Beth Ford

Beth Ford says everyone who eats needs to know more about where the food comes from. Why? Because without understanding and investment, the interconnected global food chain is vulnerable. We need to start at the critical beginning—with farmers. 

One of Beth’s first jobs was detasseling corn in Iowa for $2 an hour. Today, she leads an American icon, Land O’Lakes—a cooperative of thousands of farmers, who Beth reminds us carry the most risk in the food supply chain. That’s why she’s been at the forefront of a national effort to invest in America’s rural communities, from wider broadband coverage, to helping farmers adapt to the changing climate, to stronger trade efforts and more funding for agricultural R&D.

The farm-to-table movement has been happening at restaurants since the 1970s. But thanks to Beth, the farm-to-boardroom-table movement is just beginning. She’s showing corporations and the government the absolute necessity of investing in rural America.

Fink is the founder, chairman, and CEO of BlackRock

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