ABERDEEN, S.D. – Wheat Growers, a grain and agronomy cooperative based in Aberdeen, S.D., has announced the upcoming retirement of Roger Krueger, Senior Vice President Grain.
Roger is a member of the Wheat Growers leadership team, having joined the cooperative in 1999 as Director of Grain Marketing. When he started with Wheat Growers, the cooperative had just opened its first shuttle loader in Wolsey. Since then, the cooperative has grown from 12 to 25 grain facilities and now has nine 110-car shuttle loader facilities and two more in North Dakota in a joint venture.
“Roger has been very instrumental in growing our grain storage and marketing capabilities for our farmers,” said Dale Locken, Wheat Growers Chief Executive Officer. “Thanks to Roger’s leadership, we have tripled our grain handle capabilities, allowing our farmers more direct access to key markets in the Pacific Northwest and Gulf of Mexico. He’s had a tremendous impact for our customers.”
Roger says he plans to return to Missouri and closer to his family. “It’s never easy to leave an organization when it has such positive momentum like Wheat Growers does right now,” Roger says. “We have tremendous customers and world-class employees at all levels. Dale has been wonderful to work with and (new CEO) Chris Pearson promises to be every bit as impactful as he steps into his new role.”
Chris said this is a transition that has been in the planning stages for almost a year. “Roger let us know nearly a year ago that he was contemplating retirement,” Chris said. “That has given us added flexibility to prepare for this. He offered to stay with us into the fall, and he’s also helping us search for his successor.”
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“Roger has held a key role here and is a very significant reason why Wheat Growers has been successful and why our farmers have done so well,” Chris says. “We will miss his leadership, but we wish him the very best as he steps into retirement.”
