USDA Invites Producers, Stakeholders to Urban Agriculture Meeting
The U.S. Department of Agriculture encourages urban producers, innovative producers and other stakeholders to virtually attend the fourth public meeting of the Federal Advisory Committee for Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production on Feb. 23.
“Since last year, the Federal Advisory Committee has been a source of valuable, on the ground information and recommendations for USDA,” said Terry Cosby, chief of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, which houses USDA’s Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production. “This meeting will help us better serve urban and innovative producers and their communities.”
The Committee is part of USDA’s efforts to support urban agriculture and innovative agriculture, creating a network for feedback. Members include agricultural producers and representatives from the areas of higher education or extension programs, non-profits, business and economic development, supply chains and financing. Three public meetings of the Committee were held in 2022.
Topics include:
- Addressing previous public comments.
- Subcommittee and committee deliberations.
- Public forum.
The meeting will be held from 3:30-6 p.m. ET on Feb. 23. To attend virtually, register by Feb. 23 on the Committee’s webpage.
Written comments for the urban agriculture meeting must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. ET on March 9 through the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Docket #2022-24020.
For special accommodations, contact Markus Holliday at UrbanAgricultureFederalAdvisoryCommittee@usda.gov. \
USDA will share the agenda between 24 to 48 hours prior to the meeting on https://www.usda.gov/partnerships/federal-advisory-committee-urban-ag. Additionally, other resources include the Federal Register notice and the Committee’s webpage.
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Loftus Appointed Sun-Maid President, COO
Sun-Maid Growers of California has appointed Steve Loftus as Sun-Maid president and chief operating officer, reporting to Harry Overly, executive chairman of the board. In this newly created role, all functional areas within Sun-Maid will report directly to Loftus as he will be accountable to the daily operations of the business. A 15-year industry veteran, Loftus is recognized for his ability to build and align cross functional partners around common objectives, delivering short and long term financial and strategic growth goals.
“Steve is an exceptional and proven leader in the food industry, and we’re looking forward to the contributions he will bring to the team as president and COO,” said Overly. “Steve’s strong track record of results and expertise will be a key driver in building our success as we continue to grow, transforming the iconic Sun-Maid brand to be even more relevant to today’s shoppers.”
Loftus is a multi-functional leader who has held various leadership roles at TreeHouse Foods and Kraft Heinz in Finance and General Management. Most recently, he served as the Vice president, general manager of the Condiments Business Unit at TreeHouse Foods, where he led the unit with approximately one billion in revenues across twelve product categories and five production facilities. Prior to that, Loftus was the head of customer finance at TreeHouse Foods, where he was responsible for all product and customer pricing strategies, as well as the company’s AOP planning processes.
In addition to delivering these positive results, Sun-Maid also continues with the integration of Plum PBC, Sun-Maid’s first ever acquisition. In his new role, Loftus will lead the Sun-Maid business as it continues to transform, achieve strong sales, and improve upon all operating metrics.
“I’ve always admired Sun-Maid, and I’m excited to officially join the team as president and chief operating officer to help take the brand to the next level,” added Loftus. “In the new role, I plan to continue accelerating Sun-Maid’s transformation into a consumer and market-focused organization, while executing daily operations that contribute to the company’s growth strategies.”
Loftus will replace Braden Bender, who has been serving as Sun-Maid’s interim president since September and is returning to his role as chief financial officer.
Founded in 1912, Sun-Maid Growers of California is a farmer’s cooperative of 600 grower families with vineyards in California’s Central Valley. From childhood to adulthood and generation to generation, Sun-Maid’s innovative snacks continue to feed imaginations one little red box at a time – because when imagination is used for good, there’s nothing more delicious! And while some things change, our real, minimally processed and consistently good ingredients haven’t. Always starting with a whole fruit you can see and taste, Sun-Maid continues to offer a trusted go-to snack that’s simple, healthy and versatile – imagine that!
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Pairwise Food Tech Company Adds Overly to Board
Pairwise, a food tech company that uses gene editing to develop new varieties of fruits and vegetables, has added its second independent board member, Harry Overly.
Overly serves as chief executive officer of Flagstone Foods, headquartered in Minneapolis, one of the largest manufacturers and distributors of private label snacks in North America. A portfolio company of Atlas Holdings, LLC., Flagstone is a leading supplier of innovative, premier snack mixes, mixed nuts and dried fruit products. Overly also serves as a board member of Flagstone Foods.
Overly serves as the executive chairman of the board at Sun-Maid Growers of California, where he served as president & chief executive officer for five years. He is best known throughout his 20-year career as a visionary, leading new product innovation for the category-leading food brands for which he has worked, with significant executive-level experience in marketing, sales, and strategy.
The addition of Overly to the Pairwise board of directors is timely, as his diverse leadership and expertise in introducing and managing healthy food brands and products will inform the launch of Conscious Greens, a portfolio of new varieties of colorful, nutrient-dense salad greens coming to the U.S. market in 2023.
“Harry’s experience leading organizations focused on delivering innovative healthy snacking and fruit products is key to our goal of bringing healthier snacking options to consumers,” said Tom Adams, chief executive officer and co-founder of Pairwise. “Harry’s strategic and operational leadership in the snacking industry will be key to our company’s success,” Adams said.
Prior to joining Sun-Maid, Overly was the CEO of North America for Deoleo, the seller of the world’s largest olive oil brands, best known in the US for Bertolli Olive Oil. Before leading Deoleo’s business, Harry was the chief customer officer of TreeHouse Foods, the largest private label-focused food manufacturer in the United States with sales of approximately $7 billion. Before TreeHouse, Harry held several positions within marketing, sales, and product innovation within Kraft Foods, The Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. and BestSweet, Inc.
In February 2021, Pairwise raised $90 million in a successful series B funding round, bringing total fundraising to $115 million when combined with the series A funding round. Additionally, Pairwise has a $100 million, five-year collaboration with Bayer Crop Science to advance gene editing tools in row crops. Pairwise is currently developing new types of leafy greens, berries, and cherries. In four years, the company has grown to over 150 employees with additional anticipated growth in 2023 as the company enters retail and food service.
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