Overview
Thank you to everyone who joined us in Palm Springs for the 2025 International Sweetener Colloquium!
Presentations and photos can be found on the 2025 International Sweetener Colloquium Hub.
Save the date for the 2026 International Sweetener Colloquium! Next year's conference will be held from February 22-25 in the greater Orlando area.
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Co-hosted by the Sweetener Users Association and the International Dairy Foods Association, the International Sweetener Colloquium provides a unique opportunity for key players from all sectors to discuss the most pressing issues facing the global sweetener industry.
Attendees will be given the opportunity to participate in content-rich sessions with presentations from a wide range of speakers, addressing the latest challenges and opportunities facing the industry. Topics will cover everything from government regulation and political outlook to current research findings and market trends.
The Colloquium draws hundreds of professionals and decision-makers from the sweetener industry and from companies that use sweeteners in the products they make. Buyers, processors, refiners, distributors and food companies actively participate in the Colloquium, using it as a springboard to enhance their business and trading-partner networks.
Sponsors:
Agenda
*All Times Pacific Print Agenda
| February 23, 2025 | Event | Speaker | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12:30pm |
Golf Tournament
Sponsored By:
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| 6:00pm - 7:30pm |
Welcome Reception
Sponsored By:
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Hotel Waterfall | |
| 9:00pm |
After-Hours Party
Sponsored By:
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Capra Ballroom & Lawn | |
| February 24, 2025 | Event | Speaker | Location |
| 8:00am - 9:00am |
Session I – Keynote Breakfast: State of the Food Industry
Sponsored By:
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Fiesta Ballroom Salons 1-8 | |
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Our keynote speaker will reflect on the challenges and opportunities facing the food industry in 2025, including the sweetener category. Much has changed over the last few years and expect more to come. |
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| 9:15am - 10:15am |
Session II – International Sugar Market Dynamics
|
Flores Ballroom | |
|
The international sugar market continues to be heavily influenced by Brazil and India, with production in the former reduced by drought and cane field fires and the later again curbing exports in favor of its ethanol industry. What are the key global sugar market dynamics and how may they affect the US market? Analysts will explain. |
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| 10:15am - 10:45am |
Networking Break
Sponsored By:
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Flores Foyer | |
| 10:45am - 12:00pm |
Session III – North American Sweetener Market Outlook
|
Flores Ballroom | |
|
The North American sugar market has changed dramatically from the last couple years, going from historically high prices and tight supplies to lower prices and ample supplies amid strong US production and partial recovery in Mexico’s cane production. High-tier imports continue to play an outsized role in the domestic market. Corn sweetener markets have been influenced by lower corn prices and strong demand from Mexico. Market experts will dissect the North American sweetener market with supply, demand and price outlooks. |
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| 4:00pm - 5:30pm |
SUA Board Meeting (invitation only)
|
Fiesta 10 | |
| 6:00pm - 7:00pm |
Networking Reception
Sponsored By:
|
Fiesta Veranda | |
| February 25, 2025 | Event | Speaker | Location |
| 8:45am - 9:15am |
Continental Breakfast
Sponsored By:
|
Flores Foyer | |
| 9:15am - 10:15am |
Session IV – Outlook for the Economy
|
Flores Ballroom | |
|
Inflation is subsiding, interest rates are being lowered and the economy is as dynamic as ever. Is the “R” word (recession) still relevant? Our Colloquium speaker will explain the current U.S. economy, possible impact from global events and paint a picture of where the economy and financial markets are headed. |
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| 10:15am - 10:45am |
Networking Break
Sponsored By:
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Flores Foyer | |
| 10:45am - 11:45am |
Session V – Nutrition Policies & Trends
|
Flores Ballroom | |
|
New regulations could require warning labels on foods with added sugar, but some think weight-loss drugs will have a greater impact. Our speakers will decode the regulatory landscape and assess the future of sugar demand. |
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| 12:00pm - 1:15pm |
Session VI – Keynote Luncheon: Election Implications for Tariffs, Trade & Other Federal Policies
Sponsored By:
|
Fiesta Ballroom Salons 1-8 | |
|
Beginning in January we have a new President and the new 119th Congress. Be sure to attend this session to better understand what different Senate and House majorities and leadership as well as the new President’s agenda could mean for new tariffs, trade agreements and many other federal government actions in 2025. |
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| 1:30pm - 2:30pm |
Session VII – Risk Management in Volatile Markets
|
Flores Ballroom | |
|
Rising and falling sugar prices, uncertainty about supply and demand and outside factors make managing risk in uncertain times a challenge, especially when food manufacturers are limited in the tools available to offset that risk. Our speaker will provide ideas on how best to navigate the markets and manage risk. |
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| 2:30pm - 3:00pm |
Networking Break
Sponsored By:
|
Flores Foyer | |
| 3:00pm - 4:00pm |
Session VIII – What the New Congress Means for the Farm Bill
|
Flores Ballroom | |
|
Congress has been grappling with passing a new Farm Bill for over two years with no resolution. The new Congress will try again to resolve the difficult funding and policy issues tied up in the massive legislation. While the major issues have been contentious, the future of the sugar program has a compromise path that could ease passage of a new sugar policy. |
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| February 26, 2025 | Event | Speaker | Location |
| 7:30am - 8:00am |
Continental Breakfast
|
Flores Foyer | |
| 8:00am - 9:30am |
Session IX – Key Commodity Analysis
|
Flores Ballroom | |
|
Key commodities – grains, oilseeds, dairy and cocoa – are a challenge even in the best of times. Our expert speakers will dive into supply and price outlooks for corn, soybeans, wheat, edible oils, cocoa and dairy products that will provide insight for food manufacturers managing procurement challenges in the year ahead. |
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| 9:30am - 10:15am |
Session X – U.S. Sugar Program Administration & Policy Challenges
|
Flores Ballroom | |
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Stocks may seem adequate, but prices have stayed stubbornly near “high-tier parity.” How should USDA and USTR administer sugar policy when the old metrics may not mean as much? |
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Session I – Keynote Breakfast: State of the Food Industry
Our keynote speaker will reflect on the challenges and opportunities facing the food industry in 2025, including the sweetener category. Much has changed over the last few years and expect more to come.
Mark Baum
Mark Baum currently serves as Chief Collaboration & Commercial Officer & Senior Vice President, Industry Relations for FMI - The Food Industry Association. In this role, Baum engages retailer, manufacturer, supplier, and service provider C-Suite executives to further trading partner collaboration, leading to operational improvements and growth opportunities across all segments of the food retail supply chain.
Baum is known for his intricate knowledge of almost every aspect of the food, beverage, consumer packaged goods (CPG), and retail industry. He is also recognized as one of the foremost experts in the design, management, and execution of strategic and commercial sales, marketing, and merchandising models across consumer facing industries.
Additionally, Baum is a Managing Partner of MARCAT Group, LLC, an advisory firm specializing in the active outdoors marketplace. Prior to that, he was a Partner and led the CPG/Retail Practice at Diamond Management & Technology Consultants (NASDAQ: DTPI), now owned by Pricewaterhouse Coopers, LLP (PwC). Earlier, he was Executive Vice President of the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA). Formerly, Baum was the President & CEO of the Association of Sales & Marketing Companies (ASMC). He joined GMA in 2001 after leading the merger with ASMC.
Earlier in his career, Baum served as Vice President, Sales and Marketing for Retail Insights, a division of Maclean Hunter Media/Progressive Grocer Associates – producers of Supermarket Insights, Convenience Store Insights and Restaurant Insights – and prior to that, held significant management positions at Food Distributors International. Baum’s career in the food, beverage, and CPG industry spans over 35 years and began at Paragon, a New York based snack food/candy distributor.
Mark Baum serves on the Board of Directors of KeyImpact Sales & Systems, a national foodservice broker in the United States. He is an Industry Venture Partner (IVP) with Loft Growth Partners, a private-equity firm, providing growth capital and industry expertise to emerging branded consumer products businesses. To promote diversity initiatives, Baum is a Founding Champion of the NextUp, a CPG/Retail industry organization dedicated to providing career opportunities for women and minorities. Baum also is a Director on the Board of Oswego State University (NY), his alma mater.
Mark Baum is a supporter of several active outdoors sporting/recreation and conservation groups. He is a past Chairman of the Board of Directors of The Access Fund; a Boulder, CO based climbing advocacy organization and land trust. He is also a Board Member of the Student Conservation Association. Baum is also active on the National Wildlife Federation’s President’s Advisory Council and serves as a Director of Nature’s Best Photography.
