Beth Ford serves as President and CEO of Land O’Lakes, Inc., a Fortune 200 food production and agribusiness company that is also a 100-year-old farmer-owned cooperative. Beth's 35-year career spans six industries at seven companies. Since joining Land O’Lakes in 2011, she has held a variety of roles leading the farmer-to-fork business offerings. Today, she is a passionate advocate on behalf of farmers and rural America with the goal of connecting people, particularly in urban areas, to the farmers and rural communities who grow their food. In addition, she is the convener of The American Connection Project to help bridge the digital divide.
A native of Sioux City, Iowa, Beth holds a bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University and a master’s degree in business from Columbia University Business School. She sits on the Boards of Directors for the Business Roundtable; BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager; Fortune 150 company PACCAR, Inc. and numerous other industry, non-profit and university boards.
Beth has been recognized by Fortune as one of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders and Most Powerful Women and named to Fast Company’s Best Leaders list, among other honors. She was featured in the New York Times’ Corner Office column and profiled in the “60 Minutes” segment entitled “The Farmers Advocate.”