IFA appoints interim Director General

(Posted on 01/05/20)

The International Fertilizer Association (IFA) is pleased to announce the appointment of IFA’s Senior Director of Agriculture, Patrick Heffer, as IFA’s Interim Director General as of May 1. A formal search process for the next Director General has already been launched. IFA Director General Charlotte Hebebrand is stepping down at the end of April to assume a new role as Executive Vice-President and Chief Sustainability Officer at Nutrien, and looks forward to continuing engagement with IFA.

The IFA promotes the efficient and responsible production, distribution, and use of plant nutrients.

During her almost 8 years’ tenure at IFA, Charlotte Hebebrand, working closely with the IFA Board and Secretariat, has introduced a number of new areas of focus and initiatives, including a reshaping and expansion of IFA’s market intelligence, a strong emphasis on product and nutrient stewardship, enhanced policy and research capabilities and an expansion of multi-lateral engagements and international cooperation.

“Charlotte has made significant and lasting contributions to IFA and to our industry” said IFA Chairman and CEO of OCP, Mostafa Terrab, who recognized in particular her commitment to dialogue and her visionary approach to long-term development and growth, such as the distillation of the plausible future scenarios as part of the IFA 2030 strategic exercise, as well as the creation of a Scientific Panel on Responsible Plant Nutrition. “The Board would like to thank her for her extraordinary service and leadership”.

With Patrick Heffer to become the Interim Director General, the Association nominates a highly experienced, long-standing executive team member who joined IFA in 2002 and for the past 18 years has coordinated the association’s global agronomic, market and policy activities in relation to fertilizer use. Before joining IFA, Patrick spent 15 years with the seed industry, including five years with the International Seed Federation, and two years with the FAO’s Seed and Plant Genetic Resources Service.

Patrick Heffer, whose appointment coincides with the new global challenges caused by the Covid Pandemic, remarked: “I am grateful for this opportunity, and in cooperation with IFA’s team of directors as well as IFA’s experienced and devoted staff, I will make sure that the Association continues to deliver on its goals and objectives. In these trying times, we, at IFA, are even more committed to delivering the support, in terms of information, benchmarks, data, market insights, partnerships, policy analysis and reputation management tools, that our members and external stakeholders expect from us.”