The long-time president and CEO of the American Egg Board (AEB) will retire at the end of this year. Joanne C. Ivy, who has led the AEB since 2007, will conclude her 40-year career in the industry.

During almost three decades of service to America’s egg farmers, Ivy created the Egg Product Marketing, Retail Merchandising, and State Support Program. During her tenure as President & CEO, the egg farmers’ image campaign, known as the Good Egg Project, was launched; the Foodservice and Egg Product Marketing programs were enhanced; and AEB’s highly successful marketing campaigns, including its most recent Wake Up to Eggs with (Kevin) Bacon campaign, were executed. She also strengthened the prominence and integrity of the Egg Nutrition Center and its multi-million dollar nutrition research program that culminated in this year’s historic Dietary Guidelines recommendations.

“Working with the egg industry for the past 40 years has been my life and those in this industry are family,” says Ivy. “I love my job and love this industry, which has made this decision very difficult. However, I feel it is time for me to explore my personal interests and new opportunities, while healthy and able.”

Ivy credits an incredible marketing team, an extraordinary staff, to helping the AEB and egg industry to be at its current high point, and she feels confident in the industry’s future.