Erica Kuhlmann

Erica is Managing Director and Sector Head of the Food & Consumer Group for BMO Capital Markets. She is responsible for managing five industry teams and their client coverage activities. She has served in a variety of positions and has worked with companies in a wide range of industry segments across the food chain, including food manufacturers, meat processors, wineries, commodity companies, and input suppliers and distributors. Erica joined the BMO Capital Markets Food & Consumer Group in 1985.

Erica has an MBA in Finance and Business Policy from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business and a Bachelor of Arts from Northwestern University.

William A. Bishop

Bill is the Managing Director of the San Francisco office of the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group. He established the Group's West Coast office in 1998. Since then, the office has experienced significant growth in its specialty areas of wine, fresh fruits and vegetables, seafood, and other food and commodities. Prior to joining BMO Capital Markets, Bill spent nearly 25 years in domestic and international banking, focusing on the food and commodity sectors. He held senior positions at both Credit Agricole and Rabobank International.

Bill has a Bachelor of Science in economics from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. He completed the Executive Development Management Program at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University; the Managing Managers Program from the Haas Graduate School of Business at UC- Berkeley; Executive Mergers and Acquisitions Program at The John Anderson Graduate School of Management at UCLA; participated in management studies at The City University Business School of London; the OIV Wine Marketing Program; and the Wine Executive Program at UC Davis. He has also participated in numerous industry-specific executive seminars and currently serves as a member of the Advisory Board of Directors of a prominent Napa Valley Winery.

Carl A. Blackham

Carl is a Managing Director in the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group, where he oversees client relationships within the meat protein sector. Carl also supports the relationship managers in marketing a full range of corporate and investment banking services to meat processing and related companies. He serves as the Bank's representative to key industry trade associations. Prior to joining BMO Capital Markets, Carl was a Vice President with Bank of America where he held corporate banking assignments in Los Angeles, Miami, and Atlanta. While at Bank of America, he maintained relationships with clients in the food and commodity sectors, as well as the textiles and electric utilities industry. Carl joined BMO Capital Markets in 1991.

Carl has an MBA from Brigham Young University and a Bachelor of Arts in finance from Utah State University.

Karen Knudsen

Karen is a Managing Director in the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group. Karen works with a team of professionals who provide financial services to North American food processing companies including dairy, bakery, snack, juice, and fruit and vegetable processors. Prior to joining BMO Capital Markets, Karen worked at Bank of America and Peterson & Co. Consulting. Karen joined BMO Capital Markets in 1996.

Karen has an MBA in Finance and Marketing from Indiana University and a Bachelor of Administration in Finance from Baylor University.

Joe Barbour

Joe is a Managing Director in the BMO Capital Markets Food Group, responsible for executing a full range of investment banking and advisory services for a wide variety of clients in the Agribusiness sector. Prior to joining BMO, Joe was a Director and an original member of LaSalle Bank’s Merger & Acquisition Advisory group where he advised corporate and private equity clients on M&A transactions. His sector experience includes food, building products, business services, consumer products, energy, metals, specialty printing and general manufacturing. Prior to LaSalle, Joe held investment banking roles with PNC Capital Markets, Inc. and with McVean Trading and Investments, a managed commodities fund specializing in the agricultural and meat complexes.

Joe earned an MBA from Southern Methodist University in Dallas and has a Bachelor of Science in economics.

Michael H. Johns

Michael is a Director in the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group, specializing in the retail and wholesale distribution sector. He is based in the Chicago office. Prior to joining BMO Capital Markets, he held similar positions with Merrill Lynch and Credit Agricole Indosuez. He joined BMO Capital Markets in 1998.

Michael has a Bachelor of Science in finance from University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

Philip Langheim

Phil is a Director in the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group. His responsibilities include relationship management for clients involved in meat and poultry processing and related companies. He is also responsible for marketing and new business development within this same sector. Prior to joining BMO Capital Markets, Phil spent 14 years in relationship management and business development positions with various international banks in Chicago and San Francisco. There he managed and developed large corporate relationships on a global basis. Phil began his career with Farm Credit Services, serving as the branch manager for Farm Credit in Northern Illinois where he managed a portfolio of livestock and grain producers. He joined BMO Capital Markets in 2000.

