WASHINGTON, October 26, 2015 – Paula Garcia of Mora, New Mexico has been appointed by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to serve as a member of the USDA Minority Farmers Advisory Committee (MFAC). Garcia is Executive Director of the New Mexico Acequia Association and serves as Chair of MFAC.
Committee members include:
- Alfonzo Abeyta, A Quarter Circle Lazy 5 Ranch, Antonito, Colo.
- Terry A. Cannon, The Piney Woods School, Braxton, Miss.
- Jennie Crittendon, Farm Services Agency, Jackson, Mich.
- Claud D. Evans, Okfuskee County Veterinary Clinic, Okemah, Okla.
- Paula Garcia (Chair), New Mexico Acequia Association, Mora, N.M.
- Dewayne L. Goldmon, Monsanto/National Black Growers Council, Pine Bluff, Ark.
- Edward C. DeLeon Guerrero, Saipan Farm and Garden, Saipan, M.P.
- William R. Miller, Jr., Ohio Farmers Union, Oxford, Ohio
- Igalious "Ike" Mills, Texas Small Farmers and Ranchers, Port Arthur, Texas
- Frederick Newhouse, Newhouse Land and Cattle, Houston, Texas
- Harvey Reed, Louisiana Association of Cooperatives, Gretna, La.
- Renard F. Turner, Virginia State University, Gordonsville, Va.
- Randall S. Ware (Vice Chair), Indian Country Agriculture and Resource Development Corporation, Fort Cobb, Ok
- Charles Linwood Whitaker, Whitaker Small Farm Group, Raleigh, N.C.
- John Zippert, Federation of Southern Cooperatives, Eutaw, Ala.
The committee provides farmer, rancher, industry and public perspectives on USDA strategies, policies and programs that impact minority farmers and ranchers. The two year appointment is through June 2017.
MFAC is the public advisory arm of the Socially Disadvantaged Farmer and Rancher Program administered by the USDA Office of Advocacy and Outreach (OAO). Established by the 2008 Farm Bill, OAO works across all USDA agencies to improve the viability and profitability of small and beginning farmers and ranchers; increase access to USDA programs for historically underserved communities; grow agricultural opportunities for farm workers; and close the professional achievement gap by expanding opportunities for diverse, talented young people working in the American agricultural sector.