Jim Eckles has worked in agribusiness for 38 years. Early in his career he held general management positions in the seed industry in the US, Mexico and Brazil, at Cargill and Zeneca, and later managed the commercial operations for Zeneca Plant Science in the US. His corporate work provided deep experience in seed, plant genetics, ag-biotechnology and crop protection, across a range of crops and countries. For the past 20 years Mr. Eckles has worked primarily in independent advisory roles, including as a certified M&A advisor and later as a partner in the US agribusiness consulting company, The Context Network. At Context he gained broader experience in agribusiness and project management. From 2014-2020 he served on the Board of Trustees of the International Potato Center (CIP), a CGIAR center, which conducts breeding and preserves genetic resources of Andean crops and sweet potato and manages a portfolio of programs dedicated to improving the livelihoods and nutrition of the worlds most impoverished rural populations.
In addition to the deep knowledge of global agribusiness, Mr. Eckles has gained excellence in many business competencies over his career, which include: Strategic Planning, Market Analysis, Business Development, M&A/Diligence/Strategic Alliance. In addition to English, he has fluency in Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese. He holds a degree in Cultural Anthropology (University of Texas) and a master’s degree in Agricultural Economics (Texas A&M).