Phil has a Bachelor of Science in agribusiness from Illinois State University.

Scott Place

Scott Place is a Director in the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group, specializing in the retail and wholesale distribution segment. He has both client relationship and portfolio management responsibilities within the Group. Scott has spent most of his twenty-plus-year career in the corporate banking and finance fields. He joined BMO Capital Markets in 1998.

Scott has an MBA from the Lake Forest Graduate School of Management and a Bachelor of Science from the University of California, Riverside.

Jennifer A. Wendrow

Jennifer is a Director in the BMO Capital Markets Food Group. She is responsible for delivering corporate and investment banking solutions to a diverse portfolio of customers across the Inputs and Commodities sectors of the agricultural industry, and maintains sector specialization in the fertilizer, agricultural chemical, seed and agricultural distribution segments. Jennifer joined BMO Capital Markets in August 2000, and has built her career in banking through experience obtained within the corporate banking divisions of Credit Agricole Indosuez, Sumitomo Bank and American National Bank.

Jennifer earned an MBA from the University of Chicago's Graduate School of Business and a Business Administration degree from Augustana College.

John Carley

John is a Vice President in the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group. As a relationship manager, he oversees lending relationships involving clients in the beef and pork processing industries. He is responsible for coordinating the marketing of the Bank's full range of corporate and investment banking services to his clients and prospects. He serves as the Bank's liaison to several key industry trade associations. Prior to joining BMO Capital Markets, John was a Vice President with Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan (LTCB) in Chicago and maintained and developed banking relationships with Fortune 1000 companies in the upper Midwest. Previously he spent 9 years with Banque Nationale de Paris' Chicago office (BNP), progressing through various assignments in accounting, credit & loan administration, credit analysis, treasury and marketing. While at BNP, he worked on the bank's multinational relationships in the food and commodity sectors, as well as with companies in the auto, electric utilities, pulp and paper industries. John joined BMO Capital Markets in 1998.

John has a Bachelor of Science in finance from Southern Illinois.

Michael Fordney

Mike is a Vice President in the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group, providing investment and commercial banking advisory for retail and wholesale grocery clients. Prior to joining BMO Capital Markets in 2002, he was with U.S. Bank for over 20 years working with commercial and industrial clients. Mike also worked with the First National Bank of Chicago in the Energy Industries Division, and with United California Bank.

Mike holds an MBA from the University of Chicago and a BBA from the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire.

Leili Ghazi

Leili is a Vice President in the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group. She manages fresh fruits and vegetables, nuts and seafood portfolios. She spent five years working in the BMO Capital Markets Mexico office as Vice President for Investment and Corporate Banking, where she developed the Bank's corporate portfolio and managed relationships with Mexican government and private sector entities, as well as multinational corporations established in Mexico. Leili joined BMO Capital Markets in 1990 and completed the bank's Associate Development Program.

Leili has both a Masters of International Studies and an MBA from The Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania as well as a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California at Berkeley.

Corey Noland

Corey is a Vice President and Relationship Manager in the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group. He is responsible for relationship and business development for agricultural related businesses located across the United States, with customer relationships concentrated in the Agricultural Chemical, Rendering and Animal Health industries. He joined BMO Capital Markets in 1999.

Corey received a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Economics from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

Robert H. Wolohan

Bob is a Vice President and Senior Relationship Manager in the BMO Capital Markets Food & Beverage Group, specializing in the inputs and commodities sector. He manages a portfolio of clients operating in the commodity processing/merchandising and lawn and garden segments. Bob is also responsible for coordinating sales and marketing activities in the segments he serves. Before joining BMO Capital Markets, he spent nine years with The First National Bank of Chicago in various positions within large corporate banking. Bob joined BMO Capital Markets in 1998.

Bob has a Bachelor of Science degree in finance from the University of Dayton.