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USW Board Elects Millershaski as 2024-25 Secretary-Treasurer

ARLINGTON, Virginia – At its Jan. 26 meeting in Washington, D.C., the U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) Board of Directors elected wheat farmer Gary Millershaski of Lakin, Kan., as Secretary-Treasurer for fiscal year 2024-25. The board also elected Clark Hamilton, of Ririe, Idaho, as Chairman; Jim Pellman, of McClusky, N.D., as Vice Chairman; and Michael Peters, ofOkarche, Okla., as Past Chairman. These elected officers will take their positions at the USW Board of Directors Annual Meeting July 9-12 in Oklahoma City, Okla.

Millershaski, along with his wife Jana and their sons Jeremy and Kyler, grow hard white (HW) and hard red winter (HRW) wheat, dryland corn and milo, and manage a cow/calf operation on their farm, which was passed along from Jana’s father Earl Kleeman. Millershaski became a Kansas Wheat Commissioner in 2016 and currently serves as its chairman. He also served as a director of the Kansas Association of Wheat Growers (KAWG) from 2007 to 2017 after he received a KAWG scholarship while a member of the Class VIII Kansas Agricultural & Rural Leadership (KARL) program.

Learn more about Millershaski’s experience and commitment to the U.S. wheat industry and USW in the video below.

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Feeding the World, Caring for the Land: U.S. Wheat Associates Launches ‘Stories of Stewardship’ Video Series

ARLINGTON, Virginia – The time and effort U.S. farmers put into caring for the land makes for a story that is not shared often enough. A new video series produced by U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) aims to change that for overseas wheat buyers by focusing on how producers help feed the world while also acting as stewards of soil, water, and the environment.

USW’s  “Stories of Stewardship” project goes straight to the source. Five wheat farmers in five different states appear on camera, from their farms, to talk about their work to assure economic security for the next generation of farmers by leaving their land in better shape than it was when they started farming it.

A preview of the new, six-episode series can be viewed here. USW will debut the series at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Jan. 10, 2024, with a Facebook Live event at www.facebook.com/uswheat/.

“First and foremost, we are stewards of this land, so we can pass it on to the next generation.”                       Nick Jorgensen, Ideal, South Dakota.

Sustainable Production Across the U.S.

Episode 1 of Stories of Stewardship focuses on the variety of sustainable practices applied by the five farm families producing different classes of wheat across the wide range of growing conditions in the United States.

Five episodes will follow in January and February covering individual Stories of Stewardship from family farmers Tom Cannon, Blackwell, Okla., Ben and Stephanie Bowsher, Waynesfield, Ohio, Nick Jorgensen, Ideal, S.D., Art Schultheis, Colton, Wash., and Aaron Kjelland, Park River, N.D.

A Food Ingredient Produced Sustainably

“Consumers around the world want to know how their food is grown and U.S. wheat is definitely a food ingredient,” said USW Vice President of Communications Steve Mercer. “Here at home, we know U.S. farmers work every day to nourish and improve the land and produce a sustainable source of high-quality wheat. The purpose of the Stories of Stewardship series is to share this information with international buyers, millers, wheat food processors, and consumers who value the quality and reliability of U.S. wheat.”

In addition to the USW Facebook page, the Stories of Stewardship series can be seen on the USW website, Vimeo, X, and LinkedIn.

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U.S. Wheat Associates Hires Fiscal Officer, Promotes Two Others

USW Vice President of Finance Kevin McGarry has announced position changes in his team.

Norman Karlson has been hired as Fiscal Officer effective August 29, 2023. Kurt Coppens has been promoted to Director of Finance from his current position as Fiscal Officer. And current Senior Staff Accountant Adam Kiely has been promoted to Comptroller.

USW is the export market development organization for the U.S. wheat industry.

Norman Karlson

Norman Karlson, USW Fiscal Officer

Norman Karlson, USW Fiscal Officer

“We are very pleased to have Norman Karlson join the finance team in Arlington,” said McGarry. “With strong experience in non-profit financial management, Norman will bring a new perspective to our efforts. His ability to earn a master’s degree in accountancy at a young age shows his initiative and determination. We’re confident that he’ll begin his career at U.S. Wheat Associates with diligence and enthusiasm.”

