Weather's Impact on Agriculture and Financial Markets

Chris Alston graduated from Rutgers University, where he obtained a degree in meteorology. After graduating, he went on to participate in a post-baccalaureate research program at the Center for Multi-Scale Modeling of Atmospheric Process at Colorado State University. Chris also spent a short time at Impact Weather in Houston, TX to learn more about the private sector and operational forecasting. He then moved back to NJ to pursue a career in operational weather forecasting at Weather Works LLC. After spending nearly a year there, Chris landed a job at Mars Chocolate North America as a seasonal forecaster and commodity analyst. Supporting energy, edible oils, dairy, and coffee research, his passion for weather forecasting and willingness to continue to improve the weather forecasting methodology was evident. At Mars, Chris had several roles including lead meteorologist of Mars, responsible for all forecasting across the globe and all research initiatives, and senior analyst for grains and oilseeds. After nearly 7 years at Mars, Chris relocated to Chicago to work at Kraft Heinz in early 2018. In his current role, he is responsible for risk management and supply chain for edible oils. Beyond weather, his scope of expertise has grown to include price risk management, trading derivatives, price / yield modeling, and procurement. Chris also sat on the AMS Board for Private Sector Meteorologists from 2013-2017, where he chaired in 2016. Outside of his professional endeavors, he enjoys traveling across the world, spending time with friends and family, playing music, and mentoring students.