Krysta Harden, the President and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council, a non-profit, independent membership organization that represents the global trade interests of U.S. dairy producers, proprietary processors and cooperatives, ingredient suppliers and export traders joins Enterprise Radio.

Listen to host Eric Dye & guest Krysta Harden discuss the following:



* Can you start by telling us about the U.S. Dairy Export Council and its mission?

* How does the U.S. Dairy Export Council enrich the well-being of people, communities, and the planet?

* What is the state of the Dairy trade in the U.S. and globally? What are some of the challenges you are facing and solutions?

* There’s been a lot of talk about the Dairy Industry and climate change. Can you please help us separate fact from fiction?

* What are the biggest priorities for the U.S. Dairy Export Council both now and in the future?





As president and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC), Krysta Harden leverages experience with agriculture, sustainability, food policy and the federal government to help fulfill USDEC’smission to promote dairy exports and enrich the well- being of people, communities, and the planet.

In February 2021, Harden became the third president and CEO to lead USDEC since its founding by Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) in 1995. She is the first woman to lead the organization. Harden succeeds former USDEC President and CEO Tom Vilsack, who was confirmed in February 2021 as U.S. Agriculture Secretary in the Biden-Harris administration.

At USDEC, Harden directs a staff of dairy trade specialists, trade policy professionals, a global marketing team and a strategy and insights team. In addition, she oversees eight international offices working to facilitate dairy product and ingredient application knowledge, identify market opportunities, monitor regulatory activity and work toward improving the business climate for U.S. Dairy.

Working together and with its member companies, USDEC facilitates dairy product and ingredient application, identifies market opportunities, monitors regulatory activity and makes the case that U.S. dairy exports should compete on a level playing field with sound trade policy.

Harden plans to be active in global organizations, including the World Economic Forum, Global Child Nutrition Foundation, and the upcoming U.N. World Food Systems Summit.

Prior to taking the top spot at USDEC, Harden served dual roles as USDEC’s chief operating officer and DMI’s executive vice-president of global environmental strategy. In this capacity, she helped develop and launch the Net Zero Initiative, an industry wide effort that will help U.S. dairy farms of all sizes and geographies implement new technologies and adopt economically viable practices.

Before joining DMI, Harden served as chief sustainability officer with Corteva and DuPont. Harden also spent seven years working with Vilsack at USDA, nearly three of those years as deputy secretary, following posts as Vilsack’s USDA chief of staff and assistant secretary for Congressional relations. At USDA, Harden helped shape agriculture policy and led the implementation of the 2014 Farm Bill.

Prior to joining USDA, Harden was CEO of the National Association of Conservation Districts, where she provided national leadership for thousands of conservation districts across the nation, and worked with the American Soybean Association as senior vice president of   Gordley Associates, where she concentrated on conservation and renewable energy issues.