Ag Council to Recognize Dane Lance with
California Cultivator Award
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Ag Council will celebrate Dane Lance as the 2026 recipient of the California Cultivator Award on March 12 during the association’s 107th Annual Meeting in Napa. The award is a recognition given to a person who has gone above and beyond to serve the agricultural sector.
Dane Lance served as Sunsweet’s president & CEO from October 2013 to March 2024 following 24 years of increasing responsibility at Sunsweet ranging from director of international marketing, vice president of global sales and marketing, and chief operating officer. Sunsweet is a Global 300 food manufacturer, processing and marketing roughly 50,000 tons of prunes and bottling over 20 million cases of beverages annually.
“I’ve known Dane for more than 20 years. During his tenure as Sunsweet’s president & CEO, the co-op delivered record setting grower returns to their members. Dane was recognized as the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives’ Co-op Manager of the Year in 2018 for his industry leadership and accomplishments as Sunsweet’s CEO. Given his achievements, I believe Dane is a very deserving recipient of this year’s California Cultivator Award,” said President & CEO of the California Canning Peach Association Rich Hudgins, who is also an Ag Council board member.
Dane’s responsibilities at Sunsweet included strategy development, global supply projection and management, consumer research, product line management, as well as the design and oversight of advertising and promotional campaigns in more than 20 countries.
As background, the California Cultivator Award recognizes and honors a person who clearly has made significant contributions to agriculture or who has demonstrated leadership and personal commitment beyond the normal expectations of a person serving the farmer-owned business sector.