Howard H. Leach (born June 19, 1930) is an American diplomat and businessman.

[3] A businessman and private investor, Leach began his entrepreneurial career as co-founder and president of various food-processing corporations from 1958 to 1971 in his hometown of Salinas, California.

He also invested in the Royal Packing Company, Merit Packaging Co., Larson Cooling Co., Cypress Farms Inc., Charles G. Watts Inc., Union Ice Company, Sterling Inc. in Wisconsin, Kestrel Dental Corp., and Sybron Corporation.

A 2005 report by the OIG stated that he demonstrated "a solid knowledge of issues across the spectrum of both policy and management priorities at the embassy",[4] nevertheless refusing to learn a word of French, which did not help to smooth the way between the Elysée Palace and the White House during the Chirac-Bush clash on the Iraq war in 2003 according to the French press.

[5] He was directly involved in managing a number of public interest associations, including the National Legal Research Center for the Public Interest in Washington and the Pacific Research Institute in San Francisco.