ASTA Hosts 134th Annual Convention, Elects New Leadership Team

Minneapolis, MN—June 23, 2017—Seed industry professionals from across the nation are gathered in Minneapolis for the American Seed Trade Association’s (ASTA) 134th Annual Conference. ASTA’s annual meeting, June 21-24, brings together its diverse membership to tackle collective issues and develop policy to guide the future of the association. During the meeting, ASTA elected its 2017-18 leadership team which will continue to oversee the implementation of the association’s five year Strategic Plan — focusing on advocacy, efficiency of operations, and internal and external communications.

The members of the 2017-18 ASTA leadership team are: 
•    Chair–Tracy Tally, Justin Seed Co.
•    First Vice Chair–Jerry Flint, DuPont Pioneer
•    Second Vice Chair–Wayne Gale, Stokes Seeds
•    Rep. to/from Canada–Jim Schweigert, Gro Alliance
•    Rep. to/from Mexico–Pablo Fernandez, Dow AgroSciences
•    Central Region Vice President–Dave Pearl, The Cisco Companies

Incoming Chair Tracy Tally is President of Justin Seed Company in Justin, Texas. He has more than 30 years’ experience in the seed industry and is the second generation Tally to run Justin Seed—a company that is more than half a century old. He is also a second generation graduate of the College of Agriculture at Texas Tech University (1986). Besides running Justin Seed for the past 25 years, he served as the ASTA Southern Region Vice President, an officer on the Texas Seed Trade Association Board, was previously a certified crop adviser and serves for a variety of organizations in his community. He and his wife, Julie, live in Dallas and have four daughters, Emily, Elizabeth, Erica and Ellen who have been active participants in ASTA conventions over the years.

“In the coming days, weeks and months, we will have new opportunities to help guide change,” said Tally. “These range from new plant breeding innovations, and how they’ll be defined both domestically and internationally, the implementation of a new food labeling law, and making our voice heard in the midst of the changing political landscape. I can’t remember a time that we are needed more, and perhaps listened to more than today. My goal is to continue the strong legacy that has been built over the past 134 years as we work to address new and emerging challenges at home and around the globe—through better seed for better life; it really does all start with a seed.”

The new ASTA leadership team will begin official duties on July 1.