Ag Outlook 2025

Sara Wyant is the founder and publisher of Agri-Pulse Communications Inc., a digital media firm she launched in 2004 covering farm, food, and rural policy. An award-winning agricultural journalist, she has reported on nearly every major policy debate since the 1980s and is a respected voice on Capitol Hill. Wyant broke barriers as the first woman on Farm Progress’ senior management team and as chair of the Farm Foundation’s board. Honored by Folio’s “Top Women in Media,” she has received numerous industry awards. A graduate of Iowa State University, she owns and manages her family’s century farm in Iowa.

Joe Reardon has served as President and CEO of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce since 2016, representing more than 2,200 member businesses and championing the regional business community. He previously led the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority, advancing regional transit initiatives, and served two terms as Mayor/CEO of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, KS, driving major public–private partnerships and developments. Reardon also contributed nationally as a member of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Culture of Health Advisory Group and taught Regionalism at Rockhurst University. He holds a B.A. in Political Science from Rockhurst and a J.D. from the University of Kansas.

Chelsea Good is owner of Good & Associates, a multi-client firm specializing in issues management, government affairs, strategic communications, and industry relations for agriculture. From 2013–2025 she served as Vice President of Government and Industry Affairs and Legal at the Livestock Marketing Association (LMA), and continues to represent LMA as a client. She serves on the boards of the National Institute of Animal Agriculture, American Agricultural Law Association, Kansas Agriculture Rural Leadership, and Kansas City Agribusiness Council. A Washburn Law graduate, Chelsea also earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Kansas State University. She lives in Leawood, Kansas.

Alex Sayago is Vice President, Marketing and Shared Services for John Deere. He joined the company in 1992 as an engineer in Mexico and over his career has held diverse leadership roles across supply management, operations, sales, marketing and strategy in the Americas. Sayago has served as Director of Corporate Strategy & Business Development and led Deere’s Latin America Sales & Marketing efforts. He plays a key role executing Deere’s Grow Time strategy and implementing its Smart Industrial Operating Model across his region. Based in Europe, he drives growth through dealer networks and customer-focused leadership.

Brooke L. Rollins, the 33rd U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, is a Texas native and longtime policy leader. She most recently founded and led the America First Policy Institute as President and CEO. In the Trump Administration, she served as Director of the Domestic Policy Council, Assistant to the President for Strategic Initiatives, and Director of the Office of American Innovation, where she advanced a transformational policy agenda. Earlier, Rollins spent 15 years as CEO of the Texas Public Policy Foundation. An honors graduate of Texas A&M University and the University of Texas School of Law, she and her husband live in Fort Worth with their four children.

Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. represents Kansas in the U.S. Senate, where he serves on the Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry; Finance; Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; and Budget Committees. A 5th-generation farm kid from Butler County, he became the first in his family to attend college, earning degrees from Kansas State University and the University of Kansas School of Medicine. An OB/GYN for 25 years, he delivered more than 5,000 babies and built a medical practice employing over 300 people. A U.S. Army Reserve veteran, Rotarian, and community leader, Marshall and his wife, Laina, have four children and four grandchildren.

Philip Brasher is Editor-in-Chief of Agri-Pulse, where he has reported on food and agriculture policy in Washington since 1999. He previously covered agriculture for the Associated Press, Des Moines Register, and Congressional Quarterly before joining Agri-Pulse in 2014. Brasher launched Agri-Pulse Daybreak in 2016 and has reported internationally on food security issues in Africa, Central America, Europe, and the Middle East. A native of west Texas, he began his journalism career after studying at the University of Texas at Austin. He is a member of the North American Agricultural Journalists, White House Correspondents’ Association, and SABEW, and lives in Virginia.

Harrison M. Pittman, B.S., J.D., LL.M., has served as Director of the National Agricultural Law Center since 2007, where he began as a graduate assistant in 2001. He earned his J.D. from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law and his LL.M. in Agricultural Law from the University of Arkansas. Pittman has taught agricultural and environmental law at multiple universities and received the Agricultural Business Club Teaching Award in 2012. A leader in the American Agricultural Law Association and Arkansas Bar Association, he is a frequent presenter and author on diverse agricultural law issues.

