Tennessee Farmers Cooperative (TFC) Chief Executive Officer Shannon Huff announced in August that Andy Woodard has been selected as TFC’s chief operating officer.
Andy has served as a TFC regional manager and has worked closely with member Co-ops in Middle and West Tennessee since 2015.
“Andy’s understanding of the needs of member Co-ops and broad experience within the Co-op system make him ideally suited to his new role as chief operating officer, with an emphasis on member Co-op relations,” says Huff. “He has a passion for the cooperative system, and I'm looking forward to working with him in his new role.”
Before serving as regional manager, Woodard was the manager of Marshall Farmers Cooperative for 15 years. He completed the TFC management training program upon graduating with a bachelor’s degree in agriculture with a focus in agribusiness from Austin Peay State University in 1997.
Woodard worked for Montgomery Farmers Cooperative in agronomy sales and service for a year and a half after completing the training program. He then moved home to work for Marshall Farmers Cooperative as the warehouse manager before being appointed as manager in January of 2000.
A Cornersville native, Andy grew up on a Holstein dairy farm, where he and his three siblings assisted in the day-to-day farming operations. Today, he and his wife, Misty, live on the family farm and have two boys, Eli, 21, and Rhett, 18.
The family attends Cornersville Church of Christ, where Andy serves as an elder and teaches Sunday school. He is also a director for the Marshall County School Board and has been a volunteer high school football coach for more than 20 years. In his spare time, he farms with his brother and father, and enjoys woodworking and tinkering with antique tractors and automobiles.
“Over Tennessee Farmers Cooperative’s 75-year history, TFC has become one of the strongest federated Co-op systems in the U.S.,” says Woodard. “This strength has been the result of sound leadership, dedicated employees, unwavering member support, and alignment with like business partners.”
Woodard says he’s excited about the opportunity to serve as chief operations officer and build upon the core strengths of the Co-op system and looks forward to working with TFC operational departments and the joint venture companies.
Phillip Farmer, the previous chief operations officer, has been named TFC’s chief innovation officer. See the upcoming December issue of The Cooperator to read more about Farmer’s new role.