Vive Crop Protection Expands U.S. Sales Team

Agricultural professionals will maximize grower returns and grow market share

Vive Crop Protection expands its U.S. sales team with the addition of four agricultural professionals: Key Account Manager Meggie Gilbert, Southeast Sales Manager Sarah Savage, Delta Regional Sales Manager Jeremy Watts, and Western Technical Sales Agronomist Victoria Marsh. Gilbert has worked in the crop protection industry for 14 years with companies like Syngenta, BASF, and Simplot. These past roles include sales representative, district manager, and supplier relations and strategy lead.

More recently, Gilbert was a regional manager at Blue Diamond Growers where she managed 225 growers across three counties focused on maximizing grower returns and profitability.

Dan Bihlmeyer, Vive’s vice president of global sales, says, “I am excited to welcome Meggie Gilbert to the Vive

Crop Protection team as national key account manager, reporting to me.”

“In this role,” Bihlmeyer details, “she will support execution of Vive’s distribution program with key channel partners and expand the company’s market position sales and relationships with existing and new distribution partners across the U.S.”

Growing Market Share

Savage is Vive’s new southeast regional sales manager. Savage works from her home base in North Florida and comes to Vive from Always Fresh Farms where she worked as a sales associate.

She will be responsible for growing market share of Vive’s product portfolio covering Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and southern Alabama. A graduate of the University of Florida, she holds a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in agricultural economics.

Watts has joined the team as the Delta regional sales manager covering Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, and northern Alabama. Watts works from his home base in Mayhew, Mississippi. A graduate from Mississippi State University with a B.S. in agricultural information science, Watts has worked in the agriculture industry for 17 years.

Marsh joins the Vive team as western technical sales agronomist. Marsh comes to Vive from Tessenderlo Kerley Inc., where she worked as a regional agronomist.

She will be responsible for growing Vive’s field trial program in the West to better support the company’s precision chemistry portfolio. A graduate from Washington State University, she holds a B.S. in agronomy and crop science and a Master of Science degree in soil science.

For more information on Vive Crop Protection, contact Emily Roden, marketing, and communications manager, eroden@vivecrop.com, 919-649-2398.

Certis Biologicals Adds Leadership

Company is committed to strengthening its innovation pipeline

To meet the rising demand of biological crop protection, Certis Biologicals announces that it is strengthening its innovation pipeline by naming Mike Allan vice president of business development and licensing.

As such, Allan will seek opportunities for the biologicals leader to expand innovation efforts through partnerships, licensing, and potential acquisitions.

“There is staggering investment in the agriculture space right now and biologicals are at the forefront of many of those innovation efforts,” says Amy O’Shea, president and chief executive officer of Certis Biologicals.

“With our strong commitment to science, the internal innovation possible at our laboratory facilities and our access to the market, we believe that we are a strong partner for emerging technology players,” O’Shea stresses. “Mike’s industry breadth and respect will be key in leveraging these strengths for the overall growth of the sector.”

“Certis Biologicals has always been committed to bringing new technologies to the marketplace so that growers can feel comfortable protecting their crops and the environments in which they grow,” Allan says.

Leveraging Partnerships

“We have successfully launched many of these new advancements by leveraging partnerships with external collaborators such as W. Neudorff GmbH KG, Kaken Pharmaceutical Co., LTD and Novozymes,” Allan adds.

“Dedication to this effort will bring vast opportunity to our innovation pipeline and to growers around the world who need additional crop protection tools,” he states.

Allan joined Certis Biologicals in 2018 as vice president, North America, and has overseen sales operations, leading a team of sales professionals across the continent through a period of significant growth and interest in biologicals.

Prior to joining Certis, Allan served as president, North America, of Isagro USA and in various roles at Arysta/ Tomen, including as global business development manager.

To learn more about Certis Biologicals, its portfolio of proven solutions and commitment to sustainability, visit www.CertisBio. com or follow the company through social media on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.