2022 HENAAC Awards

Education: Master’s, Business Administration, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Bachelor’s, Chemical Engineering, Universidad Iberoamericana (Mexico).

Ricardo Garcia de Alba grew up in Mexico City, but his passion for agriculture was sparked during frequent visits to a family ranch in Jalisco where he learned the intricacies of animal nutrition and crop health.  He quickly discovered he could pursue his new passion by studying biology and chemistry, which led to a degree in chemical engineering from the Universidad Iberoamericana.

After graduation, Mr. Garcia de Alba took his unique combination of hands-on agricultural experience and supreme technical competence to Procter & Gamble, where he rose to become the research and development manager for Latin America.  Later, he led P&G’s global perfume process team based in the United Kingdom where he directed the development of technology for detergent scents, patents for which represented sales growth of over $20 million per year.

As his responsibilities on the business side of the industry began to expand, Mr. Garcia decided to pursue an MBA at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  He then joined DuPont in 2009, quickly rising to Pioneer Business Director of Northern Latin America overseeing all-important seed business unit.

When DuPont merged with Dow and spun-off the combined agricultural business sectors into Corteva Agriscience, they tapped Mr. Garcia de Alba with bringing together three disparate businesses with minimal previous interactions and transforming them into one effective organization. Most recently, he proved instrumental to the development and launch of Corteva’s revolutionary Enlist™ weed control system, one of the most pivotal technologies on the market today that’s vastly expanding weed control options for farmers.

Mr. Garcia de Alba has been committed to service his entire professional life. From missionary sabbaticals early in his careers, to his work on non-profit boards today, he brings experiences earned on his unique journey to the boards of organizations like the Children's Museum of Indianapolis and the Indiana Latino Institute, leading outreach and STEM initiatives targeting Latinos and people of color.