Mark Baum and his wife, Cathy, are residents of Reston, Virginia where they are involved in and support a variety of local charities, civic, and cultural organizations. Baum received his undergraduate degree at Oswego State University (NY) where he majored in political science/economics and completed his graduate course work in marketing and organizational development at Marymount University.
Session II – International Sugar Market Dynamics
The international sugar market continues to be heavily influenced by Brazil and India, with production in the former reduced by drought and cane field fires and the later again curbing exports in favor of its ethanol industry. What are the key global sugar market dynamics and how may they affect the US market? Analysts will explain.
Jeff Dobrydney
Jeff has been with JSG Commodities since 2005, when he started as an Assistant Trader. Born and raised in Milford, CT and a graduate from Jesuit schools Fordham University and Fairfield Prep, Jeff has solidified his role within the Sugar trading community covering both the USMCA and World futures markets which includes penning a daily report. He is now the Sr. Vice President of JSG and heads the Futures & Options desk that executes trades for Sugar, Cocoa, Coffee and Grains for a wide array of clientele. Jeff also served as the President of the Sugar Club of New York and is a featured speaker at the annual Datagro conference in New York. A resident of Trumbull, Connecticut with his wife and two girls, Jeff also serves on Trumbull Little League’s Executive Board of Directors and is in his 7th year coaching travel softball and is President of the organization. In 2022, Jeff was named to the Advisory Board of “Save the Game”, the grass-roots effort designed to align with Major League Baseball to encourage youth participation in baseball. He is also the principal trumpet player at Trinity Church in Trumbull.
Vincent O’Rourke
Vincent has been working on the sugar fundamental analysis numerous years, and has played a significant role in the creation of “Czapp”, the Czarnikow market analysis website and app. After graduating his masters from King’s College London he joined Czarnikow in their London office as an analyst in 2016. He has transferred to the CZ Miami team in 2019 and has since been overseeing regional trade flows and market analysis for a large part of the Americas. He is also an active part of the Czarnikow trading team for raw and white sugar, and led the opening of CZ Colombia in May 2023.
Ron Sterk
Ron Sterk is senior editor, markets, for Food Business News and Milling & Baking News, and is editor of the Sosland Sweetener Report. Prior to joining Sosland Publishing Company in 2003, he was involved in market coverage and management for several years for the real-time news services. He has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural journalism with a focus in agronomy from Iowa State University and a master’s degree in business from Rockhurst University in Kansas City.
Session III – North American Sweetener Market Outlook
The North American sugar market has changed dramatically from the last couple years, going from historically high prices and tight supplies to lower prices and ample supplies amid strong US production and partial recovery in Mexico’s cane production. High-tier imports continue to play an outsized role in the domestic market. Corn sweetener markets have been influenced by lower corn prices and strong demand from Mexico. Market experts will dissect the North American sweetener market with supply, demand and price outlooks.
Ron Sterk
Ron Sterk is senior editor, markets, for Food Business News and Milling & Baking News, and is editor of the Sosland Sweetener Report. Prior to joining Sosland Publishing Company in 2003, he was involved in market coverage and management for several years for the real-time news services. He has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural journalism with a focus in agronomy from Iowa State University and a master’s degree in business from Rockhurst University in Kansas City.
Frank Jenkins
Frank Jenkins is president of JSG Commodities, a commodities brokerage and consultancy located in South Norwalk, Connecticut. He has over 40 years of commodity market experience. Prior to founding JSG in 1993, Mr. Jenkins was a vice president with the Merrill Lynch Private Client Group in Manhattan. He started his career in the sugar industry with the Man Group in New York. He regularly addresses industry forums and was recently a Key Note speaker at the ISO Sugar Conference in London. He has served as President of the Sugar Club of New York and currently serves as Chairman of the ICE Domestic Sugar Committee. He is a graduate of Boston University and lives with his wife Kristen in Wilton, Connecticut.
Craig Ruffolo
As the son of a former CEO at McKeany-Flavell, Craig began learning about the food & beverage industry at an early age. He officially started his career with the company in 1995 and for nearly 30 years has provided market expertise to numerous businesses in the food and beverage space.
Considered an expert in the North American sweetener markets, he provides counsel to several Fortune 500 food and beverage companies, providing a fundamental view of what is impacting the price of the ingredients they purchase. As an educator and market analyst, his goal is to make everyone better at their job.
Craig’s work takes him key commodity production and manufacturing locations throughout the United States. During these visits he gathers information on the markets, distills it into usable intelligence, and then disseminates it the company’s clients. He is often invited to speak at industry events such as the International Sweetener Colloquium, a sponsored event of the Sweetener Users Association, the Symposium for the American Sugar Alliance, Sosland Publishing’s Purchasing Seminar, the BIO Industry conference on bio-fermentation, International Sugar Organization (ISO), and many others. His market analysis is used equally by both the buy and sell side of sugar and corn sweeteners, all in the effort to help people improve and become more informed on the markets they serve.
Craig graduated with a BA degree in economics from Knox College in 1992.
Pedro Figueroa
Pedro L. Figueroa is currently President at CROWN POINT LIMITED, an international foodstuffs and ag softs commodities trading firm based in Schererville, IN.
Mr. Figueroa is a 30-year veteran of the US & international sugar industries/markets, joining Crown Point Ltd. in August 2024.
As part of his extensive career, Figueroa served in the past as CCO/VP Sales & Marketing for Michigan Sugar Company, responsible for the long-term commercial strategy & sales execution of the country’s 3rd largest beet sugar producer. Figueroa directed the Marketing, Supply Chain and market segment optimization functions covering +1.2 billion lbs. of sugar output for the grower-owned cooperative.
Previous experiences also include a 16-year stint with London-based global merchant ED&F Man, where Figueroa served as Commercial Head, White Sugar Trading in the Miami, FL regional office. During his time at Man, Figueroa also held key Managing Director roles for the company’s affiliates & subsidiaries in USA, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Haiti, and Dominican Republic.
Additional assignments during his three-decade run in the industry include Vice President/International for ASR Group/Domino Foods, Inc., Country Manager (Mexico) for Maloney Commodity Services (Fairfield, CT), and Sugar Trader at CSC Sugar, LLC (New Canaan, CT).
Figueroa has been a featured speaker at main industry events/forums both in the US and abroad, serving in key industry forum positions, including President of the New York Sugar Club.
Figueroa is a graduate of Marist College (Poughkeepsie, NY). He resides with his family in Saint John, IN.
Session IV – Outlook for the Economy
Inflation is subsiding, interest rates are being lowered and the economy is as dynamic as ever. Is the “R” word (recession) still relevant? Our Colloquium speaker will explain the current U.S. economy, possible impact from global events and paint a picture of where the economy and financial markets are headed.
Scott Colbert, CFA
Scott is the Chief Economist and Director of Fixed Income Management with The Commerce Trust Company. He joined Commerce in 1993 and has investment responsibilities for over $24 billion in fixed income assets. Scott directly manages the Commerce Short-Term Government and the flagship Commerce Bond strategies.
Prior to joining Commerce Bank, Scott worked for The Cincinnati Gas and Electric Company, Fifth Third Bank, and ARMCO Inc. Scott received his bachelor of science degree in nuclear engineering from the University of Cincinnati in 1986 and received his master of business administration from Xavier University in 1988. He has been both a director and president of the Chartered Financial Analyst Society of St. Louis.
Session V – Nutrition Policies & Trends
New regulations could require warning labels on foods with added sugar, but some think weight-loss drugs will have a greater impact. Our speakers will decode the regulatory landscape and assess the future of sugar demand.
Randy Green
Randy Green, a principal at Watson Green LLC, has seen food and agriculture policy from all sides, having served in both the executive and legislative branches of government and in the private sector. Over his career he has been closely involved in the development of five multi-year farm bills, as well as major legislation and regulations affecting derivatives, food safety, animal health and human nutrition.
Randy came to Washington in the 1980s to work for former Representative Charles Stenholm (D-Tex.) and later served former Senator Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) on the staff of the Senate Agriculture Committee. With the exception of two years as a deputy under secretary of agriculture, Randy served on the agriculture committee staff continuously from 1989 to 1999. The last two years he was chief of staff.
