Birko CEO Mark Swanson Leads New USMEF Officer Team

The U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Strategic Planning Conference and Board of Directors Meeting, held Nov. 10-12 in Carlsbad, Calif., wrapped up Friday with the election of new USMEF officers.

Mark Swanson, chief executive officer of Birko Corporation, is the new USMEF chairman. Headquartered in Henderson, Colo., Birko provides cleaning and sanitation chemicals and equipment to the food industry, with much of its business centered on the protein sector. Since joining USMEF in 2008, Swanson said Birko has benefited significantly from the federation's expertise and from the contributions exports make to the growth and profitability of the U.S. red meat industry.

Swanson heads an officer team reflecting the wide range of USMEF membership sectors. Dean Meyer, a corn, soybean and livestock producer from Rock Rapids, Iowa, is the new USMEF chair-elect, and Edgerton, Minn., pork producer Randy Spronk will serve as vice chair. The newest USMEF officer is Secretary-Treasurer Steve Hanson, a rancher from Elsie, Neb.

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The U.S. Meat Export Federation (www.USMEF.org) is the trade association responsible for developing international markets for the U.S. red meat industry. It is funded by USDA; the beef, pork, lamb, corn and soybean checkoff programs, as well as its members representing nine industry sectors: beef/veal producing & feeding, pork producing & feeding, lamb producing & feeding, packing & processing, purveying & trading, oilseeds producing, feedgrains producing, farm organizations and supply & service organizations. USMEF complies with all equal opportunity, non-discrimination and affirmative action measures applicable to it by contract, government rule or regulation or as otherwise provided by law. USMEF is an equal opportunity employer and provider.