The Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council (MSR&PC) is pleased to announce the addition of a new director in 2018. In late April, Ben Storm, a soybean grower from Dover, Minn., was elected to serve as the Council’s District 9 representative. Storm is replacing Eric Thorn, who served on the board for 12 years.

“I have a lot to learn, but this will be a really good opportunity,” Storm says. “I’m just here to learn, so I’ll be going in kind of blind at first.”

Storm, who is also chair of his local Olmsted/South Wabasha Corn and Soybean Growers board, says he ran for Thorn’s open seat because he felt younger growers need to have a larger presence in agricultural leadership positions.

“I see when I go to commodity events that there’s a large need for young people,” Storm, 32, says. “I thought the timing was right for me to do my part in filling that void.”

Storm will join the board July 1.

Re-elected to the board were Kris Folland (District 1, 2 & 3), James Call (District 4), James Willers (District 7) and Cole Trebesch (District 8).

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture administers the election and more than 3,800 Minnesota farmers received ballots.

MSR&PC is the elected board of soybean producers from Minnesota who direct investments of the state’s checkoff dollars in programs designed to increase profitability to Minnesota soybean farmers.

“Once again, we have a strong, diverse set of farmers on the Council helping to direct checkoff dollars. They do an extraordinary job representing Minnesota soybean farmers,” says  Trebesch, chair of the election committee. “We welcome Ben Storm to the Council, and want to extend our utmost gratitude to Eric Thorn for his contributions to MSR&PC.”