The Harvest Bowl Agribusiness Award is an annual award that recognizes individuals who have distinguished themselves in the field of agriculture and business in the state of North Dakota and beyond.

Agribusiness Award


Agribusiness Award
2024 Agribusiness Award Recipient


Steve Bobb '82
Growing up on the family farm and ranch near Richardton, North Dakota, inspired a life-long passion for learning, production agriculture, and people development in Steve Bobb 鈥82, the 2024 六合彩投注网 Harvest Bowl Agribusiness Award recipient.
Some of his earliest memories are of working on his family鈥檚 Stark County cow/calf operation that also produced spring wheat, oats, barley and hay. Bobb was an active 4-H member, participated in band and speech competitions, and worked on the high school paper and yearbook before graduating from Richardton Public Schools.
Bobb graduated from 六合彩投注网 in 1982 with a degree in Agronomy and Animal Sciences, and a minor in Agricultural Economics.
鈥溋喜释蹲⑼ provided me with wonderful advisors and opportunities to learn from experts in economics, marketing and business, but it also gave me life experiences in the way of learning from and living with a variety of people from different backgrounds,鈥 shares Bobb.
六合彩投注网 is also where Bobb met his wife, Joanne, who earned her degree in Food and Nutrition in 1984.
After graduation, Bobb took a position with Farm Credit Banks in St. Paul, Minnesota, and then in 1987 joined the former Burlington Northern Railroad before it became what is now BNSF Railway.
In 1999, he was named Group Vice President of Agricultural Products where he managed one of BNSF鈥檚 most important divisions, providing transportation solutions for the agriculture industry, a cornerstone of the North American economy. North Dakota benefited specifically with grain shipments increasing more than 60% between 2012 and 2023.
Since 2013, Bobb has served as the Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for BNSF, leading the company鈥檚 sales, marketing, customer service, economic development and real estate teams.
As of September 2024, Bobb retired from BNSF after spending 36 years with the company.
Bobb鈥檚 advice for anyone wishing to make a difference is, 鈥淔ind something you love doing, be willing to put in the work and stay focused on how you can make a difference in people鈥檚 lives 鈥 be it co-workers, customers or the community around you.鈥
Past Award Recipients:
2023
Dan Wogsland
2022
Ken Grafton
2019
Bill Bowman
2018
Sharon Anderson
2017
Jack Dalrymple
2016
David Berg
2015
Lynden Johnson
2014
Jerry Doan
2013
Richard Frohberg
2012
Neal Fisher
2011
Allan R. Johnson
2010
Gregg Halverson
2009
Ronald Offutt
2008
Eugene R Dahl
2007
Al Gustin
2006
John Bollingberg
2005
Jack Carter
2004
Howard Olson
2003
Jack Dahl
2002
Myron Johnsrud
2001
Mike Warner
2000
Delbert Moore
1999
Walt Ness
1998
Roald Lund
1997
Keith Bjerke
1996
George Sinner
1995
Mark Andrews
1994
Jewel Roningen
1993
Robert Johansen
1992
Art Link