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Angela Huffman
President, Board of Directors and Staff
Angela Huffman is a co-founder of Farm Action. She provides strategic direction for the organization’s efforts to integrate research, communications, and advocacy toward successful policy reforms that break up corporate food monopolies and build fair competition in rural America. Her winning strategy centers on building capacity through broad-based, diverse collaborations.
Angela brings more than a decade of experience in food and agriculture policy reform and market development. In prior work, Angela led numerous institutions, retailers, and other food buyers to shift their purchasing toward farms that meet the highest standards for fairness and sustainability. She has also held marketing and consulting positions for farms, regional dairy and meat processors, distributors, and restaurants.
Angela’s commentary is frequently featured in national news media. She has appeared on NPR and Fox News, and she has been cited by The New York Times, Forbes, The Washington Post, Politico, The Hill, and others.
Angela holds a B.A. in English and an M.A. in Public Policy and Management from the Ohio State University. She raises registered Katahdin sheep on her family’s 200-year-old farm in Northwest Ohio.
Chief Strategy Officer, Staff
Secretary and Treasurer, Board of Directors
Joe Maxwell is a co-founder of Farm Action. His experience in farming, building agricultural supply chains, practicing law, and serving in statewide office are keys to his successful policy development and campaign strategies.
Along with his brother, Steve, Joe raises hogs, sheep, and grain crops on their fourth generation farm. The pair manage a regional hog marketing group selling animal welfare certified pork into outlets including Chipotle. Working with the Ag of the Middle Project, Joe developed an economic model that allowed smaller livestock producers to compete with large meatpackers.
Joe held office in Missouri for 14 years, serving as a member of the House of Representatives, Senate, and as Lieutenant Governor. He is retired from the Army National Guard, where he served as a First Sergeant in the Field Artillery. He holds degrees in agriculture economics and law from the University of Missouri.
Joe has held key positions in both political and initiative petition campaigns. During the last election cycle, he assisted Presidential, U.S. Senate, and U.S. House of Representatives candidates in developing their antitrust, agriculture, and food policy positions.
Joe’s work has been profiled by The Hill, Huffington Post, Mother Jones, Politico, and The Nation. He has been cited by CNN, The New York Times, NPR, USA Today, and the Washington Post, among others.
Vice President, Board of Directors
Anim Steel is a co-founder and past executive director of the Real Food Generation, which harnesses the power of youth and universities to build a fair and sustainable food system (programs include the Real Food Challenge, the Real Meals Campaign, and Uprooted & Rising).
Prior to Real Food Generation, Anim led national initiatives at The Food Project in Boston, consulted with Economic Development Assistance Consortium, and developed employment training programs at the Bowery Residents Committee.
Anim holds a B.A. in Astrophysics and History from Williams College and a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.
He is the recipient of a James Beard Leadership Award and received an Echoing Green award for social entrepreneurship. Born in Ghana, Anim grew up in West Africa and Washington, D.C.
Webster Davis
Board Member and Senior Policy Advisor
Webster Davis is owner of Triple D Produce, located two miles west of Auxvasse, Missouri. He has worked with various FFA groups to secure vegetable starts and encourage youth to pursue food production as an occupation. He worked with Lincoln University as a mentor for the Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences (MANRRS). He hosted an intern through Lincoln University and has served on the planning committees for Minority and Limited Resources Farmers and Ranchers Conferences.
Webster is a proud Ambassador for the Missouri AgrAbility program which is dedicated to helping farmers and ranchers return to their passions and livelihoods after an accident.
Webster is a veteran having turned 18 years old in U.S. Marine Corps boot camp and serving almost 23 years in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and Missouri Army National Guard; he is now a member of the Farmer Veteran Coalition. He conceived and is Chairman of the State of Missouri NAACP Agriculture Committee, whose goal is to increase awareness of agriculture issues and opportunities.
Webster is the treasurer of the Union Local where he works at the Callaway Nuclear Plant, and is proudly serving as the Secretary for the State of Missouri NAACP Conferences. In this role he is fulfilling the important work of ensuring that books and papers are ready for the next generation.
Christian Lovell
Senior Director of Programs
Sarah Carden
Research and Policy Development Director
Sarah Carden joined Farm Action to raise awareness and advocate for policies that meaningfully reform the nation’s food and agriculture system.
Sarah holds a B.A. in Evolutionary Biology from Harvard University. She has been working on food system reforms for over a decade and brings expertise in local food systems and distribution networks, agriculture, non-profit development, and food entrepreneurship. Sarah has also worked as an organizer on two presidential campaigns and one congressional campaign.
Sarah lives with her husband and their two young children on their organic vegetable farm.
Jessica Cusworth
Senior Communications Manager
As Communications Manager, Jessica focuses on furthering engagement with the organization’s work to create a fair and sustainable food and agriculture system.
Jessica holds a B.A. in Global Environmental Studies and an M.S. in Environmental Science and Policy from Clark University. She brings a wide range of experience from her past work in land conservation, where she focused on wildlife habitat restoration, environmental monitoring, volunteer management, and engaging communities in land stewardship. She’s cultivated skills in digital communications, program development, and creative storytelling through her experience working in the nonprofit world.
Jessica spends her free time tending to her urban vegetable garden, cooking new recipes, and working on her photography skills.
Emma Nicolas
Communications Coordinator
As Communications Coordinator, Emma works to raise awareness and build community with Farm Action’s growing audience around the shared goal of reforming the food and agriculture system.
She holds a Bachelor of Journalism from the University of Missouri. She spent over five years in the journalism field and the last few years working on an organic vegetable farm in Michigan. As a storyteller and communicator, she draws the most inspiration from talking to farmers and sharing their stories.
Emma spends her free time in a garden, on a Lake Michigan beach, or at home with her loved ones.