Barbara (Barb) O'Brien, president and CEO of Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) and president and CEO of the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, joins us for Episode 14 of the “Let’s Talk Dairy” podcast. 

O’Brien has more than 20 years of experience working on behalf of America’s 31,000 dairy farmers and dairy importers. As president and CEO of DMI, the domestic dairy checkoff program that drives trust and sales of dairy products, she oversees the work of the National Dairy Council, the U.S. Dairy Export Council, and GENYOUth Foundation. And as president and CEO of the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, she has brought together the leadership of 27 dairy companies and organizations to advance pre-competitive efforts and action within key areas such as animal welfare, environmental sustainability, hunger, and community impact.

Before replacing long-time DMI CEO Tom Gallagher in October 2021, O’Brien had been DMI president and president and CEO of the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy.

In this episode, O’Brien discusses:

• What ongoing projects she is most excited about, and why.
• The projects that have the most potential to have a direct positive impact on dairy processors.
• The most significant challenges she faces in her new role — and what will be critical to overcoming them.
• What steps the dairy industry needs to take to maintain consumer loyalty to dairy products as the move toward plant-based products continues.

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