To submit an announcement for Names in the News, please email it to Kristin Bakker at [email protected].

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RABOBANK, New York, N.Y. — Chris Hartofilis has been named head of capital markets in North America. Hartofilis will lead the capital markets team. He was most recently part of Group Treasury, Asset-Based Finance and Capital Markets.

Nader Pasdar has been appointed head of markets North America. Pasdar will lead a team that specializes in capital markets solutions and risk management for clients. He was most recently head of capital markets in North America.

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OBITUARY — Gregory J. Duerksen, chairman of Kincannon & Reed, Waynesboro, Va., died unexpectedly on Jan. 31. Duerksen joined Kincannon & Reed in 2001 and became chairman and chief executive officer in 2007. After leading the acquisition of the firm from its founder in 2007, Duerksen guided Kincannon & Reed to become the leading search firm in the food and agribusiness sectors, tripling the staff and partner group while maintaining the firm's entrepreneurial, collaborative culture.

AGRISEL USA INC., Atlanta, Ga. — Tim Martel has been named vice president of sales and marketing. Martel was previously with Helm Agro.

AMERICAN FARM BUREAU FEDERATION, Washington, D.C. — Heather Gieseke has been named managing director, business development. Gieseke will be responsible for establishing and building industry partnerships with agricultural companies and associations, leading the IDEAg sales and marketing teams and building industry recognition of the federation's various programs and brands. She was previously with Meredith Corp.

BIOZYME INC., St. Joseph, Mo. — Cory Nichols has joined the company as director of national sales-South. Nichols will work with seven area sales managers to help expand their dealer networks and will work with existing dealers to grow their sales.

Jack Oattes has joined the company as area sales manager in New York and the Northeast U.S. Oattes will work to develop new and build upon current dealer and customer relations in New York and the Northeast U.S. and will represent the International Team in Canada.

Sam Silvers has joined the company as area sales manager in west Texas. Silvers will develop new and build upon current dealer and customer relations in the area.

CAINTHUS, Dublin, Ireland — Steve Kickert has been appointed chief operations officer. Kickert was previously with Cargill.

DARIGOLD, Seattle, Wash. — Grant Kadavy has been named chief operating officer. Kadavy will be responsible for strategic development, innovation, supply chain and all day-to-day commercial operations and will assume more responsibilities in representing the co-op externally in the industry, such as by advocating in the public policy arena. He was most recently chief commercial officer.

FORM-A-FEED, Stewart, Minn. — Tom Streit has joined the company as business development leader. Streit will help with business growth, talent development, strategic planning and process improvement primarily in the swine sector.

FOSTER FARMS, Livingston, Cal. — Dan Huber has been appointed chief executive officer. Huber was most recently chief operations officer.

HAMLET PROTEIN, Horsens, Denmark — Joshua Steed has been appointed poultry nutritionist for North America. Steed will work to expand the company footprint across the poultry industry. He was previously with Trouw Nutrition USA.

INTERNATIONAL INGREDIENT CORP., Fenton, Mo. — Dr. Tingting Wang has joined the company as product development specialist. Wang will provide technical support, project leadership and research guidance in the development of proprietary products. She will also assist with technical sales and product registrations.

KAI ENTERPRISES, St. Louis, Mo. — Darren L. James has been named president. James will explore ways to increase and expand the firm's national presence and develop and oversee the sales and marketing strategy for the four business units: KAI Design, KAI Engineering, KAI Build and KAI 360 Construction Services. He was most recently president and chief operating officer of KAI Texas.

LATHAM HI-TECH SEEDS, Alexander, Iowa — Ryan Schon has been named general manager. Schon was previously with Granular.

LIPHATECH INC., Milwaukee, Wis. — Jason Burnette has joined the company as business director for the agricultural division. Burnette will be responsible for overseeing sales strategy and leading district sales managers in promoting the company's animal health and agricultural products.

MISSOURI CATTLEMEN'S ASSN., Columbia, Mo. — Sydney Thummel has joined the association as manager of membership.

MS BIOTEC LLC, Wamego, Kan. — Dr. Carl Guthrie has joined the company as chief commercial officer. Guthrie will be responsible for providing leadership for the sales, marketing and technical services teams. He was previously with Elanco.

NEWLEAF SYMBIOTICS, St. Louis, Mo. — Matt Helms has joined the company as vice president of marketing. Helms was previously with Monsanto Co.

PERDUE AGRIBUSINESS, Salisbury, Md. — Dr. Mikayla Baxter has joined the Animal Nutrition team as digestive health products manager. Baxter will be responsible for multispecies sales of digestive health products throughout the U.S.

PROFESSIONAL DAIRY PRODUCERS FOUNDATION, Juneau, Wis. — Janet Keller has been named executive director. Keller will lead the foundation in raising funds and awarding grants for educational programs in the dairy community. She was previously with Accelerated Genetics.

QUALITY TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL, Elgin, Ill. — Jeffrey Jordan has been appointed sales and marketing manager, focusing on the layer market segment. Jordan will provide sales and technical support for producers, veterinarians and nutritionists and will work with the Animal Health Team to manage existing and prospective customers. He was previously with Cal-Maine Foods.

RECOMBINETICS, St. Paul, Minn. — Mark Platt has been named chief executive officer. Platt will guide the corporate culture and nurture relationships with key stakeholders. He was previously with Trane Inc.

THE SCOULAR CO., Omaha, Neb. — Derek Farmer will join the company as director of occupational safety, effective March 4. Farmer will be responsible for the safety program and promoting a culture of safety across the company. He was previously with Arconic.

WESTERN SPECIALTY CONTRACTORS, St. Louis, Mo. — Jessica Gitto has been promoted to national account manager. Gitto will assist in efforts to identify, establish and develop relationships with large, multi-location customers as well as with executives and other key contacts. She will also help coordinate work between the various branch offices and project locations, as well as seminars and presentations, and will work to improve sales growth of national accounts and implement corporate marketing plans. She was most recently marketing/assistant national account manager.

ZINPRO CORP., Eden Prairie, Minn. — Willard Lemaster has joined the company as account manager — Rocky Mountain district. Lemaster will provide nutritional solutions and Zinpro Performance Minerals sales support to customers in Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas.