Iowa State University administrators have rejected a strong candidate for directorship of their Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture.

Ricardo Salvador was an unofficial favorite of the advisory board in charge of the appointment due to his high profile in the sustainable agriculture industry and previous professorial experience with Iowa State.

Salvador openly supports the claim that grass-fed livestock is more sustainable than corn-fed. This view opposes the current status quo in Iowa's agricultural practices.

The rejection has come under scrutiny by critics of the administration, who imply it is bending to the pressures of big agriculture.

Read more: Field of Discord: At public colleges' sustainability centers, farming groups sow influence (The Chronicle)