Ford B. West, president of The Fertilizer Institute, announced on Jan. 7 that he will retire from his position effective December 2013. West joined TFI on Nov. 1, 1979, and has served as its president since Sept. 6, 2005.
In a memo to TFI members, West said it’s been “an honor to represent the fertilizer industry over the past 33 years,” and a pleasure to work with “many great people” to inform government institutions, the media, and the general public of the vital role that fertilizer plays in world food production.
West rose through the ranks at TFI, first serving as director of member services before being promoted to assistant vice president in 1982, vice president of government relations in 1984, and senior vice president in 1999. When he became TFI president in 2006, West succeeded Kraig Naasz.
“I thank those who took the time to mentor me and help me to appreciate the difference between ‘dirt and soil,’ to understand the science involved in the production and use of fertilizer and to appreciate the historical role and contribution of fertilizer to the food chain,” West said. “Fertilizer touches many hands before it arrives in farm fields and TFI provides a forum where fertilizer producers, importers, wholesalers, and retailers can share their perspectives on common problems and develop approaches to meet these challenges. I am very proud to have been a part of that process.”
West also expressed gratitude to the staff at TFI and the Nutrients for Life Foundation. “Any success I have had as president is due to a combined effort of these association professionals working together for the good of the industry,” he said.
TFI’s board of directors has established a presidential search committee comprised of five executive committee members who will operate under the leadership of TFI Board Chairman Jim Prokopanko. The committee held its first meeting in late December in Chicago. Spencer Stuart, one of the world’s leading executive search consulting firms, has been retained to assist the search committee in the candidate selection process.