W O R L D
T O
C H A N G E
T H E
WRITTEN BY: LAURA GUTSCHKE
PHOTOS BY: ARTIE LIMMER & COURTESY OF MIKE GILBERT
MIKE GILBERT
T H E
F A C E
O F
C O T T O N
Dr. Michael Gilbert In
His Own Words
Advice to CASNR students when
he visits as a graduate advisor:
Dr. Michael L. Gilbert:
Accomplished Plant
Breeder and Seed
Business Manager
In eight years, a newcomer to the
cottonseed business has become a
heavyweight, accounting for 25 percent of
all U.S. cotton planted in 2005 to be the
second largest cottonseed company in the
country. In addition, it’s No. 1 in Greece,
Spain and Turkey and No. 2 in Brazil.
“That’s like a Cinderella story,” said
Dr. Dick Auld, professor and chair of the
Plant and Soil Department in the College of
Agriculture Sciences and Natural Resources.
Dr. Michael L. Gilbert (BS, Agricultural
Economics, 1980 and Ph.D, Agronomy,
1989) has been the leader of up-and-coming
FiberMax® brand from its beginning. He is
general manager of Lubbock-based FiberMax®
Cottonseed Business and president of Bayer
Cotton Seed International. He also is vice
president in the cottonseed division’s parent
company Bayer CropScience, whose global
headquarters are in Monheim, Germany.
(To learn more about FiberMax®,
see www.certifiedfibermax.com/.)
“Mike has proven himself to be one of
the most accomplished plant breeders, and
he’s also an accomplished seed business
manager,” said Dr. Auld.
As a plant scientist, Dr. Gilbert is credited
both individually and as part of a team for
the development of several new hybrids and
varieties released to commercial markets.
His business acumen is evident in his
steady rise up the career ladder of Cargill,
his first employer. He started as a research
lab assistant and progressed to manager of
“I learned a lesson from professors
at Texas Tech and others in my life that
successful people are not the ones who are
there for their own gain and glory, but are
there to help others. I saw professors who
had that attitude and approach, and I try to
incorporate it in my work today,” said
Dr. Gilbert.
virtually every global Cargill seed product in
the mid-1990s.
When AgrEvo partnered with Cotton Seed
International of Australia to enter the U.S.
cottonseed business in 1998, Dr. Gilbert’s
training and experience as both a scientist and
an executive well suited him for the challenge
of launching FiberMax®. Bayer CropScience
later acquired the cottonseed division.
Dr. Gilbert credits the success of
FiberMax® to business practices usually
found in small entrepreneurial startups.
“We were part of a huge corporation, but
because we were building a business from
scratch, we were like a small business,” said
Dr. Gilbert. “It took hard work, hiring good
people and establishing good relationships
with our partners—universities, growers,
gin operators. We’ve just found that if we
can be a good partner and create a win-win
situation, it pays off for all of us.”
Well-Used Passport
Dr. Gilbert’s day-to-day responsibilities
include supervising all global FiberMax®
cotton activities. He also manages biotech
research and breeding activities related to
the cottonseed business and oversees a staff
of about 150 people, of whom 40 percent
live overseas.
Regular travels in country and overseas are
common, but nothing new in his almost 30year career. He has filled up many passports
in working with scientists, growers and other
colleagues on all seven continents.
“I’ve seen the world, and I’ve got friends all
over the world. So, when a tsunami hits in the
Pacific, I’m on the phone trying to check on
them,” said Dr. Gilbert.
He started at Cargill in 1976 as a
part-time student assistance in the crop
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Highlights of his career:
“If you develop a new hybrid or variety
that helps producers, there’s a sense of
accomplishment that is hard to describe,”
said Dr. Gilbert.
“When you have a hand in helping
someone, especially someone who goes
on to success in their own right, these are
especially good highlights,” said Dr. Gilbert.
Favorite places to travel:
“India, is a country that has made a lot
strides, but it’s a country with a great many
needs. Our company helped to improve
varieties and yields to increase production.
It’s tough to travel to reach some of
the rural areas, but you feel a sense of
accomplishment when you go and work
with people and see the changes,” said
Dr. Gilbert.
Industry challenges ahead:
“There are about six billion people in the
world, and by 2050 experts predict there
to be nine billion. To take care of that great
increase in people, we in agriculture will
have to double food and fiber production
on the same amount of land—or even less.
There will come a day when the consumer
appreciates the science behind agriculture,”
said Dr. Gilbert.
“We’ve got to double the food supplies.
No. 1, it’s got to be safe. It also has to be
a higher quantity and a better quality,” said
Dr. Gilbert.
science research department while he was
studying at Texas Tech. He says he was
fortunate to complement his classroom
studies with practical experience under the
training of commercial plant scientists and
breeders, especially at the time when plant
biotechnology was coming of age.