In 1999 Randy entered the private sector to represent agricultural and food industry clients. Earlier in his career, he managed government relations for the American Soybean Association and was director of the Wheat Export Trade Education Center.
In 2013, Randy and Lisa Watson formed Watson Green LLC, a firm centered on food and agriculture policy and public affairs.
Courtney Gaine, Ph.D.
Courtney Gaine, Ph.D., R.D., is the President and CEO for the Sugar Association in Washington, D.C. Prior to this appointment in January 2016, Dr. Gaine served as the Vice President of Scientific Affairs at the association. Dr. Gaine previously served as senior science program manager at the North American branch of the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI North America), a public, nonprofit scientific foundation that advances the understanding and application of science related to the nutritional quality and safety of the food supply. Prior to ILSI, Dr. Gaine held positions of project director, nutrition and wellness, at the nonprofit organization Convergence and science manager at FoodMinds, a public relations firm. She began her career in academia as an assistant professor at East Carolina University. A native Washingtonian, Dr. Gaine obtained her Ph.D. in nutritional sciences and biochemistry and bachelor’s degree in dietetics from the University of Connecticut, where she was also a co-captain of the UConn women’s basketball team.
Nicolas Fereday
Within RaboResearch Food & Agribusiness, Nicholas Fereday is covering research on the North American Value Added Processing sector.
Prior to joining Rabobank, he was a Senior Economist and Vice President of Sales, Research & Marketing, at LMC International, an independent economic and business consultancy for the agribusiness sector. Prior to LMC, Nick worked as a Senior Research Economist for The Natural Resources Institute in the U.K. Additionally he has worked as a freelance economic journalist, a Senior Economist with the Government of Papua New Guinea, as well as a lecturer/tutor in Applied Economics.
Nick holds a M.Sc. in Agricultural Economics from Reading University in the U.K.
Samuel Alcaine, PhD
Dr. Alcaine comes to IDFA from Cornell University where he served as an associate professor and director of the Northeast Dairy Food Research Center—an internationally recognized dairy research program—since 2022 and as an assistant professor since 2016. Dr. Alcaine has led the research program focused on developing technologies that enhance the quality, safety, and innovative uses of fermented dairy products and co-products. The Cornell University Dairy Foods Extension team received IDFA’s inaugural Food Safety Leadership Award in 2017. Prior to joining Cornell, Dr. Alcaine served as the principal microbiologist for Unilever’s North American ice cream business and began his career in process innovation at Miller Brewing Co.
In his role with IDFA, Dr. Alcaine contributes his extensive expertise to IDFA’s Regulatory and Scientific Affairs team, providing guidance and consultation to IDFA members in the areas of food safety, food defense, federal standards of identity, labeling, nutrition policy, and sustainability.
Session VI – Keynote Luncheon: Election Implications for Tariffs, Trade & Other Federal Policies
Beginning in January we have a new President and the new 119th Congress. Be sure to attend this session to better understand what different Senate and House majorities and leadership as well as the new President’s agenda could mean for new tariffs, trade agreements and many other federal government actions in 2025.
Paul Rosenthal
International Trade and Government Relations Attorney, Paul Rosenthal, serves as the Chair of Kelley Drye & Warren LLP, a mid-sized law firm with over 300 attorneys practicing in 8 locations across the United States. Paul is one of the most respected international trade and government relations lawyers in the U.S., advancing his clients’ interests in Washington, D.C., across the country, and around the globe.
Paul’s determined advocacy and strategic advice—along with his dedication, intellect, and well-placed sense of humor—have formed the foundation of more than four decades of client relationships and an enviable record of success. His clients often face challenges involving a mix of legal, economic, policy, political, and reputational concerns, and he is known for developing holistic, multi-dimensional approaches that resolve disputes, advance negotiations, and influence policymaking.
Paul regularly appears before U.S. trade agencies, where clients from a wide range of industries, including manufacturing, technology, chemicals, food, agriculture, and healthcare, trust him to win their most significant disputes. Indeed, Paul has appeared and succeeded before all U.S. trade agencies and reviewing courts and has participated in hundreds of agency and court proceedings.
He has represented clients in disputes involving the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), as well as in the development of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and other multilateral and bilateral negotiations.
In his government relations practice, Paul helps clients advance their objectives before Congress and the Executive Branch. Paul acts as general counsel or Washington counsel to several international and national trade associations and served as counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs for more than five years.
Session VII – Risk Management in Volatile Markets
Rising and falling sugar prices, uncertainty about supply and demand and outside factors make managing risk in uncertain times a challenge, especially when food manufacturers are limited in the tools available to offset that risk. Our speaker will provide ideas on how best to navigate the markets and manage risk.
Shawn Bingham
Shawn is 30+ year veteran of the futures and options industry and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst. He has worked for industry recognized firms including Chicago Research & Trading (NationsBanc-CRT), HSBC Securities, and Prudential Financial as well as being a past member of the Chicago Board of Trade and Chicago Board Options Exchange. In 2005 Mr. Bingham co-founded Midwest Trading Partners, an NFA registered commodity trading advisory firm recognized as a “Top Ten Advisor" by Managed Accounts Reports. In 2017 Shawn launched ABSR Research, a commodity risk management consulting company. Recently, he joined McKeany-Flavell as Director of Commodity Risk Management, helping large food and beverage companies manage their commodity exposures using similar data science and analytical tools as those used by commodity investment advisors.
Session VIII – What the New Congress Means for the Farm Bill
Congress has been grappling with passing a new Farm Bill for over two years with no resolution. The new Congress will try again to resolve the difficult funding and policy issues tied up in the massive legislation. While the major issues have been contentious, the future of the sugar program has a compromise path that could ease passage of a new sugar policy.
Bill O'Conner
Bill O'Conner joined the firm in 2010, bringing with him more than three decades of experience in the legislative and executive branches of government. During that time, he was one of the key policy staffers in the development and passage of five farm bills, three laws to restructure and reform the Farm Credit System, and the entire legislative development of the federal crop insurance program.
He also played a key role in the legislative evolution of futures and derivatives regulation from the 1980's through House passage of the most recent financial services reform in 2009. He continues to follow closely the implementation of the Dodd - Frank Act and the huge number of regulations that are being promulgated to implement that Act. He was at the center of legislation regulating pesticides, including the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996. He has played a major legislative role in all of the diverse legislation in the jurisdiction of the House Agriculture Committee from forestry to food stamps and tobacco to trade.
Former Jobs/Positions Held
Mr. O'Conner began his service in Washington in 1979, working in the House Republican leadership. In 1983, he was brought to the House Agriculture Committee by Congressman Ed Madigan of Illinois, where he worked as deputy staff director. In 1991 Congressman Madigan became Agriculture Secretary Madigan and Bill became his chief of staff. In addition to overseeing general functioning of USDA, Bill worked intensively on the negotiation of the Uruguay Round of trade talks.
In 1993, Bill returned to the House Agriculture Committee as policy director, coordinating and implementing policy for the Committee. He served in that capacity for Chairman Pat Roberts of Kansas and Chairman Bob Smith of Oregon. In 1999 Chairman Larry Combest of Texas named Bill Staff Director for the Committee, a position that continued under Chairman Bob Goodlatte of Virginia. At the time Bill retired from Capitol Hill to join the firm, he was serving as minority policy director for Ranking Member Frank Lucas of Oklahoma.
Lee Sanders
Lee Sanders is President of Lee Sanders Strategy Group LLC providing strategic legislative and regulatory counsel to select clients in the food and agriculture arenas. She is
a founder and the current President of the Society of Bakery Women, which serves as a platform to expand diversity in the baking industry through professional networking events and its scholarship program.
Lee formerly served as the American Bakers Association Senior Vice President, Government Relations and Public Affairs, as well as Corporate Secretary. In that role,
Lee led the ABA government relations team representing the baking industry before Congress, federal agencies, state legislatures, and international policy making bodies. Lee also led the Grain Chain, a Farm to Fork Coalition of eleven grain industry organizations that partner for unified strategy to promote and support nutritional benefit messaging for grain-based foods in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
Lee established and is a Past Chair for the Food and Beverage Issue Alliance that serves as a platform for communications for over 50 FDA-regulated food industry trade associations that work together to develop unified positions on nutrition and food safety issues meeting quarterly with FDA and other key federal government agencies.
