Ronald G. “Joe” Register, chief operating officer at R.W. Griffin Industries LLC, Douglas, Ga., announced his retirement, effective Oct. 31, 2018. Register started his 45-year career in the fertilizer industry in 1973 as a wholesale representative at Swift Agricultural Chemicals Corp. He was promoted to sales manager in 1983 when Swift became Estech Inc., and then to marketing manager of wholesale and retail sales in Georgia and North Florida in 1984.
In 1986, Register was promoted at Kaiser-Estech to director of marketing for the Eastern Region, and then in 1987 to vice president of sales for agri-products in an expanded trade territory that included Georgia, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, northern Florida, the Carolinas, and Virginia. Register’s marketing region was expanded again in 1988 to include all of Florida when the company became Vigoro Industries.
Register moved to the role of vice president of marketing for retail and wholesale operations in the eastern states in 1996 when Vigoro became IMC Agribusiness, and then in 1998 to senior vice president for all states with retail operations. Register then joined R.W. Griffin in 1999, where he served as chief operating officer for retail and wholesale operations until his retirement.