With a career spanning publishing, consumer goods, oil, and now agriculture, Land O’Lakes CEO Beth Ford brings an unusual background to the upper echelons of corporate America. As head of one of the country’s most prominent farming collectives, Ford has positioned herself as a vocal advocate for rural communities, emphasizing that the struggles and triumphs of American farmers carry profound implications for the nation’s economic health and security.
Speaking during an interview series examining influential business leaders, Ford reflected on her formative working years, which included teaching tennis, walking soybean fields to remove weeds, painting houses, and working as a janitor. Those early manual jobs instilled a deep appreciation for labor and grit. Later, while working as a night warehouse foreman and dock foreman for Mobil in Boston, she managed barge operations that taught her enduring lessons about human nature and leadership. Remembering those days, she noted the raw, unvarnished reality of managing people, describing it as the everyday joy and mess of the human condition.
Today, Ford’s focus is firmly on the agricultural landscape, where she warns that producers are navigating unprecedented financial hurdles. The current harvest season comes on the heels of what she describes as the most expensive crop cycle in history. Farmers face compounding pressures from soaring input costs, including steep increases in fertilizer, diesel, and steel prices, operating within an environment marked by intense market volatility.
Beyond immediate input costs, Ford argues that urban populations suffer from a fundamental lack of awareness regarding food production and rural realities. She contends that food self-sufficiency should be viewed not through a partisan political lens, but rather as an essential business investment and a pillar of national security. Furthermore, she challenges the assumption that rural populations are eager to relocate to coastal cities, noting that many residents are deeply rooted in their hometowns and require sustained economic investment. Pointing to demographic contributions, she frequently highlights that while rural areas account for 19 percent of the U.S. population, they comprise 44 percent of the military.
Addressing labor realities in the sector, Ford emphasized the vital role of foreign-born labor, noting that two-thirds of farm workers are non-citizen immigrants. She advocates for a sensible, structured immigration framework, citing organizational analysis indicating that comprehensive immigration reform could expand the U.S. gross domestic product by 3.3 percent, translating to over a trillion dollars in economic growth over the next decade.
On a lighter commercial note, Ford confirmed that consumer demand for dairy fats remains strong. Americans are continuing to consume more butter and cheese, though domestic consumption still lags behind European levels—leaving room for further growth.
