Council Welcomes Several Newcomers to its 2023 Board of Directors — Agricultural Business Council of Kansas City

The Ag Business Council of Kansas City is pleased to welcome several new members to its board of directors. Here is an introduction…

Justin Gilpin became Kansas Wheat CEO September 1, 2009. Gilpin is a graduate of Kansas State University’s Milling Science program within the Department of Grain Science and Industry. Before joining Kansas Wheat, Gilpin worked at General Mills, Inc., where he was a wheat buyer for three flour mills. He executed daily wheat market orders on the floor of the Kansas City Board of Trade, worked with flour sales, elevator and mill management, and sourcing wheat from various classes. He has been involved in a number of U.S. Wheat Associates committees, is past-chair of the Kansas City Board of Trade Cash Basis committee, Wheat Quality Council board Member and is an adjunct research scientist for Kansas State University's Department of Grain Science and Industry. He currently serves as Chairman of Heartland Plant Innovations and works daily leading efforts at the Kansas Wheat Innovation Center on the KSU campus.

Brad Hamilton is Vice President of Supply Chain & Logistics at Seaboard Foods where he is responsible for procurement, planning, third-party logistic services, inventory, analytics, transportation, and export logistics. Over the course of his 23-year career at Seaboard, he has held various leadership roles in financial analytics, information services, margin management and strategic planning. Seaboard Foods is a large division of Seaboard Corporation and a vertically integrated pork producer and processor.

He is an alumnus of Northwest Missouri State University where he earned B.S degrees in both Finance and Computer Management Systems. He is a native of Burlington Junction, MO, a small farming community in the northwest part of the state. He and his wife, Andrea, have four children. In his spare time he enjoys running/training for races with his wife, landscaping, construction projects around the house and supporting their children in various activities. He and his family are active in their church, as well.

Dr. Haley Larson is an assistant professor of animal health at Kansas State University's Olathe campus. Dr. Larson earned her B.S. in Animal Science and Ph.D. in Ruminant Nutrition from the University of Minnesota. Her graduate studies focused on understanding how manipulation of growth and fermentation patterns in feedlot cattle effects animal performance. While completing her degree, Larson began working as a senior scientist for Cargill Animal Nutrition and Health.

At Kansas State, Dr. Larson teaches several animal health graduate-level courses within the department of applied and interdisciplinary studies as well as the College of Veterinary Medicine’s diagnostic medicine and pathobiology department. She leads courses on regulatory affairs for animal health products, research strategies for new product development, zoonotic pathogens in the food chain, as well as others.

James Nygren is a Legislative Affairs Officer for two Farm Credit Associations – Frontier Farm Credit, based in Manhattan, Kansas, and Farm Credit Services of America, headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. Prior to his position he worked for state and federal elected officials covering Agriculture, Energy, Environment, Immigration and Trade issues. Nygren received his B.S. and J.D. from the University of Nebraska and his M.P.S. at George Washington University.

Emily Schuckenbrock

Emily Schuckenbrock is the Senior Program Manager of Leader Competency Development with Agriculture Future of America (AFA). AFA is a national organization headquartered in Kansas City focused on shaping leaders to make a positive impact in the food and agriculture industry. Emily has designed and executed key programming for the organization including AFA Leader Institutes, virtual learning and young professional events, and the organization’s flagship experience, AFA Leaders Conference. Emily has worked to support the development of thousands of young leaders in agriculture and food by building opportunities that connect seasoned leaders, professional development learning models and trending industry topics to the next generation of talent.

Emily has a bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Education and Leadership and a master’s degree in Agricultural Leadership, Communication and Education, both from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Emily moved to Kansas City, MO in 2019 and quickly fell in love with the area, settling in the Northland. When Emily isn’t on AFA time, you’ll find her strolling downtown Parkville with her fiancé, Austin, or visiting her folks on the family’s century farm in Bowling Green, MO.

Jackie McClaskey

Dr. Jackie McClaskey was named President and CEO of the American Royal Association in December 2022. She has served as President of New Campus Development for the American Royal since January 2019 leading all aspects of the project to build a new home. McClaskey served as the Kansas Secretary of Agriculture from 2013 to 2019 following service as Assistant and Deputy Secretary in the Kansas Department of Agriculture. Prior to joining to the Department of Agriculture, McClaskey served as an assistant dean for the College of Agriculture at Kansas State University for 13 years. In addition, McClaskey is a co-founder and president of Roots and Legacies, Inc., an agricultural services and leadership consulting firm.

A native Kansan, McClaskey grew up on a diversified family farm near Girard. Her family was involved with livestock as well crop production. She earned a bachelor's degree in agriculture economics from Kansas State University, a Master of Science in agricultural economics from Texas A&M University, and a Ph.D. in Animal Science from Kansas State University in January 2014. Her Ph.D. dissertation analyzed foreign animal disease response policy. McClaskey, her husband Mike Matson and their two Australian Shepherds, Lady and Scout, live in Manhattan.

Jim Staiert is the Associate Administrator of the USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) and has been with ERS since August 2020. Jim began his career at USDA in 1990 as an Economist with the Agricultural Cooperative Service conducting research of the financial performance of the nation’s 100 largest agricultural cooperatives. In 1995, Jim took a position with the USDA Office of Budget and Program Analysis (OBPA) where he served as a Program Analyst providing advice to the Office of the Secretary on legislative, regulatory, and budgetary matters of the Department. During his time with OBPA, his area of responsibility included the mission areas of Rural Development (RD), Farm and Foreign Agricultural Service (FFAS), Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC), Natural Resources and Environment (NRE), and the Marketing and Regulatory Programs (MRP). In 2018, Jim became the first Budget Director for the newly created Farm Production and Conservation mission area. In this role, Jim helped to merge 3 existing budget offices to create a consolidated budget office for the entire mission area, managing $70-90 billion in Federal resources each fiscal year. Throughout his career, Jim has had a hand in implementing 5 Farm Bills.

Jim was born and raised on a mixed-use family farm (dairy, hog, corn, soybeans) in Southwest Iowa. Jim attended Iowa State University and received undergraduate degrees in Finance and Agricultural Business as well as a Master’s in Economics. Jim and his wife Ana moved to Kansas City, MO in May 2021, after spending about 30 years in Washington, DC. Jim and Ana enjoy travel and have traveled extensively to Europe and South/Central America.

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