Krysta is the president and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC). In her role, she brings experience with agriculture, sustainability, and food policy to help promote dairy exports and enrich the well-being of people, communities, and the planet. Harden directs a staff of trade specialists, policy professionals, marketers, and strategists, and oversees eight international offices working to facilitate dairy product knowledge, identify opportunities, monitor regulatory activity, and improve the business climate for U.S. dairy.
Previously, Harden served dual roles as USDEC’s chief operating officer and Dairy Management Inc.’s EVP of global environmental strategy. Before joining DMI, Harden served as chief sustainability officer with Corteva and DuPont. Harden also spent seven years working with Secretary Tom Vilsack at USDA, nearly three of those years as deputy secretary, where Harden helped shape agriculture policy and led implementation of the 2014 Farm Bill.