Roger A. McEowen is Professor of Agricultural Law and Taxation at Washburn University School of Law in Topeka, Kansas. He previously served as the Leonard Dolezal Professor in Agricultural Law at Iowa State University, where he founded and directed the Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation. A prolific author, McEowen has published extensively in leading journals and written multiple books, including Principles of Agricultural Law and Agricultural Law in a Nutshell. He conducts 80–100 seminars annually, hosts widely broadcast radio programs, and appears weekly on RFD-TV. McEowen holds degrees from Purdue, Iowa State, and Drake University School of Law.

Paul Neiffer, CPA is a thought leader on income and estate tax planning services and FSA planning related to farmers and their families. Neiffer is past president of the Farm Financial Standards Council and past chairperson of the AICPA Ag Conference.  He writes the “FarmCPA” column for Top Producer magazine along with their Top Producer Podcast and is also the primary author of the “FarmCPAReport.com” blog.  Neiffer is a nationally recognized speaker on many subjects related to farmers and processors including (1) tax planning, (2) estate tax and succession planning, (3) farm management accounting, (4) farm bill, (5) farm economics and many other related topics.

Dr. Seth Meyer has served as USDA’s Chief Economist since January 2021, providing leadership on agricultural forecasts, market outlook, and policy analysis. He previously directed the World Agricultural Outlook Board, overseeing the influential WASDE report, and served as Associate Director of the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri. Widely recognized for his expertise in global commodity markets, Meyer has also worked with the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization and held visiting scholar posts internationally. An eastern Iowa native, he earned his B.S. and M.S. from Iowa State University and his Ph.D. from the University of Missouri.

John Newton, Ph.D., is the Executive Head of Terrain, bringing over 20 years of experience applying data-driven insights to agriculture’s most pressing challenges. He has served as Republican Chief Economist for the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee, Chief Economist at the American Farm Bureau Federation, and held leadership roles at the National Milk Producers Federation and USDA. Earlier in his career, he was an award-winning faculty member at the University of Illinois. Newton holds a Ph.D. in agricultural economics and master’s degrees in applied economics and macroeconomics from The Ohio State University, which honored him with its Distinguished Alumni Award in 2021.

Bart Fischer, Ph.D., is Research Associate Professor and Co-Director of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M University, where he also serves as Senior Advisor for Federal Relations in Texas A&M AgriLife. His research addresses real-world policy issues facing agricultural producers while anticipating policy options for Congress. Prior to joining Texas A&M, Fischer spent over eight years on the House Agriculture Committee, ultimately serving as Deputy Staff Director and Chief Economist under Ranking Member K. Michael Conaway, where he helped craft the 2014 and 2018 Farm Bills. A fifth-generation farmer, he remains active in his family’s Oklahoma operation.

Stephen Nicholson is the Global Sector Strategist for Grains and Oilseeds at Rabo AgriFinance within the RaboResearch Food & Agribusiness group. With more than 40 years of experience in cash grain markets, commodity procurement, risk management, and analysis, he brings deep expertise to global clients. A native of Iowa, Nicholson earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in agriculture and economics from Iowa State University. He joined Rabo AgriFinance in 2014, following senior roles at International Food Products, Doane Agricultural Services, Earthgrains, and The Coca-Cola Company, where he helped establish the company’s first commodity risk management framework.

Steve Boren is Vice President of Livestock at Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health USA Inc., where he leads commercial operations and professional veterinary services across Poultry, Swine, Cattle, and Veterinary Public Health. Since joining the company in 2011, he has worked extensively in North America, Asia, and Europe, advancing innovation to support safe, sustainable food supplies. A native Californian, Boren holds degrees from Fresno State University, Oklahoma State University, and the University of California. He also remains active in beef production, operating a no-till soybean and corn farm in Missouri and finishing cattle in Nebraska and Kansas feedlots.

Ron Phillips serves as Senior Vice President, Policy at the Animal Health Institute (AHI), where he leads the association’s policy efforts for companies that develop and produce medicines for food-producing and companion animals. With extensive experience in association management, government relations, and regulatory affairs, Phillips plays a central role in shaping industry positions on animal medicine regulation, trade, safety, and public health. At AHI, he works with stakeholders across the veterinary, regulatory, and legislative spectrum to ensure safe, effective, and accessible animal health products. His leadership supports AHI’s mission to protect animal welfare and the safety of the food supply.