After 17 years as CountryMark's chief executive officer and president, Charlie Smith will retire from the company this December. "Our employees are what makes this company great, and I have been honored to serve them since 2003," said Smith.

The CountryMark Board of Directors recently named Matt Smorch as the new president and chief executive officer following the retirement of Charlie Smith effective January 1, 2020.

As a farmer-owned cooperative, CountryMark serves as a strong advocate and state leader in the marketing of renewable fuels including ethanol and biodiesel blends. Due to disproportionate economic hardship, CountryMark applied for an exemption under the Environmental Protection Agency's Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) for 2018 and has notified the EPA of its intent to sue because the EPA has not issued its determination within the timeframe required by law.

The 2018 Indiana State Fair will run from August 3-19 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. During this 17-day fair, the tractor shuttles will be powered by CountryMark's Premium Dieselex-4, and the antique tractors will be powered by CountryMark PLUS gasoline. Both CountryMark fuel products are being delivered by Co-Alliance.

CountryMark's Fueling Freedom events on June 22 raised more than $62,000 to support local National Guard Family Readiness Groups.

Reducing its environmental impact, improving the safety and reliability of its refinery, and producing more gasoline for its valued customers have been the results of CountryMark's 2017 refinery upgrades.

On behalf of the employees and owners of CountryMark, I am writing to address the inappropriate and insensitive comments made yesterday on Facebook by someone who represented to be a CountryMark employee regarding a crime in Posey County, Indiana.

The 2017 Indiana State Fair will run from August 4-20 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. During this 17-day fair, the tractor shuttles will be powered by CountryMark's Premium Dieselex-4, and the antique tractors will be powered by CountryMark PLUS gasoline.

This Wednesday, July 12, we will host Indiana Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch at our refinery in Mt. Vernon, Ind. We invite farmers, fleet managers and biodiesel supporters to join Indiana's Lt. Governor at our refinery Pavilion at 11 a.m. Wednesday to hear remarks from our CEO, an Indiana farmer and an Illinois truck fleet owner about why they believe in biodiesel-blended fuels. Let's show Indiana's Lt. Governor that we believe in American-made fuels and we support our local soybean farmers!

Pass along your best ideas and win free fuel in this CountryMark/Indiana Prairie Farmer contest.