The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) seeks nominations of qualified watermelon producers, handlers, importers and one public member for nine seats on the National Watermelon Promotion Board. The Secretary of Agriculture will appoint individuals to succeed members whose terms of office expire on Dec. 31, 2023. All appointed members will serve three-year terms.
Nominees are needed to fill two producer seats and two handler seats for District 1, which represents the State of Florida. Nominees are also needed to fill four importer seats and one public member seat.
The board will hold teleconference calls for District 1, for producers and handlers to select their representatives, and representatives for importer seats as well. For more information about the teleconference meetings and to obtain nomination information, contact the National Watermelon Promotion Board’s Director of Operations, Rebekah Dossett, or Industry Affairs Manager Andrea Smith at (407) 657-0261. Public members who are interested in serving on the board should contact them as well.
The board is comprised of 30 industry members including 10 producers, 10 handlers, nine importers, and one public member. More information about the board is available on the National Watermelon Promotion Board webpage on the AMS website or on the board’s website, www.watermelon.org. For additional information, contact USDA Marketing Specialist Marlene Betts at Marlene.Betts@usda.gov or by phone at (202) 720-5057.
Since 1966, Congress has authorized industry-funded research and promotion boards to provide a framework for agricultural industries to pool resources and combine efforts to develop new markets, strengthen existing markets and conduct important research and promotion activities. The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) provides oversight to 22 boards.