Joe Taets to Present Hertz Lecture at Iowa State University March 5

AMES, Iowa — Joe Taets, senior vice president and president of the Agricultural Services business unit at Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM), one of the world's largest agribusinesses, will present the 2012 Carl and Marjory Hertz Lecture on Emerging Issues in Agriculture March 5 at Iowa State University. Taets, an ISU alum, will present "Setting the Global Table: Strategies for Feeding and Fueling a Growing World" at 7 p.m. in the Great Hall of the Memorial Union. The event is free and open to the public. In his remarks, Taets will outline ADM's view of how global agriculture can expand to meet the food, feed, fuel and fiber needs of a growing global population with appropriate innovations, investments and partnerships. He will also discuss the value of pursuing careers in the agricultural sector. Taets leads ADM's Agricultural Services business unit, where he oversees a vast global network of grain elevators, transportation assets and processing facilities in addition to commercial activities. Previously, Taets was president of ADM's grain group, overseeing the company's domestic and export grain businesses and grain merchandising operations. He received a bachelor's degree in agricultural business from Iowa State in 1988 and a master's of business administration from Drake University in 1992. The Carl and Marjory Hertz Lecture on Emerging Issues in Agriculture was created in memory of the founders of Hertz Farm Management to inspire generations of industry leaders, research scientists and young professionals to reach their full potential. For more than a century, the people of Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE: ADM) have transformed crops into products that serve vital needs. Today, 30,000 ADM employees around the globe convert oilseeds, corn, wheat and cocoa into products for food, animal feed, industrial and energy uses. With more than 265 processing plants, 400 crop procurement facilities and the world's premier crop transportation network, ADM helps connect the harvest to the home in more than 160 countries. ##