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October 2023 Virginia 500 Spotlight: NEIL HOUFF
President and transloading operations manager, Houff Corp., Weyers Cave
FIRST JOB: Feeding calves on the family farm MOST VALUED POSSESSION: My faith in Jesus. All else will be gone at some point. HOW I UNWIND FROM WORK: Mowing the
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German yeast upcycler building plant in Rockingham
First U.S. plant for German-based Leiber to add 35 jobs
Published
Leiber, a German manufacturer that processes brewers’ yeast into animal food, biotechnology and supplements, will invest as much as $20 million to establish its first U.S. operation in Rockingham County’s
Growth industry
Agriculture powers valley jobs, investment
Published
Prompted by shifts in consumer buying trends, Shenandoah Valley farmers are investing heavily in automated systems and cutting-edge growing processes to position themselves for the long haul in an industry
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Agriculture 2023: JOHN KING
PRESIDENT, VIRGINIA POULTRY GROWERS COOPERATIVE, HINTON
Published
Turkey growers in the Shenandoah Valley formed the Virginia Poultry Growers Cooperative in 2004, after Pilgrim’s Pride announced it was closing a processing plant in Hinton, a major economic hit
Agriculture 2023: WAYNE F. PRYOR
PRESIDENT, VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU FEDERATION, RICHMOND
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Pryor was elected in November 2022 to his ninth two-year term as president of the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation. “Advocating for Virginia’s farmers is extremely important to me,” says Pryor,
Agriculture 2023: MATTHEW J. LOHR
SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY, COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, RICHMOND
Published
Lohr has worked in agriculture and public service for his entire career. As Virginia’s secretary of agriculture and forestry since January 2022, he manages an 810-employee department that oversees Virginia’s
Agriculture 2023: CORWIN HEATWOLE
FOUNDING FARMER AND CEO, FARMER FOCUS, HARRISONBURG
Published
In February, Heatwole announced a $17.8 million expansion to Farmer Focus’ organic poultry processing facility, backed by a $3.6 million U.S. Department of Agriculture grant. The expansion will nearly double
Agriculture 2023: NEIL A. HOUFF
PRESIDENT AND TRANSLOADING OPERATIONS MANAGER, HOUFF CORP., WEYERS CAVE
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Founded in 1975, family fertilizer business Houff Corp. expanded to provide a variety of agricultural and industrial services to farmers in the Shenandoah Valley, including crop fertilization and trucking. “We
Agriculture 2023: MATTHEW RYAN
CEO, SOLI ORGANIC, ROCKINGHAM COUNTY
Published
The 34-year-old Soli Organic closed on a Series D funding round in October 2022 totaling nearly $125 million, funds that will go toward expanding its high-tech, soil-based indoor farms where
Agriculture 2023: GEORGE C. FREEMAN III
CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT AND CEO, UNIVERSAL CORP., RICHMOND
Published
A Richmond native, Freeman has been Universal’s CEO since 2008 and president since 2006. From 2001 to 2005, he was the corporation’s general counsel and secretary, and he worked at