American Fats & Oils Association

Charlie Cook
Renowned Political Analyst and Publisher of the Cook Political Report

• Called “the man who knows more about politics than anyone else” by Washingtonian and “the Picasso of election analysis” by the Wall Street Journal
• Discusses today’s political and legislative environments in a balanced, non-partisan way
• Hugely popular speaker known for an encyclopedic knowledge and quick wit

Charlie Cook is a political analyst and commentator, the publisher of the Cook Political Report, and a columnist for the National Journal. For more than two decades he has been a trusted and accurate voice on all things political. Once deemed “the Picasso of election analysis” by the Wall Street Journal, Cook’s expertise and encyclopedic knowledge of American politics has been featured on myriad news outlets. Using poll numbers, economic indicators, and historical data, Cook discusses today’s political and legislative environments in a balanced, non-partisan way.

Erik Norland is Executive Director and Senior Economist of CME Group. He is responsible for generating economic analysis on global financial markets by identifying emerging trends, evaluating economic factors and forecasting their impact upon those who trade in its various markets. He is also one of CME Group’s spokespeople on global economic, financial and geopolitical conditions.

Prior to joining CME Group, Norland gained more than 15 years of experience in the financial services industry working for investment banks and hedge funds both in the United States and in France working for hedge funds and investment banks.

Norland holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from St. Mary’s College of Maryland and an M.A.in statistics from Columbia University. He is also a CFA Charterholder.

Paul Nazzaro became an early adopter of utilizing the latest chemical technologies to enhance fuel quality on behalf of organizations such as Northeast Petroleum, Coastal Corporation, and Global Companies, LLC. Paul has also represented the National Biodiesel Board since 1996 as their petroleum liaison, helping to reduce roadblocks impeding biodiesel’s domestic commercialization.

He serves on the Board of Directors and Executive Finance Committee for the Massachusetts Energy Marketers Association and the New England Fuel Institute. His writing has appeared in Fuel Oil News, Biodiesel Magazine, Transport Topics, Commercial Fuel Buyer, Fuel Marketer News, and Indoor Comfort Marketing, among others notable industry publications.

Last year, AFOA looked to the west coast for its perspectives, this year Paul will share initiatives and perspectives from the east coast. 

Ryan Standard Director of PRA Ops & Senior Analyst – U.S and Intl Animal Fats & Proteins

Ryan Standard earned a degree in English literature and history from Monmouth College, while maintaining a parallel track in economics. With a background in logistics and sales, he joined The Jacobsen in 2007 as an analyst and the editor of the Animal Fats and Feed Bulletins, and contributor to the Biodiesel Bulletin. He has built a solid, reliable network of sources to inform his industry analysis.

A 5th generation Northern Californian, Ron has been involved in agriculture his entire life having grown up on his family’s dairy farm and cattle ranch. With nearly 50 years of experience, Ron has run the ag-gambit – from the garlic fields to the head of a cotton trading desk.

Ron’s experience in the Ag business started shortly after graduating from the University of California Davis in a B.S. in Livestock Production Management, where he was a Field Representative with McCormick Schilling. He eventually left McCormick moving to Gilroy, CA to manage the Christopher Ranch in Gilroy, CA and was one of the founding fathers of the internationally renowned Gilroy Garlic Festival. In 1982, Ron left the Garlic fields for Wall Street, starting in the San Jose office of Merrill Lynch as a Commodities and Futures Specialist and later transferred to the firm’s L.A. office, joining the Cotton trading desk in 1986 and later establishing and managing Merrill Lynch Futures’ Pacific Coast Futures Center eventually overseeing the firm’s 126 Commodity Brokers and Futures trading in the 17 western states. In early 2000, Ron accepted a position as the Head of the Cotton Trading Desk of Prudential Financial who later merged with non-commodity trading bank, Wachovia. The business got bigger than imagined, prompting Ron to establish LOGIC Advisors, a commodity research company, and SFO Commodities, a commodity futures & options trading firm and eventually merging with RCM Ag Services in 2020.

With more than four decades of vertical integration in worldwide agribusiness, from feedlots and furrows in the field, to the Futures trading pits of Wall Street and beyond, Ron has developed a unique understanding of both agricultural business, and the business of agriculture. His varied interests and scope of comprehension in the complexities of the practical, financial, and technological requirements for the process of taking agricultural conception to consumption, has resulted in a participation within a widely differentiated array of activities and investments. Ron’s expertise in the Ag business is nearly unmatched, and is now one of the most sought after cotton experts in the field and regularly puts out research with partner Bill O’Neill, Lawson/O’Neill Global Institutional Commodity Advisors consumed by banks, hedge funds, commodity companies, and large speculative traders around the globe.

John Elliott is currently a Senior Trader at Cargill, trading Palm and Lauric Oils.

Prior to this role, he traded Corn Oil at Cargill and worked for Conagra Brands in various supply chain and procurement roles. After spending a majority of his career in the vegetable oil industry, he developed a passion for seeing the industry continue to grow and evolve. John recently joined the National Institute of Oilseed Products (NIOP) Membership Committee.

John was born and raised in Omaha, NE, he currently lives in the Twin Cities with his wife. The couple is excitedly awaiting the arrival their first child this December. In his free time, John enjoys watching Missouri Tiger Football, St. Louis Cardinal Baseball, along with training for triathlons and golfing.