Awards: Farm Foundation 90th Anniversary Gala

Joe Outlaw, Ph.D., is a regents fellow, professor, and extension economist in the Department of Agricultural Economics at Texas A&M University. He also serves as the co-director of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center, AFPC, at the university. In this role, Outlaw frequently interacts with members of Congress and key agricultural committee staff to provide feedback on the likely consequences of agricultural policy changes. His extension education and applied research activities are focused on assessing the impacts of farm programs, risk management tools, renewable energy, and climate change legislation on U.S. agricultural operations. Outlaw has received numerous awards in excellence for his policy education. In 2015, he received the National Excellence in Extension award from the Extension Committee on Organization and Policy and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA for excellence in leadership, scholarship, and innovative programming.

Nominated by: Round Table Fellow Bradley Lubben, Extension Associate Professor, Policy Specialist, and Director, North Central Extension Risk Management Education Center

John Foraker is co-Founder and CEO of leading children’s nutrition company Once Upon A Farm. While the father of four was raised in a conventional farming family, he went onto study agricultural economics at UC Davis, attend business school at UC Berkeley, and become fixated on consumer goods and the natural, organic food movement. After helping launch an infused oil company that invested in Annie’s, which was at the time a natural mac and cheese company, John became CEO of the company and shifted its mission toward bringing organic goods from niche to mainstream in the U.S. After the company went public, Annie’s was acquired by General Mills, where John consulted for the company’s organic food companies.

Eager to invest in another food company, he discovered Once Upon a Farm, which was alone in its mission to distribute fresh, organic baby food. He signed on as co-founder in 2017, continuing to drive purpose around healthy and clean food access for babies. In the last five years, Once Upon a Farm has been groundbreaking in the industry, expanding the portfolio to exceed expectations in delivering nutritional superiority in meals and snacks for babies to big kids across the store and with their own robust OTC subscription service. The $100M company leads in the creation of fresh snacking sets at key retailers, has recently launched a freshly frozen line of plant-rich meals, and continues to increase expectations in the baby aisle with their own coolers aiding in their mission of driving systemic improvements in childhood nutrition.

Nominated by: Aaron Rudberg, COO and Sr. MD, S2G Ventures

Emily Metz is president & CEO of the American Egg Board, the national marketing organization for the U.S. egg industry. In this role, she directs strategy and oversees national programs spanning consumer marketing and PR; CPG manufacturing and foodservice engagement and R&D; health and nutrition research and communications; and exports to drive demand for U.S. eggs and egg products domestically and abroad. Metz is a professional communicator, marketer and strategist who has built her career around a passion for agriculture in roles supporting U.S. dairy, beef, pork and poultry farmers. An attorney specializing in food and drug law, she has held communications, marketing and advocacy positions at the USDA, the Animal Agriculture Alliance, National Milk Producers Federation and, most recently, at the world’s largest animal genetics company, Genus Plc. She is delighted and honored to serve America’s egg farmers and support the nation’s love affair with the incredible egg.

To celebrate 90 years of accelerating people and ideas, Farm Foundation is pleased to launch an annual awards program recognizing those who exemplify our mission and values.

2023 Award Recipients

Lifetime Achievement Awards

Innovator Awards