Trey Malone, an assistant professor of agricultural economics and agribusiness with the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, has been named Farm Foundation's 2023 Agricultural Economics Fellow.

"The Farm Foundation Fellows program is a well-known and highly respected program that brings together some of the brightest minds in our profession to work and learn together on timely and important agricultural policy topics," said John Anderson, head of the Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Department. "With his broad interests and exceptional knowledge of policy issues and tools, Dr. Malone will be an outstanding addition to the Farm Foundation program. It will be great to have an Arkansas and Mid-South perspective on issues so well represented among this elite group of policy influencers."

Farm Foundation's Agricultural Economics Fellow program is a year-long program for a faculty agricultural economist. Founded in 1933, Farm Foundation is a nonprofit, nonpartisan group that works to find solutions to issues in agriculture, from farmer health and market development to sustainability and implementing new technologies in agriculture. The Agricultural Economics Fellows program started in 2021.

The 2023 fellowship is focused on sustainable food systems and will provide an opportunity to work with diverse stakeholders on integrated systems approaches to building more sustainable food systems, with a special focus on agricultural production approaches.

As a Farm Foundation Agricultural Economics Fellow, Malone will work with diverse stakeholders to build more sustainable food systems. For example, he will meet with staff in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Office of the Chief Economist and participate in the Farm Foundation and USDA Economics Research Service Ag Scholars program on a recurring basis. He will also meet with other participants in Farm Foundation's suite of next generation programs as time allows.

Malone's research for the experiment station, the research arm of the U of A System Division of Agriculture, focuses on agribusiness entrepreneurship and resiliency in agri-food supply chains.

"We are excited to welcome Dr. Malone to our Agricultural Economics Fellowship program," said Martha King, vice president of programs and projects at Farm Foundation. "His perspectives on agribusiness and consumer behavior will be an invaluable resource and will serve as a unique springboard for collaboration."

In addition to being mentored by staff in the USDA's Office of the Chief Economist, Malone in turn will mentor participants in the Farm Foundation and USDA Economic Research Service Agricultural Scholars program, among other engagements.

Malone joined the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station in 2022. In November he was awarded the 2022 Presidential Award for Excellence in Research Communication from the Food Distribution Research Society.

In addition to teaching courses through the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the U of A, Malone serves as co-editor of the Agricultural & Resource Economics Review and managing editor of the International Food & Agribusiness Review.

He holds master's and doctoral degrees in agricultural economics from Oklahoma State University and a bachelor's degree from Rockhurst University.

To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: aaes.uada.edu. Follow on Twitter at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. Follow us on Twitter at @AgInArk. To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uex.uada.edu. 

About the Division of Agriculture: The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture's mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation's historic land grant education system. The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on five system campuses. The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, and is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.