The American Feed Industry Association’s Board of Directors voted on a new president and chief executive officer to head the association upon the retirement of Joel G. Newman at the end of this year. Constance Cullman, current president of the Farm Foundation, will serve as AFIA’s future president and CEO and president of the Institute for Feed Education and Research. She will begin with AFIA on July 29.

The decision comes after nearly a year of working with the AFIA Board of Directors and the BOD selection committee to identify top priorities for the candidate, select a recruiting firm, search for and interview highly qualified candidates and make a final recommendation.

Newman will be staying on until the end of the year to assist in onboarding Cullman and ensure a smooth leadership transition.