Serving as the Chief Executive Officer of Land O’Lakes, she is revolutionizing American agriculture

Beth Ford, CEO of Land O'Lakes, has shared the best advice she ever received which was from her mother. Let's find out what it was.

 CNN reported from Arden Hills, Minnesota that

 In 2023, there was an abrupt stop in the surge of responsible investing.

 The pressure of economic and political forces has caused ESG initiatives to buckle, including attempts by congressional Republicans and conservative-led states to stop investments that focus on "agendas and ideology" that are labeled as "woke."

 In the center of the U.S., a dairy cooperative and Fortune 500 business, with a century of history, has heavily invested in sustainability, both in terms of the land and in small towns.

 Beth Ford is the first female to be in charge of the $19 billion Arden Hills, Minnesota-based cooperative, Land O'Lakes, which has 2,809 member-owners and 9,000 employees.

 Ford assumed the role of CEO of one of the nation's top butter and cheese suppliers in 2018, and since then she has been utilizing the collective knowledge of the organization's farmers, retailers, and producers to advance rural broadband access, decrease the company's carbon imprint, address food supply worries, and promote environmental stewardship without holding back.

 In spite of the current political environment, Ford and Land O'Lakes are sustaining their commitments to social and environmental causes.

 The business executive informed CNN that such efforts are simply beneficial from a business perspective.

 This summer, Beth Ford visited a Wisconsin farm with its member-owner, Evan Hillan, as illustrated in the following image:

 The spokesperson declared to CNN that their priority is to prioritize their members, their families, and their businesses. She stressed that she refrains from political involvement and that they focus on policies that are beneficial for farmers and the food supply.

 She stated that her focus was on trade, the strength of the US dollar, and the need to take proactive measures to ensure the security of the food supply.

Enhancing Endurance

 Under Ford's leadership, Land O'Lakes made larger investments in Truterra, which interlinks technology and sustainability. Upon its debut in 2016 as SUSTAIN, the subsidiary began researching projects such as introducing feed additives to cut back on methane emissions from livestock, a plastics reusing system, and cooperations between public and private entities to decrease water usage and bolster soil health.

 In 2021, Truterra initiated an initiative providing early money disbursements to agriculturalists who sequestered carbon dioxide, a process that involves capturing and maintaining naturally created greenhouse gases from plants.

 A few years ago, Beth Ford was at Dotterer Farm in Mill Hill, Pennsylvania.

 In its first year, Truterra disbursed $4 million to farmers for the capture of 200,000 metric tons of carbon. This amount was an average of $20,000 per farmer, with some receiving up to $100,000. By 2022, the total payout rose to $5 million, and more farmers had joined the program - 273 in total.

 Ford highlighted that their work included employing agronomists and an innovative data model to interact with farmers and enable practice change. He explained that this was not only a buzzword, but a process that helps to make the land and the farmers more resilient to climate change.

 Ford has asserted that she has become a zealous champion of science and technology, both in the corporate sector and in the agricultural regions that provide the food for the country.

 In August, the US Environmental Protection Agency and the Hershey Company provided a total of $2 million to Land O'Lakes member dairy farms in Pennsylvania in recognition of their leadership in sustainability initiatives that assist farmers in achieving both economic and environmental objectives.

 She proclaimed that 18%-19% of the populace live in non-urban America and make up 47%-48% of the armed forces. "These are families that are dedicated to this nation and are continually doing what is difficult and hard. I have profound respect for our farmers and service members. I will be an assertive proponent on their behalf since I believe it is proper for every one of us as citizens of the United States," she added.

 Transitioning from butter production to ag-tech

 Drawing from her mother for guidance and strength was something that Ford had done throughout all of her life and professional pursuits.

 Carol Ford, the mother of Ford, was a nurse, a therapist and a minister as a profession, and she also played a vital part in raising eight children with her husband in a working-class household.

 The Ford family of Sioux City, Iowa, had eight children, of which Ford was the fifth. This family instilled in him a strong sense of resilience, humility, and the importance of hard work.

 When Poppy Harlow of CNN interviewed Ford in 2018, she remembered her mother's words that, though they didn't possess everything, they had what was needed and expected much of them because of it.

 Ford told Harlow that the other person had asked if he comprehended what was required of him and how much he had. She then followed it by warning him not to disappoint. To this, Ford replied that he would have to strive to not let that happen.

 Ford had many different jobs during his teenage years and in college, ranging from detasseling corn, babysitting, working as a night cashier and cleaning toilets.

 Throughout her almost four decades in the business world, her versatility allowed her to work in six different industries at seven companies, such as Pepsi, Mobil and Scholastic.

 On July 29, 2021, Beth Ford, the CEO of Land O'Lakes, visited the company's headquarters in Arden Hills, Minnesota.

 She noted that the greatest gamble she has taken in her career was relocating when she felt she had to gain knowledge. "I've been in this line of work for 37 years," she remarked, "and there were plenty of occasions when I had no experience with the sector. I don't believe a summer spent detasseling corn qualifies me as an agricultural specialist."

