News & Events | Strategic Planning Conference Concludes with Election of New Officers

Strategic Planning Conference Concludes with Election of New Officers

The USMEF Strategic Planning Conference wrapped up Friday in Denver with a panel discussion on overseas promotional activities for beef and pork, reports from Thursday’s committee meetings, adoption of a resolution on science-based, customer-focused trade, and election of new officers.

Montana rancher Jim Peterson was elected USMEF chairman for the coming year, succeeding Iowa pork producer Jon Caspers. In addition to his ranching operation near Buffalo, Mont., Peterson is the majority leader of the Montana State Senate. He was formerly associate dean of agriculture at Montana State University, executive vice president of Montana Stockgrowers Association and executive secretary of the Montana Public Land Council. He is past chairman of the Beef Industry Joint International Markets Committee and has served on a USDA Agricultural Trade Advisory Committee, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association Executive Committee and the Board of Directors of the Montana State University Foundation.

Raised on a family operation in Montana, Peterson has been involved in cattle feeding, farming, ranching, agricultural banking and beef industry associations for more than three decades.

USMEF officer team: (from left) Steve Isaf, Danita Rodibaugh, Keith Miller, Jim Peterson

Keith Miller, a farmer-stockman from Great Bend, Kan., is the new USMEF chairman-elect. Miller owns a commercial cow/calf operation and farms more than 7,500 acres of corn, soybeans, wheat, alfalfa and milo. He is an active Farm Bureau member, having served as president of the Barton County Farm Bureau and on the Kansas Farm Bureau board of directors.

Indiana pork producer Danita Rodibaugh is the new USMEF vice chair. Rodibaugh's family farm operation near Rensselaer, Ind., produces corn, soybeans, wheat and purebred seedstock swine. She became active with USMEF as a member of the board of directors of the National Pork Producers Council and as a past president of the National Pork Board. She is recognized as one of the pork industry’s experts on environmental issues.

Steve Isaf, president of Atlanta-based Interra International, is USMEF’s new secretary-treasurer. Isaf has served on the USMEF Executive Committee for three years and is immediate past chairman of the USMEF Exporter Committee.

Prior to today’s officer elections, USMEF members heard from international USMEF staff in a panel discussion entitled “Your Money at Work.” Rodibaugh moderated the panel, which included:

Joel Haggard, USMEF senior vice president for the Asia Pacific region
Greg Hanes, former USMEF Japan director and now assistant vice president, International Marketing
Sabrina Yin, USMEF ASEAN director
Yuri Barutkin, USMEF St. Petersburg manager

Each panelist explained the marketing strategies and promotional activities for their region, discussing market access issues, economic conditions, cultural preferences and other factors unique to each area.

USMEF members also received committee reports from the federation’s Beef and Allied Industries Committee, Pork Committee, Exporter Committee and Feedgrain and Oilseeds Caucus. One resolution, which originated in the Exporter Committee, was passed by the full membership. The resolution, entitled Science-based, Consumer-focused Trade and Market Access, calls for the U.S. red meat industry and the U.S. Government to strive for a partnership “built on a commitment to meeting the expectations of our customers in the international markets without sacrificing our equally strong commitment to the international trading environment that includes respect for sound science, consistency with U.S. or international standards and commercial viability.”

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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 and is funded by USDA, exporting companies, and the beef, pork, corn and soybean checkoff programs.

For more information, contact Jim Herlihy at jherlihy@usmef.org.

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.