Lee sits on the Executive Committee for the Business Industry Political Action Committee (BIPAC). She is a past chair of both the Wheat Quality Council and Cereal and Grains Association (formerly American Association of Cereal Chemists International (AACCI)) Milling and Baking Division. Lee served as a long time Advisory Board member and as Chair of the Technical Committee for the American Society of Baking.
Before coming to the industry 30 years ago, Lee served in several government roles including legislative aide to Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS) and as a political appointee in the Administration of George H.W. Bush.
Lee is a 2023 inductee of Marquis Who’s Who and was the 2021 recipient of the American Society of Baking’s Robert A. Fischer Distinguished Service Award. She also received the 2017 Full Kernel Award from the Wheat Quality Council for outstanding contributions to the improvement of wheat and flour quality in the United States. Lee was recognized as the 2009 AACCI Myron D. “Mike” Baustian Memorial Award recipient for outstanding service. She also received the 2009 Leadership Award, Baking & Snack Magazine.
Lee holds a B.A. Degree in Journalism from the University of Mississippi and currently sits on its Political Science Advisory Board. She holds executive education certificates from the University of Virginia Darden School of Business in Leading Teams for Growth and Change as well as Strategic Analysis and Decision-Making. Lee is a Certified Association Executive (CAE), American Society of Association Executives.
Rob Johansson, PhD
Dr. Johansson is the Director of Economics & Policy Analysis for the American Sugar Alliance, the national coalition of sugarbeet and sugarcane growers, processors, and refiners. Previously, Dr. Johansson served as the Chief Economist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture between 2015 and 2021. He was responsible for establishing the Farm Production and Conservation (or FPAC) mission area in 2017 and served as its first Acting Deputy Undersecretary. Dr. Johansson has held senior positions at the Office of Management and Budget, the Congressional Budget Office, and at the White House Council of Economic Advisers. He received his doctorate in Agricultural & Applied Economics from the University of Minnesota in 2000. Rob also served in the U.S. Peace Corps in the Democratic Republic of Congo (1990-1991) and in Gabon (1992-1995).
Tyson Redpath
Tyson was born in Oxford, Ohio during the snowmageddon of 1978 earning him the unflattering ‘blizzard baby’ reference from his family. Being named Tyson quickly developed character as well.
He grew up in the family John Deere business doing whatever his mom and dad told him to do because there were no alternatives. He did just about every job you can imagine living on a farm then working each summer as janitorial staff for residential rental properties. Much of this paid for his Indiana University degree in Public Affairs.
Proudly telling his grandfather that one day he would be President, Tyson moved to Washington, D.C. after graduation where he began working for his local Congressman, U.S. Representative John Boehner (R- OH). Tyson twice served on Boehner’s staff eventually advising him on things like agriculture, financial services, trade, and tax policy. Legislative accomplishments during his tenure included the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act, the American Jobs Creation Act, and the Healthy Forests Restoration Act. Tyson hit the campaign trail a couple of times working in Arkansas in 2000 and for President Bush at the New York City GOP Convention and in Ohio during the 2004 campaign. Tyson also worked for the law firm of Olsson, Frank and Weeda, P.C. and directed government relations for the National Grain Trade Council.
Team Redpath includes a daughter, Helena, and two sons, Thatcher, and Weston, two Rhodesian Ridgebacks and his wife Renee.
Tyson is up for any fitness routine, loves the Buckeyes, the Capitals, and all Cincinnati sports teams no matter how difficult that may seem. His updated playlist covers hip-hop, R&B throwbacks, the best of the 80’s and 90's, and today’s country.
Session IX – Key Commodity Analysis
Key commodities – grains, oilseeds, dairy and cocoa – are a challenge even in the best of times. Our expert speakers will dive into supply and price outlooks for corn, soybeans, wheat, edible oils, cocoa and dairy products that will provide insight for food manufacturers managing procurement challenges in the year ahead.
Andrick Payen
Andrick Payen is a Vice President grains and oilseeds analyst in Rabobank’s RaboResearch Food and Agribusiness group. Over the last eight years Andrick has covered different regions in North America as well as different industries. More recently, Andrick has covered grain and oilseeds with focus on the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
His expertise expands along the supply chain to different sectors from rural to wholesale markets and international markets. Since joining Rabobank, Andrick has supported RaboResearch efforts in developing proprietary research and analytical tools that have translated into yearly publications of grains and oilseed ten year outlooks for the US and Canada.
Andrick graduated with a Master of Science in Agricultural and Applied Economics from the University of Missouri-Columbia. During his time at the University of Missouri, he worked as a research associate at the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI). His main focus was on policy and sugar trade between NAFTA countries, leading to presentations at top academic conferences. Prior to his work at FAPRI and the University of Missouri, Andrick was a risk analyst developing risk models for major banks in Mexico.
Hugo van der Goes
Mr. van der Goes is the Vice President Cocoa, North America for Barry Callebaut. In this role, he is responsible for the company’s North American cocoa business, including leadership of the commercial
team, risk management and financial performance of the business. He is a member of Barry Callebaut global cocoa and the Americas leadership teams.
Before joining Barry Callebaut, van der Goes worked for 16 years at Cargill in different senior management positions within the cocoa & chocolate division. His roles included responsibility for Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate commercial and cocoa sustainability functions. He served as Chairman & board member of The Cocoa Merchants’ Association of America. Van der Goes attended Erasmus University, Rotterdam (The Netherlands), where he received a Master of Science in Economics and International Marketing Management. He lives in Millersville, PA with his family.
Mike Brown
Mike Brown was named Chief Economist for IDFA on Jan. 17, 2023. In that role, Brown leads economic and policy analysis and strategy development related to dairy policy and pricing.
He is a recognized expert on milk pricing policy and has worked for both farmer-owned cooperatives and proprietary businesses, all of which are current IDFA members. Before joining IDFA, Brown led the milk and dairy procurement team for The Kroger Co. as director of dairy supply chain. Prior to Kroger, Brown served as a dairy economist for well-known dairy brands and organizations including Glanbia, Darigold and National All-Jersey, Inc.
As director of dairy economics and policy for Glanbia, he was responsible for market and farm cost analysis, supported Glanbia’s producer risk management programs and company efforts on U.S. dairy and trade policy, along with other industry initiatives. Prior to Glanbia, he was director of membership services for Northwest Dairy Association. From 1993-2001, Brown was general manager of National All-Jersey, Inc, a dairy producer trade association, where he led efforts to expand multiple component pricing through private plant incentives and through federal milk marketing order reform. Brown was raised on small dairy farm in Western, N.Y. and earned his bachelor’s degree in dairy science from Virginia Tech.
Ron Sterk
Ron Sterk is senior editor, markets, for Food Business News and Milling & Baking News, and is editor of the Sosland Sweetener Report. Prior to joining Sosland Publishing Company in 2003, he was involved in market coverage and management for several years for the real-time news services. He has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural journalism with a focus in agronomy from Iowa State University and a master’s degree in business from Rockhurst University in Kansas City.
Session X – U.S. Sugar Program Administration & Policy Challenges
Stocks may seem adequate, but prices have stayed stubbornly near “high-tier parity.” How should USDA and USTR administer sugar policy when the old metrics may not mean as much?
Barbara Fecso
Barbara Fecso is the Branch Chief of the Commodity Analysis Branch, Economic and Policy Analysis Division, Farm Production and Conservation Business Center, U.S. Department of Agriculture. She is responsible for overseeing the administration of the domestic sugar, dairy, livestock, cotton, peanuts, grains and oilseeds programs. Barbara provides guidance to the Secretary of Agriculture in the formulation and implementation of national policies and procedures, as well as economic and budgetary impact analysis of those programs.
Barbara has almost twenty-five years of government service in USDA with an emphasis on program analysis, operations and budgetary analysis. She initially spent five years with the Natural Resource Conservation Service as a program analyst for conservation technical assistance, watershed and animal waste management programs. She then spent two years as a wheat and pulse crop analyst at the Farm Service Agency before shifting to sugar. She was named Director of FSA’s Dairy and Sweeteners Analysis branch in 2014 and played a critical role in the negotiation of the current sugar trade agreement with Mexico. In October 2018, she was named Branch Chief under USDA’s reorganization.
Barbara received a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from Purdue University at West Lafayette, Indiana in 1994. She was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois and lived for almost twenty years in central Illinois. She has three children and now resides in Arlington, Virginia with her husband.
