The U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) elected its 2025-26 Board of Directors on Saturday, March 1, during the organization's annual meeting prior to Commodity Classic in Denver.
The 16-member board represents various stakeholders from the U.S. Soy industry, including four seats each from the American Soybean Association (ASA) and United Soybean Board (USB), and eight seats from trade, industry and state organizations.
Janna Fritz, an ASA director and farmer from Bad Axe, Michigan, was elected as chair for a 12-month term. Fritz operates a sixth-generation family farm producing soybeans, corn, wheat, triticale and dry edible beans on approximately 1,200 acres.
"I look forward to working closely with my peers and colleagues across the industry and customers in international markets to ensure U.S. Soy continues to be recognized as the gold standard," Fritz said in her acceptance remarks.
Jim Sutter, USSEC Chief Executive Officer, emphasized the board's crucial role in guiding growth and contributing to U.S. Soy's mission of differentiating and elevating preference for U.S. Soy globally.
The new board includes several first-time members, including Joe Dierickx from the Iowa Farm Bureau, Scott Gaffner from the Illinois Soybean Association, and Clayton Charles from FS Grain LLC.
U.S. Soy remains America's top agricultural export, contributing $31.2 billion to the U.S. economy during the last marketing year.
