep supply chains fluid and to execute the industry’s 25 By 2025 strategy which aims to move 25% of Canada’s productive capacity into new markets and new uses by the year 2025.
John Baffes is Senior Economist with the World Bank’s Prospects Group where he manages the Commodity Markets Outlook, a World Bank publication focusing on commodity market analysis and price forecasts. John has worked in several Units within the World Bank, including Latin America, South Asia, East Africa, Evaluation, and Research. He has published numerous chapters and articles in various academic journals in the areas of economic development, agricultural economics, resource economics, and applied econometrics. John is also teaching an executive MBA course on Applied Econometrics for Commodity Markets. He holds a degrees in Economics (BS, University of Athens, Greece), Agricultural Economics (MS, University of Georgia, U.S.), and Agricultural and Resource Economics (Ph.D., University of Maryland, U.S.).
Chandrashekhar Guruswamy (G. Chandrashekhar) is a senior editor, policy commentator, teacher and trainer. As agribusiness and commodities market specialist, he provides policy inputs for the government through his columns in The Hindu Business Line newspaper, regular appearances on business television and speeches in various forums. He speaks at various international and national conferences on a range of topics including Indian macro-economy, food and nutrition security, agribusiness trade and investment opportunities, commodity market outlook and so on. His columns are keenly tracked by policymakers and industry alike. He works closely with India's securities market regulator SEBI. He has held and continues to hold several public positions. Currently, Chandrashekhar is: * Economic Advisor, IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry *Consultant, U.N. International Trade Centre, Geneva * Independent Member, SEBI Commodity Derivatives Advisory Committee * Member, SEBI Research Advisory Committee * Member, Expert Committee on Rural Management, Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University * Visiting Faculty in reputed B-Schools
Megan Durisin covers agriculture and commodities for Bloomberg News in London
John Griffith is executive vice president, CHS Global Grain & Processing and CHS Hedging, a U.S. farmer-owned cooperative and a global energy, grains and foods company. He is responsible for all CHS global commodity and renewable fuels trading, grain processing, supply chain management and risk management, including freight, currency, execution and trade finance. He also oversees CHS Hedging, LLC, a commodities brokerage subsidiary of CHS Inc.
Griffith grew up on a corn, soybean and livestock farm in southwestern Minnesota and during his high school years, worked part-time at a local grain elevator. Today, he is a results-oriented, respected leader who champions expanding market access, operational excellence and develops strong, customer-focused teams to monitor market trends for opportunities that drive revenue growth and add stakeholder value across all global origination offices and operations.
Prior roles at CHS include senior vice president, Global Grain and Marketing, vice president, Grain Marketing North America, vice president and merchandising manager, senior durum manager, procurement merchandiser, and assistant barley merchandiser.
Leadership positions outside CHS include vice president, supply chain, and vice president, global sourcing at American Italian Pasta Company, Kansas City, Mo., and vice president and chief procurement officer for Ralcorp Holdings, Inc., St. Louis, Mo. Griffith earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from St. John’s University, Collegeville, Minn., and a Master of Business Administration from Rockhurst University, Kansas City, Mo. He is a member of many trade associations and serves in leadership positions and serves as the board chairman for both the North American Export Grain Association and CHS Hedging, LLC.
Brazilian born, Marcos Amorim has lived 46 from his 50 years of age in the city of São Paulo in Brazil. A language and culture lover, he fluently speaks Portuguese, French, English and is almost fluent in Spanish.
Having worked for Cargill for 31 years, he has spent his entire career in the agricultural sector and a big part of it in the Trading Execution. When he left the company in 2017, he was the country leader of a team of more than 70 people responsible for the import and export of feed, food and other items.
After a sabbatical period of 2 years, Marcos has joined ANEC, the Brazilian National Association of Grain Exporters, as the head of the External Contracts Committee (a committee of which he has been a member of for several years).
Jaine Chisholm Caunt was appointed Director General of Gafta in 2014. She is also the current Chair of the Federation of Commodity Associations. Jaine was the Chair of the International Agri-food Network (IAFN) which co-ordinates the work of the Private Sector Mechanism (PSM) at the UN Committee on World Food Security from 2015-2017. Jaine was Secretary General of the Tobacco Manufacturers Association from 2011 to 2014 and was previously the Director of Stakeholder Relations and Policy for Cogent, the skills body for the UK's science-based and process manufacturing industries from 2006 to 2011.
Jaine was previously a member of a HEFCE advisory group on UK University funding, and also a Non-Executive Director of OPITO, the Oil and Gas Academy from 2008 to 2011, and has served as a Trustee on several charity boards. Jaine has a BA (Hons) in Politics & English and a PGCE in Further Education and is a Member of the Institute of Directors, and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. She is currently a board member of two European Trade Associations in the agri-commodity sphere, COCERAL and CELCAA. She is also a board member of two international bodies, the International Agri-food Network, and the International Grain Trade Coalition.
Andrew Goyder was appointed to the GTA Board in August 2014 as a Level C Director. Andrew is a Member of the Board’s Membership & AGIC Committees and an Approved GTA Arbitrator.
He has over 20 years industry experience encompassing grain production, the seed industry and the trade. Previous roles include Regional Manager Southern WA with Grain Pool WA and involvement in the seed industry and export canola industry with SGB Australia.
Andrew is currently Managing Director of Grain Link WA, established in September 1999. Prior to GTA Andrew has a history of representative Committee and Director roles in the West Australian industry including NACMA, CBH and GIWA.
