Securing a Maximum Return on Investment

Let’s face it, bad advice is a dime a dozen, but good advice—especially when it comes from an expert—is invaluable. When someone with knowledge and experience helps guide your business or the industry, it can really make a difference.

Domestically and globally, agriculture is an industry with a wide variety of members and commodities competing for consumer attention in a rapidly growing and changing marketplace. Within the agricultural sector, the produce industry is one of the most vulnerable because of the perishable nature of its products.

As the industry changes, the government must change along with it to ensure that policies and services remain relevant to the needs of today’s produce industry and the consumers it serves. This, combined with the growing importance of providing more effective safety measures for our nation’s food supply, makes it critical to have knowledgeable, experienced people advising the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Enter the Fruit and Vegetable Industry Advisory Committee, administered by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS). Originally chartered in 2001, the committee gives advice to the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and develops recommendations on issues that affect the American produce industry.

The 25-member group covers the full spectrum of the fruit and vegetable industry including shippers, farmers, processors, retailers, organic growers, associations, and others in the produce industry chain. They advise the Secretary of Agriculture on many key industry issues like food safety standards, farm bill funding, produce grade standards, labor, specialty crops, Good Agricultural Practices audits, the national school lunch program, commodity purchasing, the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA) and regulations, consumer produce guidelines, and more. The advisory committee regularly receives updates from the USDA and industry experts on the issues. Once final recommendations are compiled, they are presented to both the USDA and the Secretary of Agriculture for consideration.

The diversity of the group, which meets twice a year, maximizes its benefits.  With many distinctive points of view and a wealth of knowledge, the advisory committee offers a unique level of insight into the needs and interests of the produce industry and consumers.

Several key recommendations were made during the advisory committee’s first 10 years. Members suggested appropriate fee increases for fruit and vegetable inspections; proposed ways PACA officials could reorganize to save money and increase efficiencies—which would ultimately benefit the industry; and updated regulations related to the PACA trust’s payment agreements. Most recently, the committee provided recommendations to the Secretary relating to a resolution on immigration reform.

Last year, USDA rechartered the advisory committee for another two-year term. Outreach efforts were expanded, putting a call out for representatives from all parts of the industry. The goal is to ensure the makeup of the committee represents the diverse interests of both the industry and consumers. The additional outreach made a difference; the USDA received over 1,200 inquiries from people interested in nominating themselves or others in the industry for the committee, which resulted in more than 600 nominations.