National program salutes Hoosier asparagus farmer

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Wal-Mart Stores announced that Indiana-based Melon Acres, Inc. will be showcased in conjunction with the company’s Salute to America’s Farmers program. Salute to America’s Farmers spotlights Wal-Mart’s commitment to purchase from local growers for distribution to stores in their areas in support of locally-grown agricultural products.

Melon Acres of Oaktown, about 70 miles southwest of Indianapolis, will team with Wal-Mart to provide home-grown fresh asparagus to numerous Wal-Mart stores in the region, and provide visibility to the company’s commitment to Hoosier agriculture and growers around the country.

Melon Acres is owned and operated by the Horrall family, which is now entering its third generation of southwestern Indiana farmers. The company started in 1976, primarily selling cantaloupe and watermelons.

It has been a leader in agribusiness innovation, and one of the first to introduce forced-air cooling of melons, which preserves their field-fresh flavor. Melon Acres will sell about 55,000 pounds of asparagus to Wal-Mart.

For Robert Atkinson, a Melon Acres manager, it means providing local customers a choice between Indiana-grown product instead of imports from other countries or regions. “With Wal-Mart’s delivery system, our product can be in the Wal-Mart coolers in one or two days as opposed to six to seven days for imports,” he said. “That means a large difference in the quality and flavor of the asparagus.”

“Melon Acres is a good example of the many farms that provide nourishing food to Hoosiers and support our state’s economy,” said Andy Miller, Indiana agriculture director. “We take great pride in our local farmers and appreciate Wal-Mart’s continued support and commitment toward the growers and producers in our state.”

Syngenta appoints Goff as its science advisor

Golden Valley, Minn. — Syngenta has announced the appointment of Steve Goff, senior Syngenta fellow, to the role of science advisor for corn and soybean seeds and crop genetics research. Goff will closely monitor public and private sector trends in research and discovery to provide scientific and technical expertise to corn and soybean product development.

As a leader in genomics, Goff has participated in several important research initiatives, including  leadership in mapping and sequencing the rice genome. This research has led to data now used as a tool to help map corn and wheat, which have similar genetic structures.

Goff has held several positions in Syngenta, including senior scientist, head of DNA sequencing, director of structural genomics and director of genome technology at Torrey Mesa Research Institute. He obtained a B.A. from the University of California-Santa Cruz and a Ph.D. from Harvard University, and was recently presented Scientific American’s Research Leader of the Year Award for his role in mapping and sequencing the rice genome.

Holland named controller and ops manager for PigTek

MILFORD, Ind. — Joe Holland has been named Controller and Operations Manager for PigTek Pig Equipment Group, according to George Murdoch, vice president and general manager for the CTB, Inc. business unit.

In his new position, Holland will be responsible for all financial reporting for the business unit as well as for managing customer service and the manufacturing operation at the Milford facility.
Holland joined CTB in 1999 as a division controller and was responsible for the management of all accounting and financial reporting functions for the Chore-Time Poultry Production Systems business unit. Most recently, Holland held the position of operations manager and was responsible for all material planning, manufacturing, shipping and customer service activities within Chore-Time Poultry Production Systems.