In the News: WIA Summit 2026
By Michelle Pelletier Marshall, Women in Agribusiness Media (October 5, 2026)
Nearly 650 women from across the ag value chain gathered in New Orleans September 22-24 for the 15th annual Women in Agribusiness Summit. We focused on ag commodities, risk management, presented on the opportunities and challenges with AI in ag, and celebrated the International Year of the Woman Farmer with new awards, global panels, the female producer panel, and a USDA-hosted panel with local farmers about programs and policies making a difference.
Social media was buzzing and live podcasts were onstage as we welcomed several media outlets -- Farm Progress, Successful Farming, RFD-TV, Bloomberg News and more -- to the Summit.
Here's some of what they, and hundreds of attendees, shared across various media channels:
September 2026
2026 Put Women Farmers in the Spotlight. Will It Lead to Lasting Change? by Lisa Foust Prater, Successful Farming
New Farm Math? Compressed Margins and Trade Changes Alter Financial Picture, by Pam Caraway, Farm Futures
Celebrating Sara Wyant for Receiving the 2026 Women in Agribusiness Leadership Award, Agri-Pulse on LinkedIn
5 Forces Reshaping the Ag Economy, by Lisa Foust Prater, Successful Farming
Careers Looking Backwards: What a "Zigzag" Career Can Teach Us About Leadership, by Sally Day, Kincannon & Reed Blog
What Changing Food Trends Mean for Animal Agriculture -- A North American Ag Farm News Daily podcast with WIA Summit 2026 speaker Susan Backus of WMIN by Chrissy Wozniak
Rice Leaders Recognized and On Stage at Women in Agribusiness Summit, USA Rice article
Emily Metz Named 2026 Women in Agribusiness Demeter Award Recipient, American Egg Board article
Women in Agribusiness Names 28 Recipients of 2026 Student Scholarship, by Harry Duran, iGrow News
USDA Resources for Beginning Farmers and Ranchers, by Chrissy Wozniak, North American Ag Spotlight [a podcast]
USDEC's Harden receives Demeter Award of Excellence, by Benton Smith of Dairy Processing
WIA Student Scholarship Recipients Named, by Susan Reidy, World Grain
How to Build Resilience in a Volatile Ag Economy, by Lisa Foust Prater, Successful Farming
Women in Agribusiness Announces Winners of Inaugural Leadership Awards, by Chrissy Wozniak, North American Ag Farm News Daily
2026 Women in Agribusiness Scholarship Recipients Named, Agrimarketing
AUGUST 2026
New Orleans, New Ideas & 15 Years of Women in Agribusiness, a podcast interview with WIA Portfolio Director Svitlana Synkovska by Chrissy Wozniak, North American Ag
Michigan Dairy FarmHER Receives Women in Agribusiness’ First-Ever Demeter Award, by Marion Kirkpatrick & Dave Nelson, RFD-TV Market Day Report [live interview]
GAFTA Supports Women in Agribusiness Summit 2026, LinkedIn post
Payal Pathak to join WIA Summit 2026 speaking faculty, LinkedIn post
Texas A&M University Student, Carolina, Herrara, One of 28 to Receive WIA Student Scholarship Award, LinkedIn post
Abby Perkins, Executive Vice President, EXCO Management at StoneX, to speak at WIA Summit 2026, LinkedIn post
USA Today Best-Selling Author, Dr. Liz Fiedler Mergen, joins Ag Innovation Panel at WIA Summit 2026, LinkedIn post
Women in Agribusiness Names 2026 Demeter Award Recipients, by Feed & Grain Staff
Marketing Panel Shines at WIA Summit, LinkedIn post
Women in Agribusiness Names 2026 Demeter Award Recipients, by Neal Burnette-Irwin of RFD-TV
Women in Agribusiness Summit Looks Ahead to Agriculture’s Biggest Challenges, by Lisa Foust Prater, Successful Farming
Female Farmers a Special Focus of 2026 Women in Agribusiness Summit, by Farm Bureau News staff
WIA Recognizes 13 Women Leaders in Agriculture, by Susan Reidy, World Grain
RFD-TV Dirt Diaries with Kirbe Schnoor: Digging in with Svitlana Synkovska about Women in Agribusiness
JUNE 2026
CoBank Economist to Keynote Ag Summit, by Feed & Grain Staff
MAY 2026
Female Producer Panel set for 2026 Women in Agribusiness Summit, by Erica Schaffer, MEAT+POULTRY
This Week in Agribusiness Features WIA Summit 2026 With Michelle Pelletier Marshall, PR Lead, WIA, RFD-TV
Speakers Announced for WIA Female Farmer Panel, World Grain Staff
WIA Award Nominations and Scholarships Applications Due Soon, Feed & Grain Staff
APRIL 2026
WIA Adds Four to Advisory Board, Susan Reidy, World Grain
Demeter Award Brings New Focus on Women in Farming, by Jamie Martin, Wisconsin Ag Connection & Kentucky Ag Connections
Nominate A Woman Farmer for National Award, by Farm Bureau News
MARCH 2026
Demeter Award Nominations for Female Producers Sought, by High Plains Journal Staff
Four New members Have Joined the Now 12-member Advisory Board for Women in Agribusiness (WIA), World Grain LinkedIn post
If You're a Woman in Agribusiness, This One's For You, by Amanda Martin of Illinois Agricultural Leadership Foundation, LinkedIn post
WIA Adds Female Farmer Demeter Award Category, by John Reidy, World Grain
AI Consultant Named Women in Agribusiness Summit Keynote Speaker, by Susan Reidy, MEAT+POULTRY & World Grain
Global Impact: Register for the 2026 Women in Ag Summit, by Erica Shaffer, MEAT+POULTRY
FEBRUARY 2026
Women in Agribusiness Summit Marks 15 Years Empowering Women in Agriculture, by Feed & Grain Staff
Applications Open for Women in Agribusiness Scholarships, by Susan Reidy, World Grain & MEAT+POULTRY
Please also see dozens more comments and takeaways about WIA Summit 2026 from fellow attendees on our LinkedIn page.