He started his career in the world of commodities in Milan in the years ’79 – ‘80 in a company of the multinational group active in the Agri-busines, Bunge. For Bunge, he travelled to various countries in the world, in particular to South America and North America where the company has its roots, learning and specializing in international trade in cereals, oilseeds, flours and oils. After holding various positions in different countries including Holland, Spain and England, in 1999, he founded Bunge Italia Spa in Rome and became its commercial Director and Board member. With Bunge Italia Spa, he developed markets that were not yet covered by the multinational company, in particular North Africa, from Morocco to Egypt, as well as all the markets of the Black Sea including Ukraine, Russia, Romania, Bulgaria. In 2001, he participated in the foundation of Bunge Istanbul as a hub for the Middle East markets. Subsequently, he participated in the acquisition of Cereol (Ferruzzi group). Always with Bunge, he developed and opened the trades with former Yugoslavian States, strengthening the logistic proximity of the Italian market. In 2007, he left the Bunge Group to join the Fanin family and founded Cereal Docks International Spa where he still holds the position of CEO and shareholder. Giorgio Dalla Bona is also member of the Board of the Italian Grain Association (ANACER) as well as current VP of COCERAL in Brussels.
Gerald is the Executive Director of EAGC since 15th March 2011. He is the former Managing Director of Kenya Wines Agencies Limited (KWAL) and the Kenya Planters Cooperation Union (KPCU). He has also worked for British American Tobacco, New Kenya Cooperative Creameries (NKCC) and Acumen Business Consultants. Gerald holds a Master of Science Degree in Agricultural Economics –Marketing Major and a Bachelor of Arts Degree both from Egerton University, Kenya.
Gary C. Martin has served since June of 2000 as President and Chief Executive Officer of the North American Export Grain Association (NAEGA,) www.naega.org. Since 2104 he has served as the President of the International Grain Trade Coalition www.igtcglobal.com. In addition, his many industry leadership activities include service as a Co-chair of U.S. Food and Agriculture Dialog for Trade Agreements, and a Co-Chair of the Canada-U.S. Grain and Seed Trade Task Group www.canada-usgrainandseedtrade.info.
Before assuming the presidency of NAEGA, Gary was a NAEGA Board Director and officer, representing Farmland Industries, Inc. At Farmland he had several responsibilities including Director of Trade and International Relations, Director of Grain Marketing, and Founder and President of Farmland Graños in Mexico. From 1990 to 1992 Mr. Martin served the Administration of George H.W. Bush at the US Department of Agriculture as Deputy Administrator of Commodity Operations and as an officer of the Commodity Credit Corporation. In the first year of the Clinton Administration, from 1992 to 1993, he served as an advisor to the Special Ambassador to the former Soviet Union at the US Department of State.
Gary earned a B.Sc. in Agricultural Economics, with highest honors, from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. He is also a graduate of the University of Missouri, Institute of Cooperative Leadership, and has graduate studies in International Transactions at the George Mason University.
Gary and his wife Denise reside in Ashburn, Virginia USA.
Marri Tejada currently serves as the regional director of Latin America for the U.S. Grains Council, a non-profit organization that promotes the use of U.S. barley, corn, sorghum and related products in the international marketplace. Based in Panama City, Panama, Tejada strategizes and directs the organization’s programs for the region.
While Tejada began working for the USGC in 2008, her enthusiasm for U.S. agriculture began long before, being the daughter of a fourth generation grain and livestock farmer in Southwest Minnesota, USA. Following her college education, Tejada began promoting the use of U.S. grains on state level at the Minnesota Corn Growers Association, and then on the global scale at the U.S. Grains Council.
Once being an avid runner, having completed several half and full marathons, Tejada now finds her time chasing her toddler and traveling home to the United States to spend time with her large Midwest-farm family. The U.S. Grains Council develops export markets for U.S. barley, corn, sorghum and related products including distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) and ethanol. With full-time presence in 28 locations, the Council operates programs in more than 50 countries and the European Union. The Council believes exports are vital to global economic development and to U.S. agriculture’s profitability.
Ricardo Rodríguez has worked as Senior Economist at the Central American Business Intelligence (CABI) since February 2019.
He graduated in Economics from the Rafael Landivar College and holds a Master's degree in Political Economy from the London School of Economics, London, UK.
He has more than ten years’ experience working as an economic analyst for different institutions, among them the agency for attracting foreign investment “Invest in Guatemala” and the Exporters’ Association of Guatemala.
He is also Professor for various courses of the Business Economy graduate degree at the Rafael Land í Var University.
My name is Mykola Gorbachov. I was born in Oleksandriya, Ukraine on May 4, 1972. From 2005 till the present I have been working for Soufflet Group in a position of director in Ukraine. Also from 2017 to present I have been working for Ukrainian Grain Association in position of President. I have 20 years’ of experience in agricultural trading.
In 2004 I have graduated from International University Market Relations and Business (the Economist) and also studied for the 4 month special export program in Iowa State University.
In 2008 I have graduated from Carnegie Mellon University Tepper School of Business and in 2009 graduated from International Management Institute (MBA diploma, confirmed in Tepper Business School). Also from 2013 till 2016 I studied at National Academy for Public Administration under the President of Ukraine (with distinction).
Married, have two sons. My hobbies are ski, marathon runner, russian classic literature and work.
Andrii Paladii joined Kernel in 2018.
Responsible for the commercial side of the oilseeds crushing business developing and implementing business strategies together with Kernel fellow-managers with the main objective to boost growth and profitability of the Group.
Andrii brought over 10 years of experience in G&O International Trading and Oilseeds Crush management in Ukraine and South America.
Education: Mariupol State University for Humanities, “International Economics”.
Tom is head of Weather at Aura Commodities based in London. He leads a team that provides regular in-depth analysis and commentary on weather disruption risk across agricultural commodities to a variety of market participants. Tom expertise is on translating the impact of short, medium, and long-term weather/climate patterns and events on agricultural production. He holds a MSc in Applied Meteorology from the University of Reading.
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