Mike Gorrell
Randy Green
Randy Green, a principal at Watson Green LLC, has seen food and agriculture policy from all sides, having served in both the executive and legislative branches of government and in the private sector. Over his career he has been closely involved in the development of five multi-year farm bills, as well as major legislation and regulations affecting derivatives, food safety, animal health and human nutrition.
Randy came to Washington in the 1980s to work for former Representative Charles Stenholm (D-Tex.) and later served former Senator Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) on the staff of the Senate Agriculture Committee. With the exception of two years as a deputy under secretary of agriculture, Randy served on the agriculture committee staff continuously from 1989 to 1999. The last two years he was chief of staff.
In 1999 Randy entered the private sector to represent agricultural and food industry clients. Earlier in his career, he managed government relations for the American Soybean Association and was director of the Wheat Export Trade Education Center.
In 2013, Randy and Lisa Watson formed Watson Green LLC, a firm centered on food and agriculture policy and public affairs.
Rick Pasco
Rick Pasco is a partner at Watkinson Miller PLLC where he is legal counsel and lobbyist for a number of agribusiness clients in the food, agricultural, trade and environmental arenas. He has more than 30 years of experience working in agriculture and food-related legislative and regulatory matters. Mr. Pasco specializes in advising and representing trade associations and companies on government policies and programs. In this capacity, he serves as President of the Sweetener Users Association and Vice President of the Sugar Club.
He has a wealth of experience working with Congress, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. International Trade Commission, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He has played a key role in implementing lobbying strategies and advancing agricultural program and trade reforms, as well as developing environmental guidelines, food labeling rules, and food safety/nutrition legislation. During the course of his private and public-sector career, he has been closely involved in six omnibus farm bills.
An important part of Mr. Pasco's work for trade associations is his counsel and advice to ensure that their political action committees (PACs) are in full compliance with federal elections laws and regulations administered by the Federal Election Commission. He is the firm's expert on these issues. Mr. Pasco is uniquely qualified to bring his broad experience to bear in helping solve the problems of clients in the private sector.
Mr. Pasco is a member of the bars of the District of Columbia, Colorado and Nebraska. He received a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Washington, and earned a M.S. degree in Agricultural Economics and a J.D. degree from the University of Nebraska.
Speakers
Samuel Alcaine, PhD
Vice President, Regulatory and Scientific Affairs
Samuel Alcaine, PhD
Dr. Alcaine comes to IDFA from Cornell University where he served as an associate professor and director of the Northeast Dairy Food Research Center—an internationally recognized dairy research program—since 2022 and as an assistant professor since 2016. Dr. Alcaine has led the research program focused on developing technologies that enhance the quality, safety, and innovative uses of fermented dairy products and co-products. The Cornell University Dairy Foods Extension team received IDFA’s inaugural Food Safety Leadership Award in 2017. Prior to joining Cornell, Dr. Alcaine served as the principal microbiologist for Unilever’s North American ice cream business and began his career in process innovation at Miller Brewing Co.
In his role with IDFA, Dr. Alcaine contributes his extensive expertise to IDFA’s Regulatory and Scientific Affairs team, providing guidance and consultation to IDFA members in the areas of food safety, food defense, federal standards of identity, labeling, nutrition policy, and sustainability.
Mark Baum
Chief Collaboration & Commercial Officer & SVP, Industry Relations | FMI - The Food Industry Association
Mark Baum
Mark Baum currently serves as Chief Collaboration & Commercial Officer & Senior Vice President, Industry Relations for FMI - The Food Industry Association. In this role, Baum engages retailer, manufacturer, supplier, and service provider C-Suite executives to further trading partner collaboration, leading to operational improvements and growth opportunities across all segments of the food retail supply chain.
Baum is known for his intricate knowledge of almost every aspect of the food, beverage, consumer packaged goods (CPG), and retail industry. He is also recognized as one of the foremost experts in the design, management, and execution of strategic and commercial sales, marketing, and merchandising models across consumer facing industries.
Additionally, Baum is a Managing Partner of MARCAT Group, LLC, an advisory firm specializing in the active outdoors marketplace. Prior to that, he was a Partner and led the CPG/Retail Practice at Diamond Management & Technology Consultants (NASDAQ: DTPI), now owned by Pricewaterhouse Coopers, LLP (PwC). Earlier, he was Executive Vice President of the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA). Formerly, Baum was the President & CEO of the Association of Sales & Marketing Companies (ASMC). He joined GMA in 2001 after leading the merger with ASMC.
Earlier in his career, Baum served as Vice President, Sales and Marketing for Retail Insights, a division of Maclean Hunter Media/Progressive Grocer Associates – producers of Supermarket Insights, Convenience Store Insights and Restaurant Insights – and prior to that, held significant management positions at Food Distributors International. Baum’s career in the food, beverage, and CPG industry spans over 35 years and began at Paragon, a New York based snack food/candy distributor.
Mark Baum serves on the Board of Directors of KeyImpact Sales & Systems, a national foodservice broker in the United States. He is an Industry Venture Partner (IVP) with Loft Growth Partners, a private-equity firm, providing growth capital and industry expertise to emerging branded consumer products businesses. To promote diversity initiatives, Baum is a Founding Champion of the NextUp, a CPG/Retail industry organization dedicated to providing career opportunities for women and minorities. Baum also is a Director on the Board of Oswego State University (NY), his alma mater.
Mark Baum is a supporter of several active outdoors sporting/recreation and conservation groups. He is a past Chairman of the Board of Directors of The Access Fund; a Boulder, CO based climbing advocacy organization and land trust. He is also a Board Member of the Student Conservation Association. Baum is also active on the National Wildlife Federation’s President’s Advisory Council and serves as a Director of Nature’s Best Photography.
Mark Baum and his wife, Cathy, are residents of Reston, Virginia where they are involved in and support a variety of local charities, civic, and cultural organizations. Baum received his undergraduate degree at Oswego State University (NY) where he majored in political science/economics and completed his graduate course work in marketing and organizational development at Marymount University.
Shawn Bingham
Director of Risk Management | McKeaney-Flavel Co.
Shawn Bingham
Shawn is 30+ year veteran of the futures and options industry and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst. He has worked for industry recognized firms including Chicago Research & Trading (NationsBanc-CRT), HSBC Securities, and Prudential Financial as well as being a past member of the Chicago Board of Trade and Chicago Board Options Exchange. In 2005 Mr. Bingham co-founded Midwest Trading Partners, an NFA registered commodity trading advisory firm recognized as a “Top Ten Advisor" by Managed Accounts Reports. In 2017 Shawn launched ABSR Research, a commodity risk management consulting company. Recently, he joined McKeany-Flavell as Director of Commodity Risk Management, helping large food and beverage companies manage their commodity exposures using similar data science and analytical tools as those used by commodity investment advisors.
Mike Brown
Chief Economist
Mike Brown
Mike Brown was named Chief Economist for IDFA on Jan. 17, 2023. In that role, Brown leads economic and policy analysis and strategy development related to dairy policy and pricing.
He is a recognized expert on milk pricing policy and has worked for both farmer-owned cooperatives and proprietary businesses, all of which are current IDFA members. Before joining IDFA, Brown led the milk and dairy procurement team for The Kroger Co. as director of dairy supply chain. Prior to Kroger, Brown served as a dairy economist for well-known dairy brands and organizations including Glanbia, Darigold and National All-Jersey, Inc.
As director of dairy economics and policy for Glanbia, he was responsible for market and farm cost analysis, supported Glanbia’s producer risk management programs and company efforts on U.S. dairy and trade policy, along with other industry initiatives. Prior to Glanbia, he was director of membership services for Northwest Dairy Association. From 1993-2001, Brown was general manager of National All-Jersey, Inc, a dairy producer trade association, where he led efforts to expand multiple component pricing through private plant incentives and through federal milk marketing order reform. Brown was raised on small dairy farm in Western, N.Y. and earned his bachelor’s degree in dairy science from Virginia Tech.
Scott Colbert, CFA
Executive Vice President, Chief Economist and Director of Fixed Income Management | The Commerce Trust Company
Scott Colbert, CFA
Scott is the Chief Economist and Director of Fixed Income Management with The Commerce Trust Company. He joined Commerce in 1993 and has investment responsibilities for over $24 billion in fixed income assets. Scott directly manages the Commerce Short-Term Government and the flagship Commerce Bond strategies.
