West Bend, Wisconsin
April 3, 2009

Ron Cornish has joined Dairyland Seed as Alfalfa Strategy Leader. In this role he will be working to further the market strength of Dairyland’s industry-leading alfalfa product line, in particular its patented HybriForce hybrid alfalfa products.

Ron grew up on a farm in Southern Minnesota and joins Dairyland with 13 years of experience in agribusiness at Dow AgroSciences. He has experience in both seed and agricultural chemical sales. He will serve on Dairyland’s Executive Committee and will report to Dairyland General Manager Tom Strachota.

“Alfalfa is one of the few crops which have been successfully hybridized and was introduced into the marketplace in 2001. With Ron’s background and management skills we are positioning ourselves to take this crop to new heights of productivity as we prepare to introduce the next generation of hybrids,” stated Strachota.

Dairyland introduced the first hybrid alfalfa, HybriForce-400, after more than two decades of research. It was developed through Dairyland’s patented msSunstra® Hybrid Alfalfa Technology. The msSunstra technology was named after Lead Scientist Dr. Paul Sun and former Chairman Orville Strachota.

“I am excited to be part of a team which has had such a distinguished track record in the seed industry. I feel confident that Dairyland Seed is well positioned to continue this path of success as the leader in hybrid alfalfa technology” says Ron Cornish.

Currently hybrid alfalfa comprises more than 50% of Dairyland’s Dealer alfalfa sales.

Dairyland Seed began its seed business in 1907 and has built an established dealer network throughout the Upper Midwest in addition to international sales in more than 20 countries. The business experienced great success under the leadership of Orville and Marie Strachota, entered the field of plant breeding in 1977, and is now part of Dow AgroSciences. Family leadership continues through son Tom Strachota and grandson TJ. Primary research locations are at Clinton, Wis.; Gibson City, Ill.; Otterbein, Ind.; Gilbert, Iowa; and Sloughhouse, Calif. Plant breeding programs include hybrid alfalfa, hybrid corn and soybeans. Dairyland Seed is headquartered in West Bend, Wisconsin.

Website: http://www.dairylandseed.com

Published: April 3, 2009