BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) has named Eileen Urish as Trade & Exports Manager, effective January 4, 2022.

Urish earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture Consumer Economics, Policy International Trade and Development from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She also earned a minor in Food and Agribusiness Management.

In her former role as Project Manager for the Illinois Pork Producers Association, Urish coordinated Association sponsored events with lead staff throughout the year, specifically the Illinois Pork Expo. She assisted the Executive Director with legislative issues and Political Action Committee Outreach, oversaw the Employee Betterment Initiative and Community Co-op funding programs, and worked with the Director of Membership to coordinate the annual membership drive and address member concerns.

As Trade & Exports Manager for ISA, Urish will work to increase the engagement of ISA in the trade and export space by collaborating with farmers, exporters, foreign consulates, soybean buyer teams, and partner organizations. She will act as staff lead for foreign trade teams coming to Illinois and managing the relationship with the ISA team and external organizations also involved with the trade teams; she will collaborate with the internal Market Development team, communications team, and ISA contractors to manage ISA’s trade and exports program; and Urish will work with the Director of Market Development to manage ISA’s relationship with international trade partners including USSEC, USAPEEC, USMEF, and others.

“Eileen’s addition to our team in the role of Trade & Exports Manager is a major milestone for ISA,” says Director of Market Development, Andrew Larson. “For the first time, ISA will have at least two full-time employees devoted to developing markets. This will allow ISA to be even stronger working on behalf of Illinois soybean farmers in the number one demand driver of soy from Illinois.”

The Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) checkoff and membership programs represent more than 43,000 soybean farmers in Illinois. The checkoff funds market development and utilization efforts while the membership program supports the government relations interests of Illinois soybean farmers at the local, state, and national level, through the Illinois Soybean Growers (ISG). ISA upholds the interests of Illinois soybean producers through promotion, advocacy, and education with the vision of becoming a market leader in sustainable soybean production and profitability. For more information, visit the websites www.ilsoy.org and www.ilsoygrowers.com.

— Illinois Soybean Association