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Farm hands on the potomac: joel Leftwich joins Idealyst Innovation, robert Haus goes to Vylor, General Mills names Dana McNabb as CEO. Joel Leftwich will join Idealyst Innovation as executive vice president of policy innovation and director of the Center for American Food Power. Leftwich joins Idealyst from the Kansas Farm Bureau, where he serves as chief strategy officer. He previously served as majority staff director of the Senate Agriculture Committee, managing director of Glover Park Group's food team and senior director of government affairs at PepsiCo. Robert Haus has joined Vylor as state government and industry affairs leader. He previously served as director of Midwest government and industry affairs at Corteva Agriscience, a role he held since 2018. Haus also held positions with the Department of Energy, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad. General Mills named Dana McNabb as CEO, effective Jan. 1, succeeding Jeff Harmening. McNabb, a 27-year General Mills veteran, currently serves as COO and has held several senior leadership roles. Harmening will become executive chair. Nathan Bowen has joined Feeding America as executive vice president of government affairs and policy. Bowen will work with the organization's network of more than 250 food banks on federal policy and advocacy efforts. He previously served in government affairs and policy roles, most recently at the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture. Chad Slump (Michigan Milk Producers Association photo) The Michigan Milk Producers Association has appointed Chad Slump as chief financial officer. Slump joins MMPA from Ardent Mills, where he served as vice president of finance. He will oversee finance and information technology for the cooperative. Shawna Severson has been named executive vice president of the Montana Grain Growers Association. Severson had served as interim EVP since April and previously was the association's office manager and event coordinator. She will lead MGGA's operations, advocacy, member services, communications and events. Danny Munch has joined CoBank as lead economist for farm economy and agricultural commodities. Munch spent five and a half years with the American Farm Bureau Federation, where he focused on agricultural economic issues and research. He previously interned with Farm Credit East while completing graduate research on agricultural cooperatives. Justina Graff has returned to The Russell Group as principal. She previously worked at the firm before serving as a professional staff member on the House Agriculture Committee under Chair Glenn "GT" Thompson, R-Pa. Graff grew up on Justina Graff (The Russell Group photo) a sixth-generation farm and ranch in Hondo, Texas, and is a Texas A&M University graduate. Kelsey Becker (LinkedIn photo) Kelsey Becker has been promoted to chief of staff for Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., succeeding Kalina Thompson. Becker has worked for Duckworth since 2012 in leadership roles across her House and Senate offices and campaigns. She previously served as deputy chief of staff. Aaron Bledsoe has been named grain division manager at Superior Ag, succeeding Craig Haugaard, who is retiring in October. Bledsoe joined the cooperative in July after working with White River Co-Op and Premier Cos. in Indiana. Jeff Hagan also joined Superior Ag as agronomy division manager ahead of PJ Peter's planned retirement in February.

