Ashley McFarland to become Vice President and Technical Director of American Malting Barley Association
Milwaukee, WI – September 21, 2021 - The American Malting Barley Association (AMBA) is pleased to announce Ashley McFarland as the new Vice President-Technical Director, a position previously held by Scott Heisel who will assume the role of President October 1st when retiring President, Mike Davis becomes Senior Advisor. McFarland comes to AMBA most recently from the nonprofit sector, but previously held positions in cooperative extension across multiple states. Heisel noted that “AMBA is fortunate to have Ashley, with all of her previous experiences coming to AMBA and for her to be able to tap into Mike’s 38 years of experience with AMBA for the final months of 2021.”
Ashley served as the Director of the Michigan State University Upper Peninsula Research and Extension Center (UPREC) where she managed a diverse research portfolio spanning across multiple agricultural sectors. While at that post, she developed a research program around small grains primarily focused on serving the burgeoning craft beverage industry in the state. That work led to a statewide applied research program and diverse outreach and education efforts targeting farmers, grain processors, and end users. Along with the establishment of the annual Great Lakes Hop and Barley Conference, McFarland became very active in national efforts to strengthen the malting barley crop, including active participation on the National Barley Improvement Committee, and serving on the board of directors for the Craft Maltsters Guild. “I am thrilled to be returning to the malting barley community in this role to build upon the strong foundation laid by Mike and Scott. My previous experiences with AMBA were some of the most rewarding work of my career and I feel very fortunate to work alongside the staff, board, and membership in support of the malting barley industry,” said McFarland.
In McFarland’s previous position, she supported the environmental nonprofit, Dovetail Partners, as executive director. Her primary role was communicating the science-based research reporting their team conducted to support informed decision-making for land managers, policy makers, and other natural resource professionals. She has also held water-focused extension positions in Iowa, Idaho, and Minnesota and holds a B.A. in Political Science and Environmental Studies from Central College (Pella, IA) and an M.S. in Environmental Science from Iowa State University.
In her new role, McFarland looks forward to serving and growing the membership base of the organization and communicating the robust research portfolio AMBA supports. “Ashley will hit the ground running,” stated outgoing President Mike Davis, “with her years of barley research collaboration with AMBA and service as an elected member of the National Barley Improvement Committee. Her understanding and experience in the barley community and supply chain will be a tremendous asset to AMBA in meeting its mission to help ensure an adequate supply of high-quality malting barley.” McFarland will be based out of Duluth, MN where she resides with her husband and two children. She can be reached at ashley@ambainc.org.
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