“Congratulations to Mark Poeschl on his selection to serve as the next chief executive officer of National FFA,” said Lt. Governor Eric Holcomb. As the home of FFA’s national headquarters as well as the national convention, Indiana has a special appreciation for the great work of the organization to encourage, train, and support the next generation of leadership in the agriculture industry. His industry experience and leadership as an FFA member and former state FFA president means Mark is uniquely qualified to lead this important organization. “We are fortunate in Indiana to have such a strong partnership with National FFA, which has experienced immense growth over the years. As co-chair of the National FFA Convention Host Committee, I look forward to working with Mark and supporting this organization, especially with the National FFA convention returning to Indianapolis this year,” said ISDA Director Ted McKinney.
Beth Bechdol, director of agribusiness strategies with Ice Miller LLP’s Food and Agribusiness group said, “Ice Miller appreciates the commitment of National FFA leadership to build, grow and protect the American agriculture industry and future leaders,” said Bechdol. “Mark has clearly demonstrated in his professional experiences his abilities to collaborate, innovate, communicate and lead. I am confident he will continue the positive momentum generated by retiring CEO, Dr. Dwight Armstrong, and ensure even greater success for National FFA and the students it serves.”
Poeschl, a former FFA member and past state FFA president from Nebraska, brings strong business, customer service, financial, IT and global perspectives to the organization. He currently serves as vice president, group director, stakeholder engagement at Cargill, Inc., Cargill Animal Nutrition. During his tenure at Cargill, Poeschl was deeply involved in the successful integration of Provimi Holding BV as well as major capital expansion programs in the United States, South Africa, Jordan, France, Ireland and the Netherlands. In addition, he built and implemented business plans to assure profit objectives were consistently achieved and was actively involved in developing and executing Cargill Animal Nutrition’s global 2020 strategy. Poeschl played a key role in talent selection and career development in the company and was instrumental in collaborating and implementing long-range business strategies. In 2016 he began working on sustainable and responsible animal protein production issues with key stakeholders.
Melissa Proffitt, office managing partner of Ice Miller’s Indianapolis office and chair of the Food and Agribusiness group also recognized outgoing CEO Dr. Dwight Armstrong for his remarkable leadership of National FFA Organization and National FFA Foundation.
“FFA has seen momentous growth under Dwight’s leadership with new membership and fundraising records and strong relationships built with diverse businesses and organizations,” said Proffitt. “Ice Miller congratulates Dwight on his retirement for all of these achievements but, more importantly, we thank him for his contributions to the food and agriculture industry and to so many of its future leaders.”