“Back then you had to take at least one
class in each of the disciplines in the College
of Agriculture, and I really enjoyed every one
of them. I had a difficult time narrowing
down my major. I ended up in Agricultural
Economics with an emphasis on Finance
because I knew less about that specific topic
than the others. It was what I needed most,”
said Dr. Gilbert.
Following graduation, Dr. Gilbert continued
with Cargill, who at one point transferred him
to a facility in his hometown of Plainview.
He took the opportunity to earn his master’s
degree in agriculture at nearby West Texas
Fact File
Awards:
• 2004, College of Agricultural
Sciences and Natural Resources
Distinguished Alumni Award
• 2005, College of Agricultural
Sciences and Natural Resources
Gerald W. Thomas Outstanding
Agriculturist Award
Family:
• Dr. Gilbert credits his wife,
Donna, for managing a wonderful
home life for their family while
he traveled extensively. Their two
children—Jennifer and Jeremy—are
now married.
• Both of their children are Texas Tech
graduates. Jennifer graduated with
her Bachelor of Science in Agricultural
Communications in 2002, and Jeremy
who graduated with his Bachelor of
Business Administration in Finance
in 2005.
A&M in Canyon in 1986. His second degree
at Texas Tech allowed him to further advance
his science training.
“
T H E EX P ERI E NC ES I N
BOT H A B USI N ESS
BAC KG RO U ND
AND A SCI E NC E
BAC KG ROU ND HAV E
A LLOW ED ME TO
W ORK EF F E CTIV E LY I N
”
ALL ARE AS
“I started at the very bottom at Cargill in
1976, and 15 years later I was head of that
division that I started in,” said Dr. Gilbert.
In 1995 he transferred to corporate
headquarters in Minnesota to provide
(l to r) Jeremy Gilbert, Jennifer Vitz, Donna
Gilbert, Mike Gilbert, Etta Gilbert, Jim Gilbert
and Mary Bitner
Professional Affiliations:
• Dr. Gilbert currently serves on the
College of Agricultural Sciences and
Natural Resources Advisory Board and
the Plant Science Advisory Board at
Texas Tech.
• He has served on the Advisory
Committee for the USDA Crop
Germplasm Committee in
Washington, D.C. and the School
of Agriculture at West Texas A&M.
He is a member of the American
Society of Agronomy, Crop Science
Society of America, Texas Seed Trade
Association, American Seed Trade
Association and Southern Seed
Association. He has also served as the
past chairman of the board for the
Sorghum Improvement Committee of
North America.
Mike Gilbert with his parents:
Jim and Etta Gilbert
Jeremy Gilbert, Donna Gilbert,
Jennifer Vitz and Mike Gibert
Free Time:
• Dr. Gilbert is a long-time Bible teacher
of the senior adult class at Temple
Baptist Church. His hobbies include
fishing, golf as well as raising a few
cattle and some cotton in Hale County.
Mike and his son Jeremy
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What Others Say
about Dr. Gilbert
“He typifies what we’re proud of here at
Texas Tech. He has common sense, and
he’s a true gentleman full of integrity,”
said Dr. Auld, CASNR professor and chair
of the Plant and Soil Department. “This
man’s word is his bond.”
leadership and management over several crop
improvement initiatives and global crop business units,
including grain sorghum, hybrid rice, canola, hybrid
cotton, sunflower and millet. A flurry of mergers in the
seed industry led to Dr. Gilbert being tapped as the
FiberMax® executive leader in 1998.
“The experiences in both a business background and a
science background have allowed me to work effectively
in all areas. I can speak with the plant breeders, and I
can likewise talk with the CFO (chief financial officer),”
said Dr. Gilbert.
Good Partner
When FiberMax® cottonseed business was being
launched, Dr. Gilbert pushed to have it headquartered in
Lubbock. The company works with several universities,
but Texas Tech has especially benefited from the close
proximity of an industry leader. The university partners
with Bayer CropScience on emerging plant technologies
research, and Bayer CropScience employees who want to
attend graduate school do so at the university—usually
with financial assistance from their employer and with
full support from Dr. Gilbert.
“
T H E SE C RE T TO BEI N G A
SUCC ESSF UL LE AD ER I S TO
BE A S UCC ESSF UL SE RVANT
”
In addition, in May 2005 the creation of the $500,000
Bayer CropScience Endowed Professorship was
announced, a shared initiative between the company and
Texas Tech regents. The professorship allows CASNR to
recruit a nationally recognized plant scientist and scholar
to its faculty.
Being a good partner is part of Dr. Gilbert’s
management philosophy to support those in his circle
of influence to be as successful as they can be. He said
he feels good when he has had a hand in helping others
make achievements.
“I enjoy mentoring. I enjoy being a leader who helps
the rest of the team be successful,” said Dr. Gilbert. “The
secret to being a successful leader is to be a successful
servant. I try to do my best to solve other people’s
problems, to do what I can to make them successful.”
Mike and Donna Gilbert
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