Meet Our CEO

Since 2000 Milo Hamilton has been CEO of Firstgrain, an advisory service for the world rice industry. From 1981-2000, at Mars Incorporated, he ran one of the largest rice-buying teams for retail food products in the world. He has degrees from Stanford University (BA English) and in agricultural economics from the University of Missouri (BS) and Minnesota (MS).

Mr. Hamilton has been involved, in one way or another in the rice markets for 42 years. He has been instrumental in the birth and development of the CME Group’s rice futures contract in Chicago. He has served on the boards of many rice associations, advises customers throughout the global rice marketing chain, and is senior editor of the weekly publication, the Firstgrain Rice Market Strategist. He wrote a book in 2014 on the world rice industry, When Rice Shakes the World. It explains how the world rice market really operates and where it may be headed.

As a global authority on rice, world wire services regularly quote his ideas. Mr. Hamilton has written many articles for various agricultural publications. His expert viewpoints have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, CNN, Reuters, Dow Jones, Bloomberg, DTN, the Mid America Farmer/Grower and The Progressive Farmer news services.

Since June 2020, Milo has conducted 12 talks for the following 10 global rice groups:
1. Whatsapp Rice Market group: June 2020 by zoom (67 attendees, largely Asian, live online)
2. Whatsapp Rice Market group: September 30, 2020, by zoom (150 attendees, largely Asian, live online)
3. Rice Market and Technology Virtual and Live Conference (Latin America) 22 October 2020
4. CMEGroup World Rice meeting in London on 13 Jan 2021 live via WebEx.
5. Rice Outlook Presentation to the research team at Cobank 14 December 2020 via live zoom.
6. The 24th Annual Cotton and Rice Conference Feb 2021 via recorded zoom
7. Mid-South Farm and Gin Show Rice Outlook Asia and Americas, 27 February 2021
8. CMEGroup World Rice meeting in London on 14 Apr 2021.
9. International Grain Council Conference, Rice Workshop on the 9th of June 2021, London.
10. USARice Outlook, Fragrant Rice: Opportunity or Risk to the US Rice Industry? New Orleans, 6 December 2021.
11. Outlook for Price & Input Cost of Rice, 25th Annual National Conservation Systems Cotton & Rice Conference, Jonesboro, 1 February 2022.
12. Mid-South Farm and Gin Show, Rice Marketing Educational Seminar: Rice Land and the Rice Markets, 26 February 2022.

Milo lives in Austin, Texas having moved there after leaving Uncle Ben’s. He has three children who live near him with his seven grandchildren. Milo is involved in charity work within the community and at his church. The apple of his eye currently is a young Golden Doodle named Lilly.