Tuesday, August 26

Rodney Weinzierl
Executive Director, Illinois Corn

Rodney Weinzierl has served as Executive Director of IL Corn since 1993, where he oversees market development, education, and research programs for the Illinois Corn Marketing Board, as well as membership, legislative, and public relations for the Illinois Corn Growers Association. He began his career with IL Corn in 1988 as Market Development Director and previously worked with the Cooperative Extension Service as the Tazewell County Ag Adviser. Rodney holds a degree in Agricultural Sciences and Production from Illinois State University. He and his wife, Kathy, reside in Stanford, Illinois, and have three adult daughters.

John Lumpe
CEO, Illinois Soybean Association

John Lumpe is the CEO of the Illinois Soybean Association (ISA). Having previously served as Senior Vice President of FLM Harvest, and Executive Director of the Ohio Soybean Association, Ohio Soybean Council, and the Ohio Soybean Council Foundation, John brings more than 30 years of experience in association management, public relations, strategic planning, communications and market development. In his role as CEO, John is responsible for leading the state’s soybean checkoff and membership programs and upholding ISA’s commitment to driving profitability and global competitive positioning of Illinois soy. As leader of the number one soybean-producing state in the nation, John’s efforts are in the service of expanding opportunities for Illinois’ soybean farmers through promotion, education, outreach, and advocating for farm policies that ensure a successful, sustainable future for Illinois agriculture. John and his wife Lisa reside in Bloomington, Ill., and have two sons, Jack and Henry.

Bailey Arnold
Director, Clean Air Initiatives, American Lung Association

Bailey Arnold is an environmental science and sustainability professional with the American Lung Association©. Bailey is focused on the adoption of alternative fuels and technologies through the ALA’s award-winning Clean Air Choice© program. As B20 Club Lead for the Illinois Soybean Association checkoff program, he is responsible for all B20 Club support and outreach activities.

Shelby Watson
Director, The Americas & Allied Industry Programs, USA Poultry & Egg Export Council (USAPEEC)

Shelby Watson joined the USAPEEC team in February 2018. Over the course of her time at USAPEEC, she has worked to increase partnerships with our Corn and Soybean members by setting a record for non-government funding of over 6 million dollars from just 4.8 million dollars in 2018. Shelby has also worked to increase commodity membership by recruiting and welcoming six new state checkoff boards to USAPEEC. Commodity contributions fund over 100 activities in more than 35 countries worldwide. In 2025, Shelby became the Director of Marketing for the Americas region including Mexico, Central America, South America and the Caribbean while still maintaining her role with Allied Industries. 

Krista Swanson
Lead Economist, National Corn Growers Association

Krista Swanson is the Lead Economist at the National Corn Growers Association, providing economic analysis to support market and policy decisions. Before NCGA, Krista worked as a research analyst at the University of Illinois, publishing frequently on farm economics and policy impacts via farmdoc. Her background also includes farm loan portfolio analysis and agricultural accounting. She holds an M.S. in Agricultural Economics from the University of Illinois and farms with her husband and four children in Illinois.

Lyndsey Erb 
Director, Industry Affairs, U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC)

As Director of Industry Affairs at the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC), Lyndsey Erb leads strategic initiatives to strengthen industry engagement, enhance market access, and promote the global utilization of U.S. Soy. She works closely with stakeholders across the soy value chain—including producers, exporters, and international buyers—to align U.S. Soy with the evolving needs of global markets. Lyndsey also plays a key role in advancing USSEC’s mission by supporting market access, facilitating technical collaboration, and driving industry-wide efforts to address trade barriers and expand international opportunities for U.S. Soy.  Prior to joining USSEC, Lyndsey served in several leadership roles at the U.S. Grains Council from 2011 to 2023, most recently as Director of Industry Relations. In that capacity, she led membership engagement and stakeholder development efforts to support U.S. grain exports.  Lyndsey holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Finance & Administration with a minor in Marketing and a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Southwest Minnesota State University. 

Brady Holst
Vice Chairman, Illinois Soybean Association

Brady Holst is the Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) Vice Chairman, an At-Large Director, and a member of the Personnel Committee. Holst farms corn, soybeans, and wheat around Augusta, Illinois. Prior to working on the farm full time, he was a design engineer at an ag-technology company after graduating from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Dr. Gary Schnitkey
Professor; Soybean Industry Chair in Agricultural Strategy, University of Illinois 

Dr. Gary Schnitkey is the Soybean Industry Chair in Agricultural Strategy within the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, University of Illinois. His activities focus on farm and risk management on Corn Belt grain farms. He analyzes factors causing differences in profitability across farms, and develops ways of mitigating risk on farms. He writes the Weekly Farm Economics article that appears each Tuesday on the farmdocDaily website. Dr. Schnitkey grew up on a grain and hog farm in northwest Ohio. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from The Ohio State University and a Masters and Ph.D. from the University of Illinois. From 1987 through 1998, he was on faculty at The Ohio State University where he held a dairy farm management position. Since 1998, he has been employed at the University of Illinois.

Ellen Zimmerman
Director of Industry Relations, U.S. Grains Council

Ellen Zimmerman leads membership development and stakeholder engagement for the U.S. Grains Council, promoting global use of U.S. corn, barley, sorghum, ethanol and DDGS. Her work spans member services, international industry relations, and trade education. Ellen previously held roles with the American Seed Trade Association and Ohio Corn & Wheat, where she focused on communications and grower engagement. She holds a degree in Agricultural Communication from The Ohio State University.

Andrew Larson
Director of Government Relations & Strategy, Illinois Soybean Association

Andrew Larson is the Director of Government Relations & Strategy for the Illinois Soybean Association (ISA). He manages ISA’s Government Relations team, ISA policy goals, Illinois and Federal governmental affairs, biodiesel programs and organizational strategy. Prior to joining ISA, Larson worked in governmental affairs with Illinois Farm Bureau and with the Illinois Republican State Senate Campaign Committee. He is a 2012 graduate of Illinois State University majoring in political science and history. He and his wife, Blair, have three children.