CEO of Ingredion, Ilene Gordon, to present keynote address at Women in Agribusiness Summit

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Aug 23, 2013, 10:21 ET

BOSTON, Aug. 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Ilene Gordon, CEO of Fortune 500 company Ingredion, will provide the opening keynote address at the second annual Women in Agribusiness Summit, October 22-24, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency in Minneapolis, Minn.

Gordon, who for the second consecutive year was listed as one of FORTUNE's Most Powerful Women in Business, will deliver the presentation "The Journey to the Top: Lessons Learned" on the opening morning of the summit. Gordon joins keynote speaker Beth Ford, executive vice president and chief supply chain and operations officer at Land O'Lakes, who will present "Agribusiness...A Great Growth Industry with Mission Value and Opportunity for Women."

"Having these highly-accomplished women present at the summit will add value and insight to the proceedings and delegate experience," said Joy O'Shaughnessy, summit director at HighQuest Partners, the global food and agribusiness consulting firm that hosts the event. "The messages from these extremely powerful speakers of what women can accomplish in our industry and in the business world will be particularly relevant to our attendees, who are looking to learn from mentors, and advance and deepen their experiences in the ag and food sectors."

Gordon, frequently featured in top business news, such as in Forbes and on CCN, credits much of her success to mentors who gave her the opportunity to run businesses, which she has been doing since she was 32, according to a March 16, 2013 interview with The New York Times.

Since 2009, Gordon has been CEO at Ingredion, a company that produces nature-based ingredient solutions for food, beverage, brewing and industrial customers around the world. With headquarters in Westchester, Ill., the global company employs some 11,000 employees and reported $6.5 billion in revenue in 2012. Prior to this Gordon was president and CEO of Rio Tinto Alcan, a $6.5 billion global packaging business based in Paris, France.

Gordon studied math at MIT in the 1970s, and eventually received her Master of Science degree in management from MIT's Sloan School of Management. She is on the board of directors with several organizations, including International Paper and World Business Chicago and is a member of the board for businesses such as The Chicago Council on Global Affairs and The Executives' Club of Chicago.

Over 400 attendees are expected at this year's Women in Agribusiness Summit, whose goals are twofold: to make the agriculture and food sectors career destinations for today's talented women, and to provide tools for women to become informed leaders in our industry. Visit www.womeninag.com for detailed event information and to register (use code: WIA9-2013 for a 10% discount).

Michelle Pelletier-Marshall, 978.887.8800, x117
[email protected]

SOURCE HighQuest Partners