Tom Sleight, president and chief executive officer of the U.S. Grains Council since 2012, will retire this summer following the appointment of his successor.
The Council board of directors made the announcement this week during a membership meeting in Colombia.
Sleight says he has “done what I intended to accomplish,” adding he is “confident the Council is headed in the right direction.”
In a news release, the organization says Sleight leaves with the organization on firm footing and with expansion on the horizon.
The Council was recently awarded nearly $14 million from the Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Trade Promotion Program, and was also recently awarded an increase in funding from USDA’s market development programs, the Market Access Program and Foreign Market Development program.
The board of directors has appointed a search committee comprised of representatives from its membership, including the corn, sorghum, barley, ethanol and agribusiness sectors.
