Columbus, Ohio (AgPR) | Two more Indiana-based account managers have joined Meristem Crop Performance, one of the fastest-growing crop input suppliers in America. Cody Stevens of Pendleton and Jediah French of Leopold will be carrying Meristem’s innovative crop inputs to farmers in Indiana, Kentucky and Michigan. “We’re really grateful to have signed up these two talented professionals to help us carry out our mission of creating real productivity for farmers,” says Mitch Eviston, Meristem founder and CEO of his most recent new team members. “I’m very happy to turn these professionals loose to serve farmers with our growing portfolio of high-quality products.” “Why Meristem? Well, honestly, it’s farmer-first attitude they are showing,” Stevens explains when asked about his new position. “That’s what stands out to me. They are actually out to help farmers make the most of every dollar they spend on crop inputs. And my experience with the farmers I’ve visited already tells me they are actually getting that done.” Stevens grew up on a family farm near Pendleton, Indiana, raising corn, soybeans and wheat, as well as showing cattle and pigs in 4-H and FFA. Hired by telecommunications company GTE three weeks before his high school graduation, Stevens then began a 23-year career in that field as a sales and service technician – first GTE, then Verizon, and then Frontier as the industry consolidated. “I’ve always loved farming, but the farm couldn’t support all of us. I had to get a real job off the farm,” he remembers. “My heart has always been in agriculture and I’m really happy to be back in it,” says Stevens. “People in agriculture are really, really special and I’m very thankful to be serving farmers every day.” He and his wife Amanda have two daughters and a son: Mia, 14, Savannah, 8, and Dakota, 11. “We’re busy with sports and 4-H,” smiles Stevens. They also pitch in on rthe family farm when needed. Before joining Meristem, Jediah French spent nearly six years as territory manager for Corteva Agriscience where he honed skills in sales, account management and coaching others. Earlier, French spent six years with Winfield Seed as a district sales manager. French earned a degree in agriculture from Purdue University. After French’s father died when he was four years old, he says his mother was determined to “keep me busy and out of trouble.” She made sure I was active in 4-H and FFA all along the way. “That’s where I got interested in agriculture,” he says. “I had my FFA projects, competed in the sales demonstration competition, several judging contests and served as chapter president. That’s how I ended up at Purdue studying agriculture.” Jediah and his wife Jody, principal at Perry Central High School, have two sons: Jace, who is studying aquatic science at Purdue and Justin, a freshman in high school. He serves on the county Farm Bureau board, is president of Perry County Cattlemen and on the Perry County FFA Advisory Board. Along with his passion for his family is a drive to help farmers make the most of every crop they plant and every acre they farm. "My work is most satisfying when I help a farmer solve an agronomy challenge and see them earn more money from each bushel they produce," he says. "Meristem's tagline 'more bushels for less' fits my mission perfectly." About Meristem Crop Performance Meristem Crop Performance Group, LLC (www.meristemag.com) is one of the fastest-growing crop input companies in America. Meristem sources, formulates, licenses, and delivers high-quality crop inputs to farmers at the highest possible value offering substantial savings. Meristem is focused on building a highly efficient channel to bring crop inputs to market so farm businesses can make the most of their infrastructure and intellectual property investments and better compete in the global agricultural market. Meristem’s team of experienced ag professionals also works to create real productivity gains for farm businesses through novel biological delivery systems and accelerated access to farm-ready innovations. For more information, go to meristemag.com, or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
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Media Contact: K. Elliott Nowels kenowels@meristemag.com
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