Several Minnesota farmers were elected recently to state and national leadership positions.

In a special election, Gary Wertish, Renville, was elected president of the Minnesota Farmers Union. Wertish replaces Doug Peterson, who retired at the end of 2016.

"There are a lot of things I want to work on,” Wertish says. “We need to focus on farmers and consumers, connecting the rural and the metro. We also need to engage new and younger leaders to step forward."

Wertish served seven years as the MFU vice president. Another special election will be held Feb. 18 to elect a new vice president.

At Minnesota AgriGrowth, Pat Lunemann is the new board chairman. Lunemann is a partner in Twin Eagle Dairy at Clarissa and is the past president of the Minnesota Milk Producers Association.

Bruce Schmoll, a Claremont soybean and corn producer, was elected chair of the U.S. Meat Export Federation. Schmoll has served on the USMEF executive committee, representing the oilseeds producing sector. He is a past president of the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association.

Kevin Paap, president of the Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation, was re-elected to the American Farm Bureau Federation’s board of directors. This will be Paap’s sixth year on the national board. On his fourth-generation family farm near Garden City, he raises corn and soybeans.