Karlson most recently was a project accountant with Reading is Fundamental, or RIF, the nation’s largest children’s literacy non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C. He also served as an accounting intern at Digital Promise, a global nonprofit working to expand learning opportunities by fostering innovative educational programs. While earning his bachelor’s degree in accountancy and master’s degree in 2022 at The George Washington University (GWU), Karlson was a billing assistant in the university’s events and venues finance department.

Kurt Coppens

Kurt Coppens, USW Director of Finance

Kurt Coppens, USW Director of Finance

Before joining USW as Fiscal Officer in July 2016, Kurt Coppens was an accounting manager at Agora, Inc., and Bridgestreet Corporate Housing Worldwide. Coppens earned a business administration degree in finance and international business from GWU. Originally from Belgium, Coppens became a U.S. citizen in 2018.

Adam Kiely, USW Comptroller

Adam Kiely, USW Comptroller

Adam Kiely

Adam Kiely joined USW in 1996 as staff accountant after working as a bookkeeper at Strauss Photo Technical Services. He earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Appalachian State University.

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Yi-I Huang Joins U.S. Wheat Associates; Taiwan Country Director Boyuan Chen to Retire

U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) has hired Mr. Yi-I Huang (pronounced “E.E. Huang”) as Country Director for Taiwan, succeeding Boyuan Chen who plans to retire in September 2023.

Color portrait of retiring USW Taiwan Country Director Boyuan Chen.

Boyuan Chen

“Working with Boyuan Chen the past seven years, we have come to rely on his steady disposition and solid leadership,” said Jeff Coey, USW Regional Vice President. “He has been a good ambassador for U.S. wheat and the farmers we represent in Taiwan. His retirement comes sooner than we expected, but we wish him health and happiness.

“At the same time, we are excited to welcome Yi-I Huang to our team in the important Taiwanese market,” Coey added.

Grain Merchandising Career

Huang comes to USW after a fourteen-year career in grain merchandizing at Mitsui & Company, at both the company’s Taipei and Tokyo offices. Mitsui is the parent company of Vancouver Washington’s United Grain Corporation, which is a major grain supplier to several Asian markets.

Portrait of new USW Taiwan Country Director Yi-I Huang.

Yi-I Huang

In addition to his professional experience, Huang is fluent in Mandarin, Taiwanese, Japanese, and English. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in agriculture from National Taiwan University in Taipei, and he participated in an international exchange program at Keio University of Tokyo, Japan.

USW has maintained an office in Taipei for more than 50 years, with strong demand for U.S. hard red spring, soft white, and hard red winter wheat from Taiwan’s milling and baking industries. Taiwan has imported an average of more than 1.2 million metric tons of U.S. wheat per year the past five years. U.S. wheat sales to Taiwan in the first two months of marketing year 2023/24 have already reached 452,000 metric tons.

U.S. Wheat Associates’ (USW) mission is to “develop, maintain, and expand international markets to enhance wheat’s profitability for U.S. wheat producers and its value for their customers.” USW activities in more than 100 countries are made possible through producer checkoff dollars managed by 17 state wheat commissions and cost-share funding provided by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. USW maintains 15 offices strategically located around the world to help wheat buyers, millers, bakers, wheat food processors and government officials understand the quality, value, and reliability of all six U.S. wheat classes. For more information, visit www.uswheat.org.

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U.S. Wheat Associates Seats New Officers

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota — The U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) board of directors seated officers for 2023/24 at their annual meeting the week of July 12, 2023, in Minneapolis, Minn. USW is the export market development organization for the U.S. wheat industry.

Michael Peters, Okarche, Okla., accepted the USW Chairman’s gavel from 2022/23 Chair Rhonda Larson, East Grand Forks, Minn. Clark Hamilton, Ririe, Idaho, now serves as Vice Chair, and Jim Pellman, McClusky, N.D., starts his term as Secretary-Treasurer. This slate of officers was elected in February 2023.

U.S. Wheat Associates Officers for 2023-24.