New research and community stories show the growing case for nature-based solutions. Sep 21, 2026, 08:55 ET Human Nature spotlights solutions protecting water and strengthening local economies, from Arkansas Delta wetlands to Iowa farm fields and Mexican fishing communities WASHINGTON, Sept. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ - The Walton Family Foundation is expanding its work to advance nature-based solutions, practical approaches that work with natural systems to protect water while strengthening communities and local economies. The focus is part of the foundation's evolving Environment Program strategy, pairing on-the-ground work with efforts to address the policies, financing and market conditions that can help effective solutions grow and endure. Today, the foundation launched Human Nature, a new storytelling series featuring multimedia case studies showing what that approach looks like in practice. Through stories from Arkansas Delta wetlands, Iowa farm fields and fishing communities in Mexico, the series spotlights how communities are already working with nature to reduce flood risk, improve water quality, strengthen livelihoods and build resilience. "When we take care of nature and work with natural systems, we are also taking care of people," said Moira Mcdonald, director of the Walton Family Foundation's Environment Program. "These nature-based solutions are already helping farmers keep more topsoil and profit on their land, helping fishing communities rebuild the stocks their livelihoods depend on, and helping people hold on to land that's been in their families for generations. We know these approaches can work. Now the challenge is helping more communities put them to work by bringing together local leadership, investment and policies that make proven solutions easier to adopt and sustain." Natural approaches also have broad public support and a growing body of research behind them. A 2025 Morning Consult poll found that 80% of Americans say restoring and protecting wetlands to absorb floodwaters should be a priority for state and local governments. A June 2026 study from the University of Georgia's Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems found that when the full range of benefits natural infrastructure provides - including flood reduction, clean water, habitat and recreation - is accounted for, these approaches can deliver returns of up to $8 for every $1 invested. Restoring Wetlands and Preserving Family Land in the Mississippi Delta In the Mississippi Alluvial Valley, the foundation-supported Tri-State Conservation Partnership has helped place more than 1 million acres into USDA Wetland Reserve Easements, paying landowners to return frequently flooded farmland to wetlands. The approach lets farmers keep their most productive acres in production while retiring the acres most prone to flooding, restoring habitat and reducing flood risk while keeping land in local hands. Local partners like The KKAC Organization, an Arkansas Delta land-retention and agricultural organization, help connect landowners, including historically underserved rural communities who have long faced barriers to holding on to their land, with these federal conservation programs. Financing Conservation on Iowa Farms In Iowa, the Environmental Defense Fund partnered with CoBank on a sustainability-linked loan with Heartland Co-op. The loan lowers interest rates as farmers adopt cover crops and saturated buffers: financing that has already helped fund 160,000 acres of cover crops and roughly 90 saturated buffers that keep nutrient-rich water out of the water supply. Elsewhere in Iowa, the foundation is working with the American Flood Coalition to help farmers like Loran Steinlage of FLOLO Farms adopt relay cropping, overlapping crops to keep roots in the ground year-round. The practice cuts erosion, boosts water retention and is estimated to add $51 per acre in farm profit, with the potential to cut downstream flooding by as much as 30%. Rebuilding Fisheries in Coastal Mexico On Mexico's Baja Peninsula, NGOs, Niparajá and Comunidad y Biodiversidad (COBI), have helped fishing communities establish networks of community-run fish refuges, marine zones temporarily closed to fishing to let depleted species recover. Now in continuous operation for 15 years, the refuges have helped rebuild fish populations while training local fishers as scientific monitors. The model has proven durable enough that the Mexican government plans to more than triple the number of fish refuge zones in 2026. About the Walton Family Foundation The Walton Family Foundation is, at its core, a family-led foundation. Three generations of the descendants of our founders, Sam and Helen Walton, and their spouses work together to lead the foundation and create access to opportunity for people and communities. We work in three areas: improving education, protecting rivers and oceans and the communities they support, and investing in our home region of Northwest Arkansas and the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta. To learn more, visit waltonfamilyfoundation.org and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and X. SOURCE Walton Family Foundation

$30,000 donation to help feed Central Valley families in need, 180,000 meals incoming. Posted: Sep 17, 2026 / 06:52 PM PDT Updated: Sep 17, 2026 / 06:52 PM PDT FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - The Fresno Madera Farm Credit announced on Thursday that it was partnering with CoBank to make a donation to Central California Food Bank's fund drive. These two companies have joined together to donate $30,000 to Central California Food Bank's 13th Annual Feeding Families Fund Drive. GAR added a 50% match of the $30,000, according to organizers. These donations are going to help provide over 180,000 healthy meals to Central California residents. These donations and drives are meant to help families who struggle to afford healthy food options. "Food insecurity exists in every county we serve, including the communities where our farmers and ranchers live and work," said Fresno Madera Farm Credit CEO Keith Hesterberg. "We are proud to continue this long-standing partnership and to work alongside CoBank in support of Central California Food Bank, whose network gets nutritious food to the people who need it." You can help feed these families by donating as well. Any donation you make will receive a 50% match from GAR throughout September. You can donate here. You can also participate by taking food donations to The Market grocery store in Fresno on Friday.