By the ISU Alumni Association

Mike Peterson, president and owner of Peterson Genetics, Inc., located in Cedar Falls, Iowa was a recent recipient of the Iowa State University Alumni Association’s Floyd Andre Award. A 1984 ISU graduate in agricultural business, Peterson has had a profound impact on Iowa agriculture and has been a local supporter of ISU.

As a leading provider of soybean germplasm to the North American soybean seed trade, Peterson’s company attributes its success to soybean research and genetics. That is why it is no surprise that through his leadership, Peterson Genetics joined the Iowa Soybean Research Center at ISU through both financial support and an advisory role through their industry council.

Peterson’s expertise in the industry developed through over 30 years of experience and through a variety of local and national industry leadership positions. He is a past President of the Iowa Seed Association, past Chair of the Soybean Division of the American Seed Trade Association and past Chairman of the American Seed Trade Association.

Beyond the leadership of his company’s partnership with ISRC, Peterson has remained personally engaged with ISU with significant support of the Stark Performance Center and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The Peterson Genetics Seed Science Center Graduate Fellowship provides a great example of his commitment to research and development. He is also a proud recipient of the Agricultural Business Club’s Outstanding Alumni Award.

“Mike Peterson has seemingly endless energy and creativity. He has greatly shaped the soybean industry in Iowa and the Midwest. The guidance Mike provides to our Iowa Soybean Research Center is invaluable, and we are lucky to have him on our advisory council. We feel he is an outstanding choice as a recipient for this award,” said ISRC Co-director Greg Tylka.

Peterson is a life member of the ISU Alumni Association. He also belongs to the Order of the Knoll, W.M. Beardshear Society and Campanile Society and is a Cyclone Club member. He is the father of five children – Ben, Josh, Natalie, Nicke and Sofie. 

The Floyd Andre Award honors a College of Agriculture and Life Sciences alumnus or friend who has made outstanding contributions to production agriculture, agricultural business or has had a significant impact on Iowa agriculture. The award was established in 1978 in honor of Andrew Floyd, who earned his BS, MS and PhD degrees at Iowa State and served as Dean of the College of Agriculture from 1949-1972.