The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is seeking nominees for the Avocado Administrative Committee to fill five grower and four handler seats, one public member seat, and their alternates for terms beginning April 1, 2024. Nominations will be accepted Dec. 10, 2023, through Jan. 9, 2024. Voting will be conducted by mail Jan. 12 to Feb. 13, 2024.
Eligible nominees for grower seats and their alternates must be producers who are owners or are acting in the interest of the owners in the production of 10 or more bearing avocado trees. Eligible nominees for handler seats and their alternates must be handlers who place avocados into the stream of commerce. The public member and its alternate will be nominated by the committee and cannot have a financial interest in the production or marketing of Florida avocados. Appointed members will serve a one-year term.
For nomination information, contact the Committee Manager Anita Fernandez at (305) 247-0848 or by email at anita@floridaavocado.org, or USDA Marketing Specialist Abigail Maharaj at (863) 324-3375 or by email at Abigail.Maharaj@usda.gov.
The marketing order regulates grade, size, maturity, container, and pack standards for avocados grown in South Florida, and provides authority for production research and marketing. The committee administers the order locally and consists of ten members, including five grower members, four handlers and one public member, each with an alternate. More information about the committees is available on the Agricultural Marketing Service’s (AMS) Avocado Administrative Committee webpage or on the committee’s website at floridaavocado.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.