The recipients for the Agribusiness Leader and NAMA Marketer of the Year awards were honored during the 2007 Agri-Marketing Conference.

Agribusiness Leader of the Year
Dale R. Ludwig, executive director/CEO of the Missouri Soybean Association and the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council, was presented with the Agribusiness Leader of the Year Award, NAMA’s highest honor, at the Opening General Session of the 2007 Agri-Marketing Conference in Dallas on April 12.

This award honors an outstanding leader in agribusiness, education, government service or other related areas.

Ludwig is a visionary leader with a proven record of building coalitions to improve Missouri agriculture. He helped forge producer/agribusiness partnerships that have positioned Missouri as a leader in biodiesel production. In addition, he pioneered the effort to identify new traits in soybeans through biotechnology and helped re-position the U.S. soybean commodity with competitive advantages over global competitors.

A known and trusted individual among the Missouri congressional delegation, Ludwig helped convince Congress to pass the biodiesel tax credit, a federal incentive driving biodiesel’s growth. Ludwig’s ability to work toward solutions for soybean producers distinguishes him as one of the true champions of the biodiesel effort. Ludwig’s relentless support for biotechnology led to the cooperation between USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and private institutions to create a new paradigm of synergy in the plant-based biotechnology arena.

NAMA Marketer of the Year
Phil Johnson, Chief Operating Officer at Colle+McVoy, was presented with the NAMA Marketer of the Year Award during the Second General Session at the 2007 Agri-Marketing Conference on April 12 in Dallas.

This award is the most prestigious honor awarded to an active member of the association and honors outstanding accomplishments in the field of agri-marketing. Nominees are solicited from agribusiness and related companies with overall marketing and/or sales responsibilities.

Phil Johnson has become an expert at taking the status quo and making it better. Whether he’s revitalizing a stagnant brand, reorganizing a business group or providing a struggling subsidiary with the resources needed to gain the confidence to succeed, Johnson is a vital part of maximizing nearly every challenge he encounters, to the benefit of his clients, his company and those who work around him. Johnson’s philosophy is simple. He uses a straight-forward equation to get the results that put his clients at the forefront of the agricultural industry: Relationships + Rigor = Results. Utilizing this equation to dig into a customer’s business and understand it from the ground up takes a huge amount of work and commitment, and is the key to successfully acquiring and keeping clients.

As a principal at Colle+McVoy for 20 years, Johnson has provided the leadership and encouragement needed to offer exceptional client service and innovative marketing solutions. Celebrating his 20th anniversary as a member and leader of the National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA), Johnson has served as a director and president of the North Central Chapter and chaired awards program committees from the Midlands and North Central chapters. He successfully chaired the NAMA Issues Forum committee in September, 1998, and received the Outstanding Chair award in 1999 for his leadership.

For more information on these awards and the winners visit, http://www.nama.org/awards/awards-index.html.

NAMA named the organization’s national leadership award recipients during the Second General Session on April 12.

The President’s Award was given to Tom Taylor, High Plains Journal; Mike Gustafson, John Deere received the R.C. Ferguson Award; The Workhorse of the Year Award was given to Sharon Larson, Martin/Williams; Barry Nelson, John Deere, received the Outstanding Chair Award; Scott Whitman, AgriLife Studios/MWI Comm. Group, took home the Dilworth Award for Innovation; and four meritorious achievement awards were given to Colleen Gerke, John Deere, Melissa Sanders, AdFarm, Kelly Loganbill, AdFarm and Dawn Foster, Farm Credit Services of America.

NAMA has honored Phil Johnson, Chief Operating Officer at Colle+McVoy, with the NAMA Marketer of the Year award. The award will be presented during the Second General Session of the 2007 Agri-Marketing Conference, “Think Big!” on Thursday, April 12 at 11:00 a.m. in Dallas and is sponsored by AgriMarketing magazine.

NAMA recognizes its active members with senior management of marketing and/or sales responsibilities with the NAMA Marketer of the Year award. This award is NAMA’s most prestigious honor awarded to active members of the association and honors outstanding accomplishments in the field of agri-marketing.

Phil Johnson has become an expert at taking the status quo and making it better. Whether he’s revitalizing a stagnant brand, reorganizing a business group or providing a struggling subsidiary with the resources needed to gain the confidence to succeed, Johnson is a vital part of maximizing nearly every challenge he encounters, to the benefit of his clients, his company and those who work around him.

