With her selection as secretary-treasurer of the U.S. Meat Export Federation board of directors, Indiana pork producer Danita Rodibaugh takes on a new level of leadership responsibility in the nation’s most vertically integrated trade association representing the U.S. meat and livestock industry. However, it is a role for which Rodibaugh is extremely well-prepared, based on many years in the top leadership of the U.S. pork industry.
“My connection to USMEF goes back to the 1990s when I was on the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) board of directors,” Rodibaugh said. “I learned the importance of USMEF, and also became very familiar with its budgeting and planning process.”
Rodibaugh was appointed to the National Pork Board (NPB) in 2001. She later chaired the NPB budget committee and was elected NPB president in 2005.
“As president of the Pork Board, I was selected by (then) USMEF Chairman John Bellinger to serve on the executive committee in an at-large position,” she said. “That experience has given me strong insight into the mission and programs of USMEF, and I’m very excited to be joining the USMEF officer team at a time when exports are so critical to the success of our livestock industry.”
“Danita brings a wealth of experience and a long history of livestock industry leadership to our officer team,” said USMEF President and CEO Philip Seng. “USMEF is really fortunate to have individuals of this caliber who are willing to serve as our volunteer leaders.”
Rodibaugh is an Indiana native and a graduate of Purdue University. She and her husband, David, operate a family farm operation near Rensselaer, Ind., that produces purebred seedstock swine, as well as corn, soybeans and wheat. In addition to her involvement with NPPC and NPB, Rodibaugh has held leadership positions in local and state pork organizations, as well as the Indiana Farm Bureau, the Indiana State Department of Agriculture Advisory Board, and the National Livestock and Meat Board. Recognized as one of the pork industry’s leading experts on environmen! tal issues, she is a member of the NPPC environmental policy committee and has served on numerous environmental oversight and advisory committees.
“Danita’s environmental expertise is a real asset to the pork industry and to USMEF,” said USMEF Chairman Jon Caspers, a pork producer from Swaledale, Iowa. “The livestock industry has made great strides in reducing our impact on the environment, and that’s a message that needs to get out to consumers across the nation and throughout the world. Danita is the kind of experienced leader who can help us do that.”
In her role as a USMEF officer, Rodibaugh’s top priorities include producer communications and strategic planning.
“I’m just really pleased with the progress we’ve made in communications, in sharing the value and success of USMEF with our members,” she said. “And with regard to strategic planning, I think it’s important that we get the key stakeholders from all sectors of the industry around the table and find the areas where we can complement each others’ efforts.”
Rodibaugh was selected as USMEF secretary-treasurer at the USMEF Strategic Planning Conference, held Nov. 3-5 in Tucson, Ariz. For more information on USMEF and its leadership team, please visit www.usmef.org/AboutUs/Leadership.asp.