About the Foundation

What We Do

Serving our mission, the Foundation works to advance the wheat industry through strategic research, education and outreach collaborations, guided by core values of grower centeredness, integrity, honesty and trustworthiness.

The Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization incorporated and headquartered in Washington, D.C., governed by a nine-member Board of Directors and managed by staff of the National Association of Wheat Growers, the Foundation’s sole member.

Strategic Plan

Vision Statement

The national center for wheat research information, education and outreach.

Mission Statement

To purposefully advance the wheat industry through strategic research, education and outreach collaborations.

Core Values

The National Wheat Foundation shall be guided by the following values: grower centeredness, integrity and honesty, and trustworthiness.

Value Proposition

The National Wheat Foundation shall add value to ongoing activities of state associations through collaborations and leveraging of resources.

History

Incorporated

National Association of Wheat Growers Foundation was fully incorporated on July 6, 1977, and set forth four primary goals: to advance wheat science; to advance conservation of natural resources; to develop new uses and new markets for U.S. wheat; and to develop educational programs to promote wheat and its allied industries.

47 Members

15 States

The Foundation Board was convened for the first time by President Glenn Moore on Oct. 11, 1978, and consisted of 47 members representing 15 states.

Later that year, the Board modified its structure to allow state wheat grower organizations to appoint delegates, establishing the basic governance structure for the next 33 years.

Incorporated

A permanent standing committee between the NAWG Foundation and U.S. Wheat Associates was formed to develop the crucial issue of wheat trade. This group, the Wheat Export Trade Education Committee, or WETEC, later became a stand-alone organization and served the industry until NAWG and U.S. Wheat reassumed trade-related work in 2006.

Development Committee Established

The Foundation’s Development Committee was officially established to allow greater partnership with agribusinesses by identifying projects of need and matching them with funding resources.

The Foundation embarks on new endeavors

The Foundation undertook dozens of projects to train wheat leaders, bring together wheat researchers, disseminate information about best farming practices, promote farm safety and create new and value-added uses for wheat.

Notable endeavors include the Ambassador Program; the Wheat Utilization Committee and Summit;
several publications on wheat crop management, pest management and industry leadership; and
the precursors to today’s successful leadership development programs.

Strategic Revision

As wheat grower leaders realized the Foundation had become an underutilized tool, a strategic revision process began. The Foundation Board voted to amend the organization’s articles of incorporation, modifying the organization to make NAWG its sole member. The amended articles called for the Foundation to do business as the National Wheat Foundation, a name more inclusive of all aspects of the wheat industry, from researchers to bakers. The articles amendment also reduced the size of the Foundation’s board from 21 to nine members.

National Wheat Foundation Board Approved

The NAWG Board approved nine members for the first National Wheat Foundation Board, including five farmers, a miller, a baker and two agribusiness company representatives.

The national center for wheat research information, education,
and research

Today, the National Wheat Foundation’s Board members and volunteers are energetic about working with the entire industry toward fulfilling growers’ vision of NWF.

Meet the Board

Bernard_Peterson

Bernard Peterson

Chairman
Scott_Brown

Scott Brown

Vice Chairman

Gary Broyles

Secretary/Treasurer
Carl_Schwinke

Carl Schwinke

Director
Ben_Scholze

Ben Scholz

Director
Jeff_Blackwood

Jeff Blackwood

Director
Mark_Haugland

Mark Haugland

Director
Brian_Walker

Brian Walker

Director
Ken_Wood

Ken Wood

Director

Meet the Staff

Anne Osborne

Project Manager

The Foundation hired Anne Osborne to fill its Project Manager position in January 2021. As part of her role and responsibilities, Anne oversees and carries out the National Wheat Yield Contest. Anne also manages the Foundation’s educational projects including the Bayer Leadership Program, Wheat 101, the wheat educational event on Capitol Hill, and the BASF Wheat Scholarship.

Osborne has worked in North Dakota in agriculture for 30 years. Her experience includes crop protection sales, inside sales, and customer service with DuPont Company. Osborne has also served and held leadership positions on many boards and committees such as North Dakota Corn Growers, Advanced Crop Advisors Workshop Committee, Ag in the Classroom, and Board of Pensions for the Dakotas United Methodist Church. She has also worked directly with growers on seed, fertilizer, crop inputs and services in ag retail for several years. Anne has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture Education from Montana State University.

Anne can be emailed at aosborne@wheatworld.org