 She continued by saying that the biggest risk lies in the willingness to accept humiliation, the determination to explore one's curiosity, to respect the knowledgeable people, and the assurance that it is alright to say "I don't know. Can you help me comprehend this?".

 From the start of her career at Land O'Lakes, Ford was determined to use her background in various industries to guide her vision for the company: to become a leader not only in butter, but also in agricultural technology.

 In 2020, Land O'Lakes put together the American Connection Project coalition to promote the investment in high-speed internet in rural areas. This coalition grew to consist of more than 175 members, and their work was successful in seeing the Biden administration's bipartisan infrastructure bill pass.

 Ford declared that her pledge to back investments that ensure the safety of the food supply and the farmers is carried out through the coalition she has created.

Experiencing fluctuation

 Agriculture, particularly in the dairy industry, is marked by a consistent cycle of transformations, which may come in the form of climatic shifts, geopolitical strife or trade obstacles.

 Lucas Fuess, an economist and senior daily analyst on the Rabobank's RaboResearch Food & Agribusiness team, noted that introducing environmentally sustainable practices or initiatives is not always an easy task.

 Prominent politicians from more conservative states and their shareholders have been outspoken in opposition to ESG measures. In Iowa, Governor Kim Reynolds has been vocal against investing in ESG, claiming that it is both "legally suspect" and "financially reckless" and that it will be a major focus for the 2023 legislative session.

 Earlier in the year, a multitude of state attorneys general, mainly from states reliant on agriculture, such as Iowa, Idaho, Kansas and many more, cautioned more than 50 of the biggest asset managers to not invest in any activity that was "biased in favor of a drastic social movement."

 Ford's attempts at "ESG" and other initiatives can be dangerous for her, the company, the co-op members, and even the customers in the grocery stores. All of these groups could be potentially impacted.

 Fuess pointed out that in order to make these initiatives successful, it is essential that all participants from the farmer to the co-op to the retail and consumer levels are all in alignment.

 He added that when trying to address sustainability-related or ESG-related matters, there's often a cost involved and that this brings up the questions of where the money comes from and how to make sure that the end result remains economically viable.

 He voiced his opinion that there is still an ongoing debate over who should assume the cost of this product - the customer, the processor, or the farmers.

 He pointed out that there is excellent potential as well.

 Despite how difficult this conversation is, I believe there are plenty of chances for us to take advantage of in order to reach our objectives and reduce emissions. If we keep up our efforts, I'm confident we will eventually be able to proudly tell our success story.

Investing in our planet and its inhabitants

 In Modale, Iowa, a crop duster is distributing nutrients on a soybean field as part of a Truterra initiative.

 Kelly Garrett, a sixth-generation farmer from Iowa, has been an advocate of regenerative farming for a long time. In 2020, his practices brought him to the public eye when he sold carbon credits in the open market. Records show that he was able to remove around 22,745 tons of carbon from the atmosphere during the period of 2014 to 2019, which resulted in his lucrative gain of $341,000.

 Garrett expressed to CNN that he saw the situation as a free source of income for actions that he already was doing and in which he had faith, both economically and otherwise.

 Garrett was drawn to Truterra after the sale garnered attention and attributed its appeal to the support of Land O'Lakes.

 He commented that the carbon market is quite untamed and unmonitored, as many of the carbon companies are newcomers with limited financing. He went on to state that when the money runs out, their ethical standards can become lax.

 Garrett noted that Land O'Lakes's cooperative, which has been in existence for over a hundred years, brings assurance to some farmers who may have had bad experiences in the past. This gives them a sense of safety.

 In 2020, Kelly Garrett of Garrett Land & Cattle was inspecting a corn field in Arion, Iowa.

 Admitting it, he stated that the way he farms is the most profitable, and when conversing with other farmers, he mentions his substantial yield approach along with being conscientious with the environment. The two approaches are unifying as they both are attempting to farm in harmony with nature.

 Land O'Lakes and Ford continue to champion causes like immigration reform and farming research funding at the federal level, in addition to their investments in Truterra, technology, and economics related to agriculture. The White House recently released a statement on the matter.

 Ford noted the importance of investments and efforts in the current climate, where weather is becoming increasingly unpredictable, water is becoming increasingly scarce, productivity is hindered due to worker shortages, profits are drained by persistent inflation, and loans are both costlier and more challenging to access.

 My apprehensions stem from the lack of awareness about the needs of the food system, its interlinked nature, and the need to prioritize it," she stated. "This is a national problem, it doesn't matter if you live in a city or a rural area, it's essential to all of us."

 It is clear that global warming has become a major issue in the modern world. Its effects can be seen in the form of rising temperatures, changes to weather patterns, and the melting of glaciers and polar ice caps. The increase in the average temperature of the Earth has been largely attributed to the human activities that are responsible for emitting greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Therefore, it is important to take measures to reduce our carbon footprint in order to combat the consequences of global warming