Prior to joining Commerce Bank, Scott worked for The Cincinnati Gas and Electric Company, Fifth Third Bank, and ARMCO Inc. Scott received his bachelor of science degree in nuclear engineering from the University of Cincinnati in 1986 and received his master of business administration from Xavier University in 1988. He has been both a director and president of the Chartered Financial Analyst Society of St. Louis.
Jeff Dobrydney
Senior Vice President, Head of Futures & Options JSG Commodities
Jeff Dobrydney
Jeff has been with JSG Commodities since 2005, when he started as an Assistant Trader. Born and raised in Milford, CT and a graduate from Jesuit schools Fordham University and Fairfield Prep, Jeff has solidified his role within the Sugar trading community covering both the USMCA and World futures markets which includes penning a daily report. He is now the Sr. Vice President of JSG and heads the Futures & Options desk that executes trades for Sugar, Cocoa, Coffee and Grains for a wide array of clientele. Jeff also served as the President of the Sugar Club of New York and is a featured speaker at the annual Datagro conference in New York. A resident of Trumbull, Connecticut with his wife and two girls, Jeff also serves on Trumbull Little League’s Executive Board of Directors and is in his 7th year coaching travel softball and is President of the organization. In 2022, Jeff was named to the Advisory Board of “Save the Game”, the grass-roots effort designed to align with Major League Baseball to encourage youth participation in baseball. He is also the principal trumpet player at Trinity Church in Trumbull.
Barbara Fecso
Branch Chief of the Commodity Analysis Branch, Economic and Policy Analysis Division, Farm Production and Conservation Business Center | U.S. Department of Agriculture
Barbara Fecso
Barbara Fecso is the Branch Chief of the Commodity Analysis Branch, Economic and Policy Analysis Division, Farm Production and Conservation Business Center, U.S. Department of Agriculture. She is responsible for overseeing the administration of the domestic sugar, dairy, livestock, cotton, peanuts, grains and oilseeds programs. Barbara provides guidance to the Secretary of Agriculture in the formulation and implementation of national policies and procedures, as well as economic and budgetary impact analysis of those programs.
Barbara has almost twenty-five years of government service in USDA with an emphasis on program analysis, operations and budgetary analysis. She initially spent five years with the Natural Resource Conservation Service as a program analyst for conservation technical assistance, watershed and animal waste management programs. She then spent two years as a wheat and pulse crop analyst at the Farm Service Agency before shifting to sugar. She was named Director of FSA’s Dairy and Sweeteners Analysis branch in 2014 and played a critical role in the negotiation of the current sugar trade agreement with Mexico. In October 2018, she was named Branch Chief under USDA’s reorganization.
Barbara received a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from Purdue University at West Lafayette, Indiana in 1994. She was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois and lived for almost twenty years in central Illinois. She has three children and now resides in Arlington, Virginia with her husband.
Nicolas Fereday
Senior Analyst – Consumer Foods | Rabobank
Nicolas Fereday
Within RaboResearch Food & Agribusiness, Nicholas Fereday is covering research on the North American Value Added Processing sector.
Prior to joining Rabobank, he was a Senior Economist and Vice President of Sales, Research & Marketing, at LMC International, an independent economic and business consultancy for the agribusiness sector. Prior to LMC, Nick worked as a Senior Research Economist for The Natural Resources Institute in the U.K. Additionally he has worked as a freelance economic journalist, a Senior Economist with the Government of Papua New Guinea, as well as a lecturer/tutor in Applied Economics.
Nick holds a M.Sc. in Agricultural Economics from Reading University in the U.K.
Pedro Figueroa
President | Crown Point Limited
Pedro Figueroa
Pedro L. Figueroa is currently President at CROWN POINT LIMITED, an international foodstuffs and ag softs commodities trading firm based in Schererville, IN.
Mr. Figueroa is a 30-year veteran of the US & international sugar industries/markets, joining Crown Point Ltd. in August 2024.
As part of his extensive career, Figueroa served in the past as CCO/VP Sales & Marketing for Michigan Sugar Company, responsible for the long-term commercial strategy & sales execution of the country’s 3rd largest beet sugar producer. Figueroa directed the Marketing, Supply Chain and market segment optimization functions covering +1.2 billion lbs. of sugar output for the grower-owned cooperative.
Previous experiences also include a 16-year stint with London-based global merchant ED&F Man, where Figueroa served as Commercial Head, White Sugar Trading in the Miami, FL regional office. During his time at Man, Figueroa also held key Managing Director roles for the company’s affiliates & subsidiaries in USA, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Haiti, and Dominican Republic.
Additional assignments during his three-decade run in the industry include Vice President/International for ASR Group/Domino Foods, Inc., Country Manager (Mexico) for Maloney Commodity Services (Fairfield, CT), and Sugar Trader at CSC Sugar, LLC (New Canaan, CT).
Figueroa has been a featured speaker at main industry events/forums both in the US and abroad, serving in key industry forum positions, including President of the New York Sugar Club.
Figueroa is a graduate of Marist College (Poughkeepsie, NY). He resides with his family in Saint John, IN.
Courtney Gaine, Ph.D.
President and CEO | The Sugar Association
Courtney Gaine, Ph.D.
Courtney Gaine, Ph.D., R.D., is the President and CEO for the Sugar Association in Washington, D.C. Prior to this appointment in January 2016, Dr. Gaine served as the Vice President of Scientific Affairs at the association. Dr. Gaine previously served as senior science program manager at the North American branch of the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI North America), a public, nonprofit scientific foundation that advances the understanding and application of science related to the nutritional quality and safety of the food supply. Prior to ILSI, Dr. Gaine held positions of project director, nutrition and wellness, at the nonprofit organization Convergence and science manager at FoodMinds, a public relations firm. She began her career in academia as an assistant professor at East Carolina University. A native Washingtonian, Dr. Gaine obtained her Ph.D. in nutritional sciences and biochemistry and bachelor’s degree in dietetics from the University of Connecticut, where she was also a co-captain of the UConn women’s basketball team.
Mike Gorrell
Senior Vice President, U.S. Sugar Corporation
Mike Gorrell
Frank Jenkins
President | JSG Commodities
Frank Jenkins
Frank Jenkins is president of JSG Commodities, a commodities brokerage and consultancy located in South Norwalk, Connecticut. He has over 40 years of commodity market experience. Prior to founding JSG in 1993, Mr. Jenkins was a vice president with the Merrill Lynch Private Client Group in Manhattan. He started his career in the sugar industry with the Man Group in New York. He regularly addresses industry forums and was recently a Key Note speaker at the ISO Sugar Conference in London. He has served as President of the Sugar Club of New York and currently serves as Chairman of the ICE Domestic Sugar Committee. He is a graduate of Boston University and lives with his wife Kristen in Wilton, Connecticut.
Rob Johansson, PhD
Director of Economic and Policy Analysis | American Sugar Alliance
Rob Johansson, PhD
Dr. Johansson is the Director of Economics & Policy Analysis for the American Sugar Alliance, the national coalition of sugarbeet and sugarcane growers, processors, and refiners. Previously, Dr. Johansson served as the Chief Economist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture between 2015 and 2021. He was responsible for establishing the Farm Production and Conservation (or FPAC) mission area in 2017 and served as its first Acting Deputy Undersecretary. Dr. Johansson has held senior positions at the Office of Management and Budget, the Congressional Budget Office, and at the White House Council of Economic Advisers. He received his doctorate in Agricultural & Applied Economics from the University of Minnesota in 2000. Rob also served in the U.S. Peace Corps in the Democratic Republic of Congo (1990-1991) and in Gabon (1992-1995).
Bill O’Conner
Agriculture Policy Expert, Watkinson Miller PLLC
Bill O’Conner
Bill O'Conner joined the firm in 2010, bringing with him more than three decades of experience in the legislative and executive branches of government. During that time, he was one of the key policy staffers in the development and passage of five farm bills, three laws to restructure and reform the Farm Credit System, and the entire legislative development of the federal crop insurance program.
He also played a key role in the legislative evolution of futures and derivatives regulation from the 1980's through House passage of the most recent financial services reform in 2009. He continues to follow closely the implementation of the Dodd - Frank Act and the huge number of regulations that are being promulgated to implement that Act. He was at the center of legislation regulating pesticides, including the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996. He has played a major legislative role in all of the diverse legislation in the jurisdiction of the House Agriculture Committee from forestry to food stamps and tobacco to trade.
