Wendell J Lundberg

Honorary Degrees
 
 

Arthur J. LudwickWendell J. Lundberg

Business Leader/Community Advocate

California State University, Chico

Wendell J. Lundberg is a business leader, sustainable agriculture pioneer, community supporter and respected advocate for California State University, Chico and higher education.

Mr. Lundberg earned his bachelor's degree in industrial arts and a teaching credential from CSU Chico in 1953. Few people are better known or more widely respected in the rice industry than Wendell Lundberg. He and his three brothers pioneered organic rice production in the 1960s, becoming the first farmers in America to successfully grow organic rice. Lundberg Family Farms has become the top grower and marketer of rice products in the natural channel, with products sold throughout the United States and Canada.

He and his brothers established a culture of environmental stewardship, integrity, respect and continuous improvement that has led to a number of awards including California Leader in Agriculture Innovation by Grow-California; California Clean Technology Game Changer by Grow-California; 2009 Organic Leadership Award for Achievement in Growing Organic Agriculture; 2011 Sustainability Award by Nutrition Business Journal; Responsible Packaging Award by the Responsible Packaging Project; and 2007 California Workplace of the Year by the Employer Resource Institute.

For the past 60 years, Mr. Lundberg has been committed to CSU Chico and its programs, serving on the advisory boards of the university, College of Agriculture and the education department. He is the recipient of the 1996 CSU Chico College of Agriculture Distinguished Alumnus Award. His commitment to service extends beyond the university and into the surrounding community. He has served as a director of the Butte County Rice Growers Association; member of the California Rice Industry Committee; director of North State Crime Stoppers; president of the Chico Chapter Experimental Aircraft Association; and elder of Chico Evangelical Free Church. He was honored by the Golden Empire Council of the Boy Scouts of America for outstanding achievement in 2004.

In recognition of his professional accomplishments, the Board of Trustees of the California State University and California State University, Chico are proud to confer upon Wendell J. Lundberg the honorary degree of Doctor of Science.