U.S. Wheat Associates Officers for 2023/24 (Left to Right): Clark Hamilton, Ririe, Idaho, Vice Chairman; Jim Pellman, McClusky, N.D., Secretary-Treasurer; Rhonda Larson, East Grand Forks, Minn., Past Chairperson; and Michael Peters, Okarche, Okla., Chairman. For more information, visit www.uswheat.org.

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U.S. Wheat Associates Hires Muller as Assistant Director of its West Coast Office

Luke Muller, U.S. Wheat Associates Assistant Director in Portland, Ore.

Luke Muller, U.S. Wheat Associates’ new Assistant Director in its Portland office

U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) has hired Luke Muller as Assistant Director of its West Coast Office in Portland, Ore. Muller, who began his new role on May 30, comes to USW with a broad set of skills and experience in agricultural research and economics.

Raised on his family’s wheat, cotton, sorghum, canola, soybean and alfalfa farm in southwestern Oklahoma, Muller has a bachelor’s degree in Plant and Soil Sciences and Agribusiness from Oklahoma State University (OSU). He earned a master’s degree in Agriculture, Food and Resource Economics at Michigan State University (MSU).

Muller worked as a Research Assistant in MSU’s Department of Agriculture, Food, and Resource Economics, where his duties included investigating fungal and insect effect on crops in the Midwest. He also served as a consultant for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Rome, Italy. His work and study abroad offered an opportunity to see firsthand how other countries develop sustainable food chains through technology, research, and policy.

“Luke’s expertise in agricultural economics, coupled with his understanding of wheat farming and his excellent communication skills, will undoubtedly strengthen our efforts to support and promote the US wheat in the overseas market,” said Steve Wirsching, Vice President, and Director of USW’s West Coast Office.

Muller has been active on the local, state and international levels, serving in leadership roles focused on food security and sustainability.

“I really look forward to helping U.S. Wheat Associates in a variety of ways, and I think my educational background in agriculture and experience in research and farming will help me excel in the role,” said Muller. “My knowledge of agriculture has been shaped by different countries and through peer-reviewed research. But I also have a personal connection to farming.”

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U.S. Wheat Associates Promotes Tyllor Ledford to Market Analyst

U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) has promoted Tyllor Ledford to Market Analyst. Ledford has served as USW Assistant Director of the West Coast Office in Portland, Ore., since August 2021. USW is the export market development organization for the wheat industry.

“We are very pleased to recognize Tyllor’s strong contribution to our customer support and crop quality efforts with this promotion to Market Analyst,” said USW Vice President of Communications Steve Mercer. “Providing global and domestic market analysis, including unique information on U.S. wheat export pricing, is an important part of our trade service effort. Tyllor has the educational background and people skills to excel in this position.”

Ledford joined USW after completing both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in agricultural and applied economics from Texas Tech University. Her master’s thesis focused on the relationship between food security and conflict patterns in Africa and was awarded the “2022 Outstanding Master’s Thesis” by the Southern Agricultural Economics Association. She gained valuable experience as a Texas Tech graduate research assistant, by interning with Colorado State University Extension and through agribusiness academic immersion programs in China and Spain. Ledford is a native of Colorado, growing up on her family’s farm where they raised Quarter Horses and irrigated alfalfa.

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Portrait of Tyllor Ledford, Market Analyst with U.S. Wheat Associates

Tyllor Ledford, USW Market Analyst

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U.S. Wheat 2022 Crop Quality Videos Available

U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) has posted video presentations at a dedicated website, https://cropquality.uswheat.org/, to support the organization’s report on 2022 U.S. wheat crop quality. The video content includes eight presentations by wheat class and export location, a global wheat supply and demand summary and five special topic presentations.

The annual crop quality effort to report on comprehensive milling, flour and baking data for all six U.S. wheat classes is an essential part of USW’s trade service to the world’s wheat buyers and wheat food processors. It provides objective information buyers can use to get the wheat they need at the best value possible.

North Dakota Wheat Commission Marketing Director Jim Peterson presenting 2022 hard red spring wheat quality data in a video presentation.