Mr. O'Conner began his service in Washington in 1979, working in the House Republican leadership. In 1983, he was brought to the House Agriculture Committee by Congressman Ed Madigan of Illinois, where he worked as deputy staff director. In 1991 Congressman Madigan became Agriculture Secretary Madigan and Bill became his chief of staff. In addition to overseeing general functioning of USDA, Bill worked intensively on the negotiation of the Uruguay Round of trade talks.
In 1993, Bill returned to the House Agriculture Committee as policy director, coordinating and implementing policy for the Committee. He served in that capacity for Chairman Pat Roberts of Kansas and Chairman Bob Smith of Oregon. In 1999 Chairman Larry Combest of Texas named Bill Staff Director for the Committee, a position that continued under Chairman Bob Goodlatte of Virginia. At the time Bill retired from Capitol Hill to join the firm, he was serving as minority policy director for Ranking Member Frank Lucas of Oklahoma.
Vincent O’Rourke
Trader and Market Analyst, C. Czarnikow Sugar, Inc.
Vincent O’Rourke
Vincent has been working on the sugar fundamental analysis numerous years, and has played a significant role in the creation of “Czapp”, the Czarnikow market analysis website and app. After graduating his masters from King’s College London he joined Czarnikow in their London office as an analyst in 2016. He has transferred to the CZ Miami team in 2019 and has since been overseeing regional trade flows and market analysis for a large part of the Americas. He is also an active part of the Czarnikow trading team for raw and white sugar, and led the opening of CZ Colombia in May 2023.
Rick Pasco
President | Sweetener Users Association
Rick Pasco
Rick Pasco is a partner at Watkinson Miller PLLC where he is legal counsel and lobbyist for a number of agribusiness clients in the food, agricultural, trade and environmental arenas. He has more than 30 years of experience working in agriculture and food-related legislative and regulatory matters. Mr. Pasco specializes in advising and representing trade associations and companies on government policies and programs. In this capacity, he serves as President of the Sweetener Users Association and Vice President of the Sugar Club.
He has a wealth of experience working with Congress, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. International Trade Commission, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He has played a key role in implementing lobbying strategies and advancing agricultural program and trade reforms, as well as developing environmental guidelines, food labeling rules, and food safety/nutrition legislation. During the course of his private and public-sector career, he has been closely involved in six omnibus farm bills.
An important part of Mr. Pasco's work for trade associations is his counsel and advice to ensure that their political action committees (PACs) are in full compliance with federal elections laws and regulations administered by the Federal Election Commission. He is the firm's expert on these issues. Mr. Pasco is uniquely qualified to bring his broad experience to bear in helping solve the problems of clients in the private sector.
Mr. Pasco is a member of the bars of the District of Columbia, Colorado and Nebraska. He received a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Washington, and earned a M.S. degree in Agricultural Economics and a J.D. degree from the University of Nebraska.
Andrick Payen
VP, North America Grain and Oilseeds
Andrick Payen
Andrick Payen is a Vice President grains and oilseeds analyst in Rabobank’s RaboResearch Food and Agribusiness group. Over the last eight years Andrick has covered different regions in North America as well as different industries. More recently, Andrick has covered grain and oilseeds with focus on the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
His expertise expands along the supply chain to different sectors from rural to wholesale markets and international markets. Since joining Rabobank, Andrick has supported RaboResearch efforts in developing proprietary research and analytical tools that have translated into yearly publications of grains and oilseed ten year outlooks for the US and Canada.
Andrick graduated with a Master of Science in Agricultural and Applied Economics from the University of Missouri-Columbia. During his time at the University of Missouri, he worked as a research associate at the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI). His main focus was on policy and sugar trade between NAFTA countries, leading to presentations at top academic conferences. Prior to his work at FAPRI and the University of Missouri, Andrick was a risk analyst developing risk models for major banks in Mexico.
Tyson Redpath
Principal | The Russell Group
Tyson Redpath
Tyson was born in Oxford, Ohio during the snowmageddon of 1978 earning him the unflattering ‘blizzard baby’ reference from his family. Being named Tyson quickly developed character as well.
He grew up in the family John Deere business doing whatever his mom and dad told him to do because there were no alternatives. He did just about every job you can imagine living on a farm then working each summer as janitorial staff for residential rental properties. Much of this paid for his Indiana University degree in Public Affairs.
Proudly telling his grandfather that one day he would be President, Tyson moved to Washington, D.C. after graduation where he began working for his local Congressman, U.S. Representative John Boehner (R- OH). Tyson twice served on Boehner’s staff eventually advising him on things like agriculture, financial services, trade, and tax policy. Legislative accomplishments during his tenure included the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act, the American Jobs Creation Act, and the Healthy Forests Restoration Act. Tyson hit the campaign trail a couple of times working in Arkansas in 2000 and for President Bush at the New York City GOP Convention and in Ohio during the 2004 campaign. Tyson also worked for the law firm of Olsson, Frank and Weeda, P.C. and directed government relations for the National Grain Trade Council.
Team Redpath includes a daughter, Helena, and two sons, Thatcher, and Weston, two Rhodesian Ridgebacks and his wife Renee.
Tyson is up for any fitness routine, loves the Buckeyes, the Capitals, and all Cincinnati sports teams no matter how difficult that may seem. His updated playlist covers hip-hop, R&B throwbacks, the best of the 80’s and 90's, and today’s country.
Paul Rosenthal
Chair | Kelley Drye & Warren LLP
Paul Rosenthal
International Trade and Government Relations Attorney, Paul Rosenthal, serves as the Chair of Kelley Drye & Warren LLP, a mid-sized law firm with over 300 attorneys practicing in 8 locations across the United States. Paul is one of the most respected international trade and government relations lawyers in the U.S., advancing his clients’ interests in Washington, D.C., across the country, and around the globe.
Paul’s determined advocacy and strategic advice—along with his dedication, intellect, and well-placed sense of humor—have formed the foundation of more than four decades of client relationships and an enviable record of success. His clients often face challenges involving a mix of legal, economic, policy, political, and reputational concerns, and he is known for developing holistic, multi-dimensional approaches that resolve disputes, advance negotiations, and influence policymaking.
Paul regularly appears before U.S. trade agencies, where clients from a wide range of industries, including manufacturing, technology, chemicals, food, agriculture, and healthcare, trust him to win their most significant disputes. Indeed, Paul has appeared and succeeded before all U.S. trade agencies and reviewing courts and has participated in hundreds of agency and court proceedings.
He has represented clients in disputes involving the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), as well as in the development of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and other multilateral and bilateral negotiations.
In his government relations practice, Paul helps clients advance their objectives before Congress and the Executive Branch. Paul acts as general counsel or Washington counsel to several international and national trade associations and served as counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs for more than five years.
Craig Ruffolo
Owner, Vice President | McKeany-Flavell Company
Craig Ruffolo
As the son of a former CEO at McKeany-Flavell, Craig began learning about the food & beverage industry at an early age. He officially started his career with the company in 1995 and for nearly 30 years has provided market expertise to numerous businesses in the food and beverage space.
Considered an expert in the North American sweetener markets, he provides counsel to several Fortune 500 food and beverage companies, providing a fundamental view of what is impacting the price of the ingredients they purchase. As an educator and market analyst, his goal is to make everyone better at their job.
Craig’s work takes him key commodity production and manufacturing locations throughout the United States. During these visits he gathers information on the markets, distills it into usable intelligence, and then disseminates it the company’s clients. He is often invited to speak at industry events such as the International Sweetener Colloquium, a sponsored event of the Sweetener Users Association, the Symposium for the American Sugar Alliance, Sosland Publishing’s Purchasing Seminar, the BIO Industry conference on bio-fermentation, International Sugar Organization (ISO), and many others. His market analysis is used equally by both the buy and sell side of sugar and corn sweeteners, all in the effort to help people improve and become more informed on the markets they serve.
Craig graduated with a BA degree in economics from Knox College in 1992.
Lee Sanders
President | Lee Sanders Strategy Group LLC
Lee Sanders
Lee Sanders is President of Lee Sanders Strategy Group LLC providing strategic legislative and regulatory counsel to select clients in the food and agriculture arenas. She is
a founder and the current President of the Society of Bakery Women, which serves as a platform to expand diversity in the baking industry through professional networking events and its scholarship program.
