Five At-Large Directors Added To USMEF Executive Committee

Published: Feb 28, 2008

Five representatives of the meat, livestock and grain industries that make up the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) have been appointed by USMEF Chairman Dan Halstrom to the organization’s executive committee as at-large directors.

The five new directors are:

Mark Boyd, director of export sales for Porky Products, Inc. He has been involved in the international meat trade in Asia, Russia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East for 13 years.
Danita Rodibaugh, a pork producer from Rensselaer, Ind., and past president of the National Pork Board. Ms. Rodibaugh also served on the USMEF executive committee in 2007.
David Ross, international markets coordinator for Smithfield Foods. He has 25 years sales experience in the pork industry, with 20 years focused on international business development at Smithfield Packing before moving to Smithfield Foods Corporate to concentrate on arbitrage opportunities among Smithfield’s global operations.
Mark Spengler, director of international sales for the Certified Angus Beef ® brand, which is a leading U.S.beef brand in 39 countries worldwide.
Ken Stielow, owner of Bar S Ranch, a seedstock, cow-calf and backgrounding operation in Paradise, Kansas, as well as past president of the Kansas Livestock Association and 2007 chairman of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board.

“I am very pleased that these five outstanding individuals have consented to volunteer their time and energy to the USMEF executive committee,” said Halstrom. “They each bring in-depth knowledge of their specific market segment to a board that represents all aspects that are critical to the U.S. meat export market.”

The terms of the new directors expire in November 2008. The USMEF executive committee consists of 21 members representing nine industry sectors: beef/veal producing and feeding, pork producing and feeding, lamb producing and feeding, packing and processing, purveying and trading, oilseeds producing, feedgrains producing, farm organizations, and supply and service organizations.

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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, sorghum and soybean checkoff programs.