BURY St Edmunds-based seed producer Barenbrug has appointed James Ingles to the new position of head of agriculture.

James has been with the company for 14 years and involved in the agricultural industry for 25 years. He will work to develop a wider portfolio in agriculture, exploring complementary products and opportunities for customers, whilst increasing the depth of support offered to an expanding client base.

“These are exciting times to be in the livestock sector, but also challenging ones,” said James. “There is an increasing demand for more production from UK grassland and we want to help livestock farmers achieve this by offering more yield, quality and persistency.

“Research and development is at the very heart of what we do, which is why we continue to invest heavily in our 50-acre trial site near Evesham, with others in Loughall and Aberdeen.

“It is also important we continue to emphasise to our stockists we are there to help if any of their customers have any challenges or issues. I, and the rest of my team, are always prepared to meet farmers to see if we can utilise our collective expertise to their benefit.”

: : SAMANTHA (Sam) Cassidy and Karen Proctor have joined the sales and marketing team at Ransomes Jacobsen, the Ipswich-based manufacturer and distributor of professional grounds care maintenance equipment.

Sam, right, has been recruited from Everris, an industry partner and supplier of grass seed and speciality turf nutrition products to the amenity turf and golf market sectors, where she has been working as the UK and Ireland marketing manager for the past four years. She has a broad knowledge of multi-brand marketing and dealer marketing support across the region.

Reporting to international marketing manager Gina Putnam, Sam’s role will focus on the management of the numerous trade associations supported by Ransomes Jacobsen and maximising sponsorship opportunities. She will be the front line person for dealer marketing support materials and will actively promote the allied brands marketed by the business, including event support and direct mail.

Karen, left, joins as key accounts manager from her previous role as director of golf at Carden Park Hotel, Golf Resort and Spa in Cheshire. Reporting to Nick Brown, corporate accounts manager, her key responsibility will be to increase brand awareness and consideration through customer facing interaction.

She has worked in the hospitality industry for 17 years, in both sales and operations, across numerous sectors including golf, retail, food, beverage, leisure, conferencing and banqueting.

Richard Comely, director of marketing and product management, said: “We have known for some time that Sam would make an excellent addition to our marketing team and she will play a key role in our goal to increase brand consideration and marketplace visibility across the UK.

“Karen is a proven sales and operations professional whose leadership, experience and personality will ensure she is a success in her new role.

“We welcome them to the team here in Ipswich.”

: : EAST Bergholt-based Fargo Systems, which provides software to the transport and logistics industry, has appointed a new customer service manager.

Trudy Seager brings over 20 years’ experience to her new role, having worked at shipping line, Maersk, as import manager with responsibility for developing new teams, motivating existing teams and facilitating customer service strategies.

General manager Steve Collins said: “We’re delighted that Trudy has joined us as the wealth and range of experience she brings adds a new dimension to our current support team and will be hugely beneficial in advancing our customer service offering.”