Johnson’s philosophy is simple. He uses a straight-forward equation to get the results that put his clients at the forefront of the agricultural industry: Relationships + Rigor = Results. Utilizing this equation to dig into a customer’s business and understand it from the ground up takes a huge amount of work and commitment, and is the key to successfully acquiring and keeping clients.

Johnson has spearheaded efforts to establish business goals and direction for Colle+McVoy’s agribusiness group. He was the first group director to develop a strategic plan within this key agency segment, establishing business objectives for organic growth from existing agribusiness clients and securing new business among both traditional and nontraditional ag companies. In addition, he established semi-annual reviews for each agency account to measure progress against established account goals. As a result, agency resources were applied more effectively and new opportunities were identified and pursued more efficiently. In the first three years of this new emphasis on strategic agribusiness growth and development, Colle+McVoy met all established growth goals and added five new clients that have significantly increased the profitability and provided long-term stability for the agency within the agribusiness marketplace.

As a principal at Colle+McVoy for 20 years, Johnson has provided the leadership and encouragement needed to offer exceptional client service and innovative marketing solutions.

Celebrating his 20^th anniversary as a member and leader of NAMA, Johnson has served as a director and president of the North Central Chapter and chaired awards program committees from the Midlands and North Central chapters. He successfully chaired the NAMA Issues Forum committee in September, 1998, and received the Outstanding Chair award in 1999 for his leadership.

Dale R. Ludwig, executive director/CEO of the Missouri Soybean Association and the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council, has been named the 2007 Agribusiness Leader of the Year. This award, which is NAMA’s highest honor, will be presented at the Opening General Session of the 2007 Agri-Marketing Conference, “Think Big!,” April 12, 2007, in Dallas, TX. The award honors outstanding leaders in agribusiness, education, government service or other agribusiness related areas who exemplify excellence in agribusiness by their significant contributions to the industry.

Ludwig is a visionary leader with a proven record of building coalitions to improve Missouri agriculture. He helped forge producer/agribusiness partnerships that have positioned Missouri as a leader in biodiesel production. In addition, he pioneered the effort to identify new traits in soybeans through biotechnology and helped re-position the U.S. soybean commodity with competitive advantages over global competitors.

Ludwig’s understanding of two changes in agriculture – renewable fuels and biotechnology – created unique approaches to agribusiness research and development as well as farmer involvement in business formation and execution. Ludwig assisted producers and the industry in raising $100 million to finance 10 value-added, new-generation businesses, ranging from biodiesel joint ventures to functional food companies. His vision of independent producers funding research and development and investing in farmer-owned businesses led to strategic positions and ultimate execution of new opportunities for producers such as the development of the QUALISOY™ board. QUALISOY is an industry-wide initiative to transform the commodity with better traits in an effort to combat the trans fat issue associated with hydrogenated soybean oil.

A known and trusted individual among the Missouri congressional delegation, Ludwig helped convince Congress to pass the biodiesel tax credit, a federal incentive driving biodiesel’s growth. Ludwig’s ability to work toward solutions for soybean producers distinguishes him as one of the true champions of the biodiesel effort. Ludwig’s relentless support for biotechnology led to the cooperation between USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and private institutions to create a new paradigm of synergy in the plant-based biotechnology arena.

Ludwig was a founding director on the QUALISOY board. He serves as vice chairman of the Missouri Biotechnology Organization board of directors. In addition, he has served as president of the St. Louis Agribusiness Club. He has also served on numerous agricultural advisory boards for U.S. senators, congressmen, and Missouri’s governor. He currently serves on the Governor’s Advisory Council on Plant Biotechnology.

The deadline for submitting nominations for the Agribusiness Leader and NAMA Marketer of the Year awards is this Friday, January 19.

NAMA is looking for individuals who are outstanding leaders in agribusiness, education, government service or other agribusiness related areas as well as individuals with outstanding accomplishments in the field of marketing directly to ag producers for the Agribusiness Leader of the Year and NAMA Marketer of the Year awards.

The Agribusiness Leader of the Year award is NAMA’s highest honor. Solicited from senior level position holders in private, public or academic service, nominees should exemplify excellence in agribusiness by their significant contributions to the industry. Nominees need not be NAMA members.

NAMA recognizes its active members with senior management of marketing and/or sales responsibilities with the NAMA Marketer of the Year award. This award is the most prestigious honor awarded to an active member of the association and honors outstanding accomplishments in the field of agri-marketing. Nominees must be NAMA members.

For more information about the Agribusiness Leader and NAMA Marketer of the Year awards visit, http://www.nama.org/awards/awards-index.html.

