USDA Announces Members Of Beginning Farmers And Ranchers Committee

Posted by Christina Herrick|December 6, 2013

Krysta Harden, Department Of Agriculture deputy secretary, recently announced the appointment of 20 members to serve on the Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Beginning Farmers and Ranchers. The committee will provide guidance to the secretary of the Department Of Agriculture on expanding opportunities that will help beginning farmers and ranchers succeed in agriculture.

“The next generation of America’s farmers and ranchers are more diverse than ever before, have new market opportunities and continue to bring innovative ideas to the agriculture industry,” Harden said. “The secretary and I look forward to working closely with this advisory committee to continue supporting the promise of agriculture’s future. At the same time, we need passage of a new Food, Farm and Jobs Bill to invest in support and assistance for new farmers in the years to come.”

The following individuals have been asked to serve on the committee through September 2015:

Chris Beyerhelm, deputy administrator for Farm Loan Programs with the Farm Service Agency from Washington, DC
Deborah Cavanaugh-Grant, local food systems and small farms educator, University of Illinois Extension
Duncan Chembezi, professor and extension Economist from Alabama A&M University
Michelle Conner, owner/farm manager of Evandale Farm, LLC, and Beginning Farmer program coordinator from Pittsfield, NH
Marcus Creasy, cow/calf producer and immediate past-president of the Arkansas Cattlemen’s Association
Kole Fitzpatrick, regional technical assistance specialist with Intertribal Agriculture Council and operator of a small cow/calf ranch from Montana
Marty Gerencer, principal/owner of Morse Marketing Connections, LLC in Michigan
Timothy Gossman, farm loan officer/senior vice president, Root River State Bank from Minnesota
Christopher Holman, farmer/owner operator of Nami Moon Farms from Wisconsin
Adrienne Farrar Houël, President and CEO of Greater Bridgeport Community Enterprises, Inc., from Connecticut
Anna Jones-Crabtree, beginning farmer and owner/operator of Vilicus Farms in Montana
Yani Rose Keo, executive director/co-founder of the Alliance for Multicultural Community Services and president/founder of Cambodian Gardens Inc., from Texas
Gary Matteson, vice president of Young, Beginning, Small Farmer Programs for the Farm Credit Council from Washington, DC
Maria Miller, director of education, National Farmers Union in Colorado
Julie Neill, owner/operator of Neill & Sons Dairy in Missouri
Peter Scheffert, farm loan officer with Farmers State Bank of Hartland from Minnesota
Jose Antonio Serrano, General Manager of Alba Organics from California
Garry Stephenson, professor/coordinator of Small Farms Program from Oregon State University
Jennifer Elaine Taylor, coordinator of Small Farm Programs from Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University
Windy Mae Van Dam, dairy rancher/former operator of 2 B Dairy and director, Animal Health & Food Safety Laboratory Board from California

The committee will provide public and industry perspectives on USDA strategies, policies, and programs to broadly capture the many issues relevant to beginning farmers and ranchers including but not limited to opportunities in local food systems, generational transfers, training and credit.

For more information on the committee, click here.