ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA, U.S.  — Dean Warras, Prince Agri Products, Inc., has succeeded Al Gunderson as the chair of the board of trustees of the Institute for Feed Education & Research (IFEEDER), a charitable foundation seeking to sustain the future of food and feed production through education and research, the American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) said on May 24.

Eddie Wells, Milk Specialties Global, has been named vice-chair. Wes Jamison, Ph.D., Palm Beach Atlantic University (PBA) and Bruce Crutcher, Trouw Nutrition USA, have been appointed to the board. The appointments were approved at the AFIA’s board of directors meeting in Arlington, Virginia, U.S., on May 16.

Warras, who has served on the IFEEDER board since its 2009 inception, was previously the vice- chairman of board and the chair of the Marketing Committee. Al Gunderson, who will continue to serve as a member of the IFEEDER leadership, was named chairman of the board of directors for the AFIA.

 “While we will miss and are thankful for Al’s leadership over the past year, I have no doubt that IFEEDER will continue to thrive with Dean Warras at the helm; especially with the support of vice-chair Eddie Wells, as well as the rest of the trustees,” IFEEDER corporate secretary, Richard Sellers, said.

Jamison is an associate professor of communication at PBA, where he teaches public relations, persuasion, political communication and communication theory. He has also served as professor of political and social science in the U.S. and Europe, teaching agriculture politics, agricultural history and American government. He holds a doctorate degree from Oregon State University, where he studied interest group activism, and is nearing completion of a doctorate in public relations from the University of Florida, studying communications as it relates to politics, food, agriculture and science. Jamison is also president of Cornerstone Public Relations, has served as a board member of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture and as director of the Agricultural Stewardship Center.

“Dr. Jamison brings vast expertise to IFEEDER. His background in agriculture politics and communication will help to establish IFEEDER as one of the premiere foundations supporting the feed industry as it seeks to address challenges facing the future of food production,” Sellers said.

Crutcher has been with Trouw since 2004 and currently serves as the general manager of Trouw Nutrition USA and managing director of Trouw Nutrition North and Central America, which includes the Trouw business interests in the U.S., Mexico and Central America. Trouw Nutrition USA is a wholly owned subsidiary of Nutreco B.V., headquartered in Amersfoort Netherlands. Prior to joining Trouw, Crutcher has held various sales, marketing and general management positions in the feed and animal health industries. Crutcher received his bachelor’s of science degree in agriculture from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

“Bruce will be a valuable asset to IFEEDER. His background in sales and marketing as well as general business management in both the feed and animal health industries will bring a unique perspective to the board,” Sellers said.