Hard Red Spring 2022 Crop Quality for the Pacific Northwest export tributary is presented by Jim Peterson, North Dakota Wheat Commission in this video summary posted online at cropquality.uswheat.org.

 

In-season, USW and its state wheat commission members share early crop conditions through webinars. Sample testing and analysis is conducted during and after harvest by partner laboratories. The results are shared with customers in several ways including a summary report, by-class reports, in-person seminars, and video summaries.

USW Crop Quality reporting is funded by the Market Development Program (MAP) and Foreign Market Development (FMD) program administered by the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.

 

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Ralph Loos Joins U.S. Wheat Associates as Director of Communications

U.S. Wheat Associates (USW), Arlington, Va., has hired Ralph Loos as Director of Communications. He comes to the organization with nearly 14 years of experience in agriculture communications, serving both the grain and livestock industries. He replaces Amanda Spoo who left USW for another position in July.

“Ralph’s experience working with USDA Foreign Agricultural Service cooperator organizations and his enthusiasm for the marketing communications profession is a great fit for U.S. Wheat Associates,” said USW Vice President of Communications Steve Mercer. “I think the wheat farmers we represent in overseas markets, our state wheat commission members and his colleagues are going to be very pleased with his work.”

Ralph Loos, USW Director of Communications

Ralph Loos, USW Director of Communications

Raised on his family’s farm in southern Illinois, Loos paid his way through college as a newspaper reporter and editor. He earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communications from Southern Illinois University in 2008.

Loos began his ag career as Communications Specialist for the U.S. Soybean Export Council. He then worked as Editor and Communications Manager for the American Sheep Industry Association, where he produced a monthly magazine for sheep producers and helped launch the association’s social media platforms.

In 2015, Loos joined the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) as its Communications Director. Along with creating written content, Ralph worked closely with USMEF staff around the world to produce video segments for the organization’s internal and external audiences.

In August 2021, Loos took a year-long leave from ag communications to work as Communications Manager for a Denver-based healthcare startup that specializes in staffing public health departments and setting up emergency COVID testing and vaccination clinics.

“While I valued the healthcare communications experience, I am happy to return to my roots and look forward to doing what I can to help support the U.S. wheat industry,” Loos said.

A high resolution photo is available for download here.

The U.S. Wheat Associates mission is to “develop, maintain, and expand international markets to enhance wheat’s profitability for U.S. wheat producers and its value for their customers.” USW activities in more than 100 countries are made possible through producer checkoff dollars managed by 17 state wheat commissions and cost-share funding provided by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. For more information, visit www.uswheat.org.

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Brenda Taylor Joins U.S. Wheat Associates as Director of Information Technology

ARLINGTON, Virginia – U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) has hired Brenda Taylor as Director of Information Technology in its Arlington, Va., headquarters office. Taylor is an experienced information technology (IT) manager having worked primarily in a local law firm. USW is the export market organization for the U.S. wheat industry.

 

Portrait of Brenda Taylor

Brenda Taylor

“We are pleased to have Brenda join the USW team,” said USW Vice President of Finance Kevin McGarry. “She brings a wealth of experience and credentials, and we feel she will be a great fit to manage the IT needs of our global organization. Brenda recently earned a master’s degree in cybersecurity, showing initiative in this crucial and ever-changing discipline.”

Taylor is returning to the workforce after serving as IT Manager with Morrison & Foerster, Washington, D.C., where she guided the firm’s technology strategy while leading a team of analysts in three local offices. She has a bachelor’s degree in Decision Science and Management Information Systems and a master’s degree in Applied IT, Cybersecurity from George Mason University.

U.S. Wheat Associates’ (USW) mission is to “develop, maintain, and expand international markets to enhance wheat’s profitability for U.S. wheat producers and its value for their customers.” USW activities in more than 100 countries are made possible through producer checkoff dollars managed by 17 state wheat commissions and cost-share funding provided by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. USW maintains 15 offices strategically located around the world to help wheat buyers, millers, bakers, wheat food processors and government officials understand the quality, value and reliability of all six U.S. wheat classes. For more information, visit www.uswheat.org.

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