To nominate someone now for the Agribusiness Leader of the Year award visit, http://www.nama.org/awards/agribusinessform.htm.

To nominate someone now for the NAMA Marketer of the Year award visit, http://www.nama.org/awards/namamarketerform.htm.

Submit your nominations today!

NAMA is looking for individuals who are outstanding leaders in agribusiness, education, government service or other agribusiness related areas as well as individuals with outstanding accomplishments in the field of marketing directly to ag producers for the Agribusiness Leader of the Year and NAMA Marketer of the Year awards. The deadline for submitting nominations is Friday, January 19. These awards will be presented during the 2007 Agri-Marketing Conference, April 11-13, in Dallas.

The Agribusiness Leader of the Year award is NAMA’s highest honor and recognizes leadership achievement in agriculture and the food and fiber industry. This award attracts agribusiness leaders and leaders in private, public or academic service. The nominee should exemplify the qualities of a true leader and should be a visionary, a pacesetter, and a colleague with business know-how. Nominees should be considered leaders in agribusiness through service to organization and industry initiatives. Nominees need not be NAMA members.

To nominate someone for the Agribusiness Leader of the Year award, visit http://www.nama.org/awards/agribusinessform.htm.

NAMA will recognize its active members with senior management of marketing and/or sales responsibilities with the NAMA Marketer of the Year award. This award is the most prestigious honor awarded to an active member of the association and honors outstanding accomplishments in the field of agri-marketing. Individuals should possess overall responsibility for marketing and/or sales of their company or organization and be directly associated with a company or firm marketing product(s)/service(s) to farmers or ranchers. Nominees must be NAMA members.

To nominate someone for the NAMA Marketer of the Year award, visit http://www.nama.org/awards/namamarketerform.htm.

The deadline for submitting nominations for the Agribusiness Leader of the Year and the NAMA Marketer of the Year is one month away. Submit your nominations to the NAMA office by January 19, 2007. Both awards will be presented at the 2007 Agri-Marketing Conference & Trade Show, April 11-13 in Dallas.

Agribusiness Leader of the Year
George Thornton, President & CEO of Agriliance LLC, was presented with the Agribusiness Leader of the Year Award, NAMA’s highest honor, at the Opening General Session of the 2006 Agri-Marketing Conference & Trade Show in Kansas City.

Thornton joined Agriliance in 2001 and spent his first 12 months traveling throughout the country, listening to dealers and growers share ideas on products and services they most value in a supplier. With a clear understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing the company, Thornton set clear goals for the organization, motivated his teams and gave them the resources needed to achieve a dramatic turnaround in every facet of the company’s business.

The Agribusiness Leader of the Year award honors an outstanding leader in agribusiness, education, government service or other related areas. Solicited from senior level position holders in private, public or academic service, nominees should exemplify excellence in agribusiness by their significant contributions to the industry. Nominees do not need to be NAMA members.

If you would like to nominate someone for the Agribusiness Leader of the Year award, please fill out the nomination form on-line now at http://www.nama.org/awards/agribusinessform.htm or download the Agribusiness Leader Nomination form in an Adobe .PDF format by visiting, http://www.nama.org/awards/agbusapplication.pdf.

NAMA Marketer of the Year
Tom Davis, Group Publisher of Meredith Corporation’s Men’s Brands, was presented with the NAMA Marketer of the Year award during the Second General Session at the 2006 Agri-Marketing Conference & Trade Show in Kansas City.

Davis had the foresight to envision the major shifts taking place in the way information is distributed and consumed by readers. Not only has he continued to reinvest in Successful Farming magazine with a major redesign, but he has also been alert to the power of the internet by viewing Agriculture Online (Successful Farming’s online presence) as a profit center of its own, capable of a presence both supportive and supporting of print, but also able to function at another level entirely.

The NAMA Marketer of the Year award is the most prestigious honor awarded to an active member of the association and honors outstanding accomplishments in the field of agri-marketing. Nominees are solicited from agribusiness and related companies with overall marketing and/or sales responsibilities. Nominees must be NAMA members.

If you are interested in nominating someone for the NAMA Marketer of the Year award, please fill out the nomination form on-line now at http://www.nama.org/awards/namamarketerform.htm or download the NAMA Marketer of the Year nomination form in an Adobe .PDF format by visiting, http://www.nama.org/awards/mktrapplication.pdf.

For more information on these awards and to see past winners, visit, http://www.nama.org/awards/awards-index.html.