MCIA welcomes Karen Lehto to our staff! Karen was hired June 1, 2024, by the Organic Services department as an organic certification specialist/inspector.
Karen holds an AAS degree in farm business management from Ridgewater College in Willmar, Minnesota, as well as a certificate for farm business management from Minnesota State Community and Technical College.
Karen has a strong agricultural background and is passionate about organic agriculture. She has owned an 80-cow certified organic dairy. As an auditor employed by A Greener World and EarthClaims, she performed farm animal welfare inspections. In the course of her work, she has traveled widely to meet with clients located across the United States. Over the past five years, she conducted organic inspections for two USDA-accredited certifying agencies, Quality Assurance International (QAI) and MOSA. In addition to having finished her IOIA certification for processing, livestock, and crops, Karen has performed investigation inspections. She has also created a framework for reporting and evaluating key performance indicators related to animal welfare in poultry.
In her free time, Karen enjoys gardening, camping, and traveling with her husband and daughter.
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MCIA bids a fond farewell to Rose-Marie Odell, who is retiring after eight years of service to our association. Rose-Marie began her work for MCIA as an administrative assistant in the summer of 2016. Three years later, the focus of her work shifted to dedicated support for the Organic Services department. Prior to her employment with MCIA, Rose-Marie had worked for the Washington State Department of Agriculture for over twenty years.
While preparing for her departure, Rose-Marie expressed these parting thoughts, “It has been my great pleasure to live in the Upper Midwest and to work at the Minnesota Crop Improvement Association for the past eight years. I have enjoyed getting to know the seed growers and farm families. I enjoy the outdoors and now plan, upon retirement, to spend as much time outside as possible! I leave, unapologetically, for the West, where my family has been waiting patiently for me to spend time with them. I will always remember fondly, though, the Upper Midwest family of agricultural producers and workers who warmly took me in and treated me like family for the last several years. Best regards to all.”