Amani Elobeid, teaching professor in economics and Ron and Lynn Deiter Endowed Chair for Sustaining Excellence in Agricultural Business, is the recipient of the term faculty 2025 Outstanding Achievement in Research Award from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Iowa State University. Elobeid has become a well-known researcher in agricultural and trade policy, climate change impacts, biofuel development and sweetener markets. She is sought after in grant work, and her research has led to consulting projects for national and international entities.
Elobeid has developed a strong research program addressing large and challenging questions in agricultural economics and agricultural trade, such as the causes of food insecurity, the impacts of World Trade Organization trade agreements on developing countries, long run impacts of biofuels, and the China-U.S. trade dispute. A colleague who worked with Elobeid on a long-running project to develop projections for agricultural markets stated, “Amani built and maintained models for several agricultural commodities. She managed large data sets, made hundreds of quick decisions in a high-pressure environment, and presented her results and defended her views to reviewers from government, industry and academia. She did it all with patience and good humor.”
Elobeid has more than 30 publications to her name. Her articles have explored the impacts of agricultural and energy policy on land use change, investigated the ramifications of federal sugar policy, and examined the development of ethanol industries in the United States and Brazil. Her work has also delved into the trade and carbon emission impacts from the Russian-Ukrainian war, explored the impacts of geopolitics on Latin American biodiversity, and inspected the progression of vehicle electrification. A colleague stated, “Her papers are rigorous and well-written, with clear policy implications.”
Beyond her grant work, Elobeid is sought after as a consulting economist. She has examined the market prospects and policy implications for sweeteners on behalf of the American Farm Bureau Federation, explored the economic and environmental impact modeling of biofuels for the Environmental Protection Agency, and analyzed the impacts from free trade agreements and sustainable aviation fuel for the National Pork Producers Council. Companies and national centers in Brazil, Spain and India have asked for her assistance in exploring the ramifications of biofuel development and commodity trade.
Elobeid’s faculty portfolio is well rounded. She is deeply invested in the academic growth of students, and serves as coordinator of the Principles of Economics sequence, a critical set of courses for the department and the university as many students use the sequence for their general education requirements. The largest major in the economics department is agricultural business, and Elobeid is a critical component to the strength of that major. As the endowed chair, she is one of the main advisors for those students and serves as the faculty advisor for the Agricultural Business Club. Elobeid has also taught study abroad courses to the United Arab Emirates and Panama, and participated in the Dean’s Global Agricultural and Food Leadership Program in Rome, Italy.
Her teaching and service are exceptional, but it is Elobeid’s research that separates her from the usual perception of term faculty. A colleague stated, “All these research accomplishments have been achieved while being in charge of substantial teaching responsibilities in the agribusiness program of the economics department.”