Lee formerly served as the American Bakers Association Senior Vice President, Government Relations and Public Affairs, as well as Corporate Secretary. In that role,
Lee led the ABA government relations team representing the baking industry before Congress, federal agencies, state legislatures, and international policy making bodies. Lee also led the Grain Chain, a Farm to Fork Coalition of eleven grain industry organizations that partner for unified strategy to promote and support nutritional benefit messaging for grain-based foods in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
Lee established and is a Past Chair for the Food and Beverage Issue Alliance that serves as a platform for communications for over 50 FDA-regulated food industry trade associations that work together to develop unified positions on nutrition and food safety issues meeting quarterly with FDA and other key federal government agencies.
Lee sits on the Executive Committee for the Business Industry Political Action Committee (BIPAC). She is a past chair of both the Wheat Quality Council and Cereal and Grains Association (formerly American Association of Cereal Chemists International (AACCI)) Milling and Baking Division. Lee served as a long time Advisory Board member and as Chair of the Technical Committee for the American Society of Baking.
Before coming to the industry 30 years ago, Lee served in several government roles including legislative aide to Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS) and as a political appointee in the Administration of George H.W. Bush.
Lee is a 2023 inductee of Marquis Who’s Who and was the 2021 recipient of the American Society of Baking’s Robert A. Fischer Distinguished Service Award. She also received the 2017 Full Kernel Award from the Wheat Quality Council for outstanding contributions to the improvement of wheat and flour quality in the United States. Lee was recognized as the 2009 AACCI Myron D. “Mike” Baustian Memorial Award recipient for outstanding service. She also received the 2009 Leadership Award, Baking & Snack Magazine.
Lee holds a B.A. Degree in Journalism from the University of Mississippi and currently sits on its Political Science Advisory Board. She holds executive education certificates from the University of Virginia Darden School of Business in Leading Teams for Growth and Change as well as Strategic Analysis and Decision-Making. Lee is a Certified Association Executive (CAE), American Society of Association Executives.
Dan Shorts
Vice President of Government Affairs | National Confectioners Association
Dan Shorts
Dan Shorts is the Vice President of Government Affairs for the National Confectioners Association. He has 15 years of successful experience in government and politics at the federal, state, and local level.
In his current role, Dan directs the federal government affairs portfolio for America’s chocolate and candy industry, covering an array of policy subjects ranging from agricultural commodity supports to nutrition and dietary rules to environment and sustainability issues. Other policy subjects under Dan’s purview include CBD and cannabis-containing food policies and regulations, as well as tax, trade, and supply chain challenges.
Prior to joining the NCA, Dan was Deputy Director of Government Affairs for the Normandy Group, a bipartisan multi-client government affairs firm in Washington, DC. There, he managed diverse and bipartisan coalitions to achieve positive legislative outcomes on behalf of a number of businesses, nonprofits, higher education institutions, and other clients.
Dan originally got his start on Capitol Hill as a Legislative Assistant on the House Education & Workforce Committee, where he helped staff the Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Subcommittee. He helped shepherd legislation through the committee including the Every Student Succeeds Act, reauthorizing America’s K-12 education programs, as well as legislation reauthorizing the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.
Ron Sterk
Senior Editor, Markets | Sosland Publishing
Ron Sterk
Ron Sterk is senior editor, markets, for Food Business News and Milling & Baking News, and is editor of the Sosland Sweetener Report. Prior to joining Sosland Publishing Company in 2003, he was involved in market coverage and management for several years for the real-time news services. He has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural journalism with a focus in agronomy from Iowa State University and a master’s degree in business from Rockhurst University in Kansas City.
Hugo van der Goes
Vice President Cocoa, North America | Barry Callebaut
Hugo van der Goes
Mr. van der Goes is the Vice President Cocoa, North America for Barry Callebaut. In this role, he is responsible for the company’s North American cocoa business, including leadership of the commercial
team, risk management and financial performance of the business. He is a member of Barry Callebaut global cocoa and the Americas leadership teams.
Before joining Barry Callebaut, van der Goes worked for 16 years at Cargill in different senior management positions within the cocoa & chocolate division. His roles included responsibility for Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate commercial and cocoa sustainability functions. He served as Chairman & board member of The Cocoa Merchants’ Association of America. Van der Goes attended Erasmus University, Rotterdam (The Netherlands), where he received a Master of Science in Economics and International Marketing Management. He lives in Millersville, PA with his family.
La Quinta Resort & Club, Curio Collection by Hilton
Address: 49-499 Eisenhower Drive, La Quinta, California 92253
The International Sweetener Colloquium room block is currently sold out on Tuesday, February 25. If interested in being placed on a waitlist for a room within the block, please email registrar@idfa.org and share your desired arrival and departure dates.
Additionally, we have secured a discounted room block at the following nearby hotel to accommodate additional attendees. Below are the details for the overflow hotel:
Homewood Suites by Hilton LaQuinta (3.0 miles from La Quinta Resort & Club)
45-200 Washington Street
La Quinta, CA 92253
The deadline to secure a room at the discounted rate is February 7, 2025, or once the block is exhausted.
We recommend booking your stay as soon as possible, as rooms are limited, and availability may change quickly.
The International Sweetener Colloquium will be held at the La Quinta Resort & Club in La Quinta, California (the Greater Palm Springs area). You may make your hotel reservations online or directly with the hotel by calling 1-800-598-3828. When calling, refer to the International Sweetener Colloquium to receive the special room rate of $299 per night plus applicable taxes. The deadline to secure a room is February 8, 2025. We have reserved a large block of rooms, but once all the rooms have been booked, we cannot guarantee that additional space will be available.
Hotel Reservation Policy: You must register for the International Sweetener Colloquium to be eligible for the conference discounted room rates. Only one reservation is permitted per registrant. If a hotel guest is not registered for the International Sweetener Colloquium, we reserve the right to cancel the guest room reservation without notice.
Golf
Sunday, February 23 | 12:30 PM Shotgun Start
La Quinta Resort & Club | Dunes Course
This 72-par course, designed by Pete Dye, offers traditional rolling-links style golf with Scottish and Irish flair, characterized by rolling mounds, manicured fairways and thick rough. Length, strength and finesse are key to scoring well on this course, which has hosted the PGA Club Professional Championship, and the Californian State Open.
Registration Fee: $275 per person
Registration includes: Registration includes: greens fees, boxed lunch, cart fees, practice balls, beverages, and service fees. Appropriate golf attire and shoes are required (metal spikes are not allowed).
We will do our best to accommodate any foursome requests. If you would like to request a person(s) in your foursome, please list their name and company during registration.
* Government employees who work directly for a local, state or federal government agency or legislative body. A government email is required to receive this rate. Government contractors are not eligible.
Q: Registration Substitutions
Registration is non-transferable from one company to another; however, substitutions within companies are welcome at any time. Please email registrar@idfa.org if you would like to make a registration substitution.
Q: Registration Cancellation Policy
Registration cancellations received in writing will be accepted prior to January 24, 2025 for a full refund, minus a $75 processing fee. Cancellations received after January 24, 2025, will be eligible for a 50 percent refund, less the processing fee. Your registration fee is non-refundable after February 17, 2025. Substitutions may be made without penalty. All cancellations and substitutions must be received in writing at registrar@idfa.org.
Q: Golf Tournament Cancellation Policy
All golf tournament cancellations will receive a full refund prior to January 24, 2025. Your golf tournament registration fee is non-refundable after January 24, 2025. Substitutions may be made without penalty. All cancellations and substitutions must be received in writing at registrar@idfa.org.
Q: News Media
Credentialed members of the news media are welcome to register at a special rate by contacting mherrick@idfa.org. News media must present credentials to qualify.
Questions: If you have questions or need assistance with the registration process, please contact IDFA at (202) 737-4332 or registrar@idfa.org.
Sponsors
For more than forty years, the International Sweetener Colloquium has been a popular place for industry professionals to meet, network and conduct business. The flexible meeting format and location encourage formal and informal discussions and fosters relationships, while a host of informative presentations highlight important trends and issues affecting the sweetener industry.
For those interested in sponsorship, the Colloquium is the place to be seen and heard. Sponsorship is one of the best ways to brand your organization as a thought-leader and to highlight your commitment to advancing the sweetener industry. The Colloquium offers various levels of sponsorship opportunities. Please contact lgold@idfa.org for more information.
Sponsors: