The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is seeking nominees for the Cherry Industry Administrative Board to fill seats for three handler members and alternates along with a public member and alternate whose terms of office will begin July 1, 2024.
Nominations for member seats will be accepted Jan. 30- Feb. 13, 2024. Nominations for alternate seats will be accepted Feb. 28- March 12, 2024. Public member nominations will be accepted Jan. 30- March 1, 2023.
Nominees for handler seats must be a handler, or an officer or employee of a handler who owns, leases, or operates a cherry processing facility in the district for which they are nominated. Members and alternates serve three-year staggered terms of office and are limited to two consecutive terms.
For nomination information, contact the Executive Director Heather Weber at (517) 669-1070 or by email at hweber@cherryboard.org or USDA Marketing Specialist Steven Kauffman at (863) 324-3375 or by email at Steven.Kauffman@USDA.gov.
The board administers the marketing order for tart cherries grown in Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Utah, and Wisconsin. The number of board members may vary according to production levels of the districts. More information about the board is available on the Agricultural Marketing Service’s (AMS) 930 Tart Cherries webpage or on the board’s website at https://www.cherryboard.org.
Authorized by the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, marketing orders are industry-driven programs that help producers and handlers achieve marketing success by leveraging their own funds to design and execute programs that they would not be able to do individually. AMS provides oversight to fruit, vegetable and specialty crops marketing orders and agreements to help ensure fiscal accountability and program integrity.
AMS policy is that diversity of the boards, councils and committees it oversees should reflect the diversity of their industries in terms of the experience of members, methods of production and distribution, marketing strategies, and other distinguishing factors, including but not limited to individuals from historically underserved communities, that will bring different perspectives and ideas to the table. Throughout the full nomination process, the industry must conduct extensive outreach, paying particular attention to reaching underserved communities, and consider the diversity of the population served and the knowledge, skills, and abilities of the members to serve a diverse population.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender