Biography

Charles E. Kruse has served as a director of the Company since 2003. Mr. Kruse served as the President of the Missouri Farm Bureau from 1992 to 2010 and the Director of the Missouri Department of Agriculture from 1985 to 1991. He also served on the American Farm Bureau Board of Directors from 1995 to 2010 and on the Board of the Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation from 2001 and 2008. Previously in his career, Mr. Kruse served in the Missouri Army National Guard, from which he retired as a brigadier general with 26 years of service in 1993. In addition, Mr. Kruse has received three U.S. presidential appointments and served on numerous national boards and commissions. Since 1976, Mr. Kruse has been the President of Charles Kruse Farms, Inc. Mr. Kruse holds a Bachelor of Science in Agronomy from Arkansas State University and a Master of Science Degree in Agronomy from the University of Missouri.