Robynne Anderson

Robynne Anderson is an international thought leader on food and agriculture with expertise in issues management and strategic development across the entire value chain. Over the years, she has advised a broad range of clients from government leaders to business captains, farmers, food processors and researchers. With close to 30 years of international experience, Robynne has contributed to apex multilateral processes and negotiations helping to shape pivotal outcomes like the Sustainable Development Goals.

In 2010, Robynne founded Emerging ag, a boutique international consulting firm providing communications and public affairs services to clients in the agriculture, food and health sectors. As its President, she leads a team of 32 dynamic, international professionals providing expert services to clients around the world, with a strong focus on global policy issues and engagement with international organizations.

Robynne often represents clients at the United Nations, bringing the voice of agriculture to inter-governmental processes. In this role, she co-ordinates the Private Sector Mechanism that represents agribusinesses at the UN Committee on World Food Security and led engagements in the 2021 Food Systems Summit. Her company serves as the Secretariat of the International Agri-Food Network (IAFN) and co-ordinates the Business and Industry Major Group of the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) and the Outreach Network for Gene Drive Research.

Prior to founding Emerging ag, Robynne established and ran for almost 20 year Issues Ink, a leading agricultural publishing company specializing in 12 magazines and electronic titles on Canadian and American agriculture, and founded the Farming First coalition in 2007. She started her career in Canadian politics as a legislative assistant to the then Deputy Prime Minister.

In addition to her role at Emerging ag, Robynne is involved in her family’s seed farm in Dugald, Manitoba, Canada. She is also the founder of the Manyinga school project, a non-profit organization that supports orphans to learn agricultural skills through schools which in 2021 became Farmers Abroad Canada, a not-for-profit charitable organization focused on supporting agricultural education in 2 countries in Africa, and growing.

Passionate about food, agriculture, and diversity and inclusion, Robynne serves in a number of international boards and advisory groups and is the youngest person inducted into the Canadian Agricultural Hall of Fame in 2017, one of just 11 women in the Hall. She received the 2018 Demeter Award for Women in Agriculture.