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    Pennsylvania Sustainable Agriculture Board

    Establishment

    With the establishment of the Sustainable Agriculture Act of December 12, 1994, the Board of Sustainable Agriculture was created. The Board of Sustainable Agriculture is charged with the review of grant applications in accordance with the general considerations and eligibility criteria set forth the Act.
     

    Composition

    The board is composed of the chairman and minority chairman of the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee of the Senate or their designees and the chairman and the minority chairman of the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives or their designees.

    In addition, the board will include the following members appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture:

    1. The Secretary of Agriculture or his designee who shall serve as chairman. 
    2. One Commonwealth lender with agricultural experience. 
    3. One representative from the Penn State Cooperative Extension Service. 
    4. One Commonwealth resident from an organization that conducts agriculture research and promotes sustainable agriculture. 
    5. One Commonwealth resident from an organic crop certification organization. 
    6. Two Commonwealth resident farmers who use sustainable agriculture methods. 
    7. One representative from the agribusiness industry. 
    8. One agronomist. 
    9. Three Commonwealth residents from Statewide agricultural associations representing farmers.
       

    Current Board

    1. Chair............................................  Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding (PA Department of Agriculture)
    2. Commonwealth Lender.................  VACANT 
    3. Penn State Extension..................... Sjoerd Duiker (Penn State Extension)
    4. Sustainable Agriculture Research... Lisa Blazure (Stroud Water Research Center)
    5. Organic Certifier............................. VACANT
    6. Sustainable Farmer 1...................... Russ Wilson (Wilson Land Cattle CO.)
    7. Sustainable Farmer 2...................... William Thiele (Thiele Dairy Farm)
    8. Agribusiness................................... Nick Hepfl (HRG)
    9. Agronomist..................................... Tyson Myers (USDA NRCS)
    10. State Ag Association 1..................... Sara Bay Nawa (PA Sustainable Agriculture)
    11. State Ag Association 2..................... Rita Resick (PA Vegetable Growers Association)
    12. State Ag Association 3..................... Janae Klingler (Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative)
    13. Senate Chairman (majority)….......... Senator Elder A. Vogel Jr. 
    14. Senate Chairman (minority)….......... Senator Judith L. Schwank
    15. House Chairman (majority)…........... Representative Eddie Day Pashinski 
    16. House Chairman (minority)…........... Representative Dan Moul