Des Moines, Iowa –Former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad is the new leader of the Des Moines-based foundation that awards the annual “World Food Prize.”
In October of each year, the foundation presents the World Food Prize and its 250-thousand-dollar award to people at the forefront of efforts to improve the quality, quantity, and availability of food.
Branstad, who served as US Ambassador to China, was governor when Des Moines businessman John Ruan donated the seed money for the World Food Prize and its headquarters in Des Moines. Norman Borlaug, the Cresco native who won the 1970 Nobel Peace Prize for his research that developed high-yielding wheat, took the lead in creating the World Food Prize in 1986.
Branstad, who is 76, is America’s longest-serving governor. He was US Ambassador to China from mid-2017 to the fall of 2020. As president of the World Food Prize, Branstad will be a lead fundraiser and host of the annual World Food Prize symposium. The event attracts global leaders in research, government, and commerce to Des Moines for discussions about advances in food production and food security. Barbara Stinson, who had 30 years of experience in environmental policy and business management, stepped down last week after three years as president of the World Food Prize.
