OPT Team & Steering Committee

Jeremy has had lifelong passions for animals, farming and nature ever since helping collect eggs and feed pigs on his grandparents’ smallholding and roaming the countryside in rural Suffolk, UK. These passions and an interest in science led eventually to a PhD on pig behavior and welfare at St Catharine’s College, University of Cambridge, where he also spent time representing the University in rugby league, and the College in rugby union, soccer, field hockey, rowing and track and field. After a few years working in the UK, Jeremy moved across the Atlantic to become a Research Animal Scientist with USDA-ARS, serving with the Livestock Behavior Research Unit in Indiana for 22 years, researching pig and dairy cattle welfare. He has published 4 books and over 260 scientific publications, being named in Stanford University’s list of the top 2% of the world’s scientists. A strong believer in global exchange of agricultural knowledge, he has collaborated with 250 scientists in 32 countries across 6 continents and founded a scheme to fund scientists from less developed countries to attend international conferences. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology, an Honorary Fellow of the International Society for Applied Ethology and a Registered Animal Scientist. Jeremy lives in the MidWest with his partner, Michelle, where his life is managed by 3 ex-laboratory beagles. Occasionally, they let him travel, watch sport, collect rocks and fossils and hike in National Parks.   

Warthesen joined CROPP Cooperative, maker of Organic Valley products and more, in October 2014 and oversees the cooperative’s government affairs and engagement with industry trade groups. His duties include cultivating relations with policymakers, engaging administrative agencies, and driving forward-facing public relations with numerous food, farm and media stakeholders. He additionally supports cooperative efforts to develop and implement enhanced organic claims, such as Certified Grass-Fed Organic Dairy, that are increasingly prevalent on organic food products. He has extensive experience in direct lobbying, farmer recruitment and training for advocacy, coalition-building across diverse interests, and organizing prominent organic educational events.

Warthesen was raised on a diversified crop and livestock operation that included organic production in Wabasha County, Minnesota, where his family still farms today. He holds a B.S. in environmental studies with an emphasis in public policy from Bemidji State University. For 10 years prior to coming to CROPP, he worked on food and farm policy for a Minnesota non-profit at the federal and state level. 

Warthesen serves as a board member for the Organic Trade Association (OTA), the Wisconsin Organic Advisory Council in the business seat, and the Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship, as well as an executive steering committee for the Organic Plus Trust. 

Currently residing in southwestern Wisconsin with his family, he enjoys outdoor recreation as well as cooking and general farm work on the home farm when he visits family in Minnesota. 

  Diana Kobus is the Executive Director of Pennsylvania Certified Organic (PCO). She brings over a decade of non-profit leadership in the certification of individuals in the environmental and public health professions. Diana has a Masters in Environmental Science and Management with a focus in Organic Agriculture and was the Executive Director of the Institute of Professional Environmental Practice (IPEP) for twelve years, following five years working for Whole Foods Markets in the mid-2000s at various locations around the country. She brings extensive leadership experience along with a passion for organic production and the critical impact it has on climate and the environment. In her spare time, Diana enjoys cooking, music, gardening, and providing a home for many generations of houseplants.