Archives: Speakers

Don Cameron

Vice President and General Manager

Terranova Ranch, Inc.

Don is a graduate of California State University, Fresno with a degree in Biology. He is married with two adult children. Since 1987, Don has been the Vice President and General Manager of Terranova Ranch, Inc. located 25 miles southwest of Fresno, California. Terranova farms approximately 7,500 acres, in addition to 1,500 acres custom farmed for other clients. The farm has a mix of conventional, organic and biotech field crops. Over 25 different crops are grown on the farm. Don also owns and farms Prado Farms located in Fresno County.

Don serves on the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Environmental Farming Act Science Advisory Panel since 2011. Since 2014, Don has been serving on the California State Board of Food and Agriculture and is currently president. He currently serves as chairman for the California Cotton Alliance, director and past chairman for the California Tomato Growers Association, chairman for McMullin Area Groundwater Sustainable Agency and director of the Raisin City Water District. In the spring of 2020, Don was appointed to the Governor’s Task Force For Business and Jobs Recovery; Operations Committee and served on the DPR Sustainable Pest Management Task Force.

Christine Birdsong

Undersecretary

California Department of Food and Agriculture

Christine Birdsong was appointed by Governor Newsom as Undersecretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture. Previously, Birdsong was Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Director of People and Culture for the Sun Valley Rice Company. She has also served as General Counsel for the National Cotton Council of America, Counsel for the Committee on Agriculture for the United States House of Representatives and Federal Government Affairs Leader for CropLife America. Birdsong earned a Juris Doctor degree from the UC College of the Law, San Francisco, and is a UC Berkeley alumni.

Bob Jones

Chief Executive Officer

The Chef’s Garden, Inc. 

Bob’s family has been involved in agriculture for six generations, focusing on vegetable production. The current family farming operation that consists of approximately 400 outside acres is in its 38th year of selling fresh vegetables, herbs, edible flowers, and micro greens to restaurants in all fifty states and 17 countries around the world. Bob Jones, CEO is part owner/operator of The Chef’s Garden and together with his brother, Lee Jones, CMO, lead the regeneratively managed farm that employs 160 people at peak season. Today, Bob and Lee are joined by six more family members from the third generation actively on the farm. Bob has been married to his wife Julie, whom he met on the family farm, for over 30 years and together they have three adult children. 

Francesca Hand

Associate Professor of Plant Pathology and State Extension Specialist for Ornamental Plant Pathology

The Ohio State University

Francesca Hand is an Associate Professor of Plant Pathology and State Extension Specialist for Ornamental Plant Pathology at The Ohio State University. Previously, she received a Ph.D. in Plant Pathology from the University of Florence, Italy and she conducted postdoctoral research at the University of California Davis. The purpose of her research and extension program at OSU is to investigate disease epidemiology, biology and ecology of fungal, oomycete and bacterial pathogens, from which she develops detection and control strategies.

Cody Seals

U.S. Product Manager

Beneficial Insectary

Cody Seals first began his journey into the world of plant pests and diseases while pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Plant and Soil Science from Middle Tennessee State University. He worked for the University of Tennessee’s extension program in conjunction with USDA-APHIS on the state CAPS program, monitoring, and trapping for invasive pests. After completion of his bachelor’s degree, he was offered an opportunity to attend the University of Tennessee as a master’s student within the Entomology and Plant Pathology department. With a focus on determining the ecology of cannabis produced in the Southeast, once he completed his master’s degree he remained in the cannabis space and began working with farmers across the southeast to navigate this new crop. He joined the Beneficial Insectary team in 2022 as U.S. Product Manager.

Gina Bella Colfer

Sustainable Solutions PCA/CCA

Wilbur Ellis

Gina Bella Colfer is a graduate of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo where she earned her bachelor’s degree in crop science. She went into the pest management field as a Pest Control Advisor on the Central Coast, first working at service companies, then as an in-house for a large organic leafy greens’ grower. Within that role, she worked in food safety and all things compliance while still honing her agronomic skills. When taking on her role at Wilbur Ellis, she helped to develop their organic program and is now focused on Sustainable Solutions and what that means for Wilbur Ellis and their grower partners.

Guido Schnabel

Professsor 

Clemson University

Dr. Guido Schnabel is a Professor and Extension Plant Pathologist at Clemson University with over 20 years of experience working with pathogens of fruit crops. He has an active research and extension program focused on management of small fruit and stone fruit diseases. His basic research program investigates occurrence and molecular mechanisms of fungicide resistance in fruit crop pathogens, and his applied research program includes the improvement of fruit disease management, fungicide resistance management, cultural disease management, and identification and management of abiotic disorders such as peach skin bronzing. He is the creator of the MyIPM smartphone app that, with the help of many of his colleagues, provides practical pest and disease diagnostics and management information for fruit growers. His involvement in USAID-funded outreach in Indonesia, Philippines, and Cambodia helped improve the lives of dozens of farm families. He has authored or co-authored over 100 peer-reviewed articles in premier scientific journals and published multiple book chapters. He received the APS Lee Hutchins Award for Excellence in Tree Fruit Research (2011), the APS Excellence in Extension Award, the Clemson University Godley-Snell Award for Excellence in Agricultural Research (2015), and the Clemson University Centennial Professorship Award (2017).

James Faust

Professor of Floriculture Physiology 

Clemson University

Jim Faust is a professor of floriculture at Clemson University where he does research to find biological-based solutions for botrytis management of floriculture crops. His research also includes exploring the limits of postharvest longevity of cut flowers and unrooted cuttings. He teaches greenhouse production and hydroponics courses.

Julie Graesch

Technical Services Manager

BioWorks Inc.

Julie has 17 years of experience as a biological scientist, practiced in laboratory, greenhouse, and field research as well as technical service support for the integrated pest management industry. She has been with BioWorks for 4.5 years and has previously held positions at BASF, Becker Underwood, and Iowa State University.

Michael Brownbridge

Senior Technical Services Manager 

BioWorks Inc.

Michael is a Sr. Technical Services Manager with BioWorks. In this role he provides technical support to customers across North America around the company’s catalog of pest- and disease-management products, and their utilization in integrated plant health programs. Prior to joining BioWorks in 2019, he was fortunate enough to have held research and outreach positions in Israel, Kenya, the US, New Zealand, and Canada, putting new biological control tools and knowledge into the hands of growers.