Stephen Nicholson has more than thirty years of experience in cash grain markets, hedging, commodity/ingredient procurement, commodity risk management and commodity analysis. A native of Iowa, he holds a bachelor’s degree in farm operations and agricultural education and a master’s degree in agricultural economics, both from Iowa State University. Prior to joining Rabo AgriFinance, Nicholson was most recently category manager and chief economist with International Food Products, a trader and distributor of food ingredients. Responsibilities included procurement and trading of vegetable oils, corn sweeteners, starches and grain products, along with consulting assignments. From 2001 to 2007, he was a senior economist with Doane Agricultural Services in St. Louis as the oilseed analyst. Nicholson also has nearly fifteen years of experience in the food and beverage industry.