Syngenta Names New Leader for Its North American Crop Protection Operations

Syngenta recently announced Jeff Cecil has been appointed President, North America Crop Protection, effective Oct. 1, 2026. Cecil succeeds Vern Hawkins, who is retiring as President of the North American Crop Protection business after a distinguished career spanning more than 40 years with Syngenta and its predecessor companies. Hawkins will continue in his role as President of the U.S. parent company, Syngenta Corporation, to provide corporate leadership and external stakeholder engagement through 2027.

In his new role, Cecil will lead Syngenta’s North America Crop Protection business and customer partnerships across the region. Having worked closely with Hawkins and the North America Crop Protection leadership team, Cecil will build on the organization’s strong foundation of customer relationships, innovation, and operational excellence.

Cecil brings more than three decades of experience with Syngenta and its legacy companies to the role. Most recently, he served as Head of Marketing for U.S. Crop Protection, where he helped shape commercial strategy, portfolio priorities and customer engagement efforts across the business. In that role, he helped align marketing, portfolio and commercial priorities to support business performance and strengthen customer engagement across key crop segments.

For more information, visit Syngenta.com.