USDA Chief Economist Rob Johansson will leave his post at USDA at the end of January to become Associate Director of Economics and Policy Analysis for the American Sugar Alliance, USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue announced Monday.
And, former World Board chairman Seth Meyer, currently the associate director for the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri, will become the new USDA Chief Economist. The move had been rumored previously first reported by Pro Farmer.
Johansson will work alongside American Sugar Alliance's Director of Economics and Policy Analysis, Jack Roney, to provide domestic and international sugar market analysis and evaluate the farm and trade policies that affect U.S. sugar producers. Roney, who has worked with the industry for more than 30 years, plans to retire in August 2021, at which time Johansson will assume the Director role.