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For more information, contact:
Carolina Evangelo
559.738.0246
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Citrus Research Board Names Marcy L. Martin as President
VISALIA, CALIF. – September 10, 2019 – Marcy L. Martin was named today as the new president of the Citrus Research Board (CRB). The appointment was announced by CRB Chairman Dan Dreyer, who said that Martin was selected after a nearly year-long national search for the very best candidate to lead the organization.
Martin joins the CRB with more than 25 years of experience with California commodity organizations. She most recently served for 14 years as director of trade for the California Fresh Fruit Association (CFFA), where she advocated on behalf of the state’s fresh grape, blueberry, pomegranate and deciduous tree fruit production in governmental, legislative and policy issues. Prior to that, she had been controller of the California Apple Commission for ten years.
In 2015, then U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack appointed Martin to the Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee (ATAC) for Trade in Fruits and Vegetables. In his announcement, Vilsack said of those who were appointed, “They are an invaluable asset as we work to enact trade agreements and trade policies that deliver the greatest economic benefit for U.S. agriculture and for our nation as a whole.”
“California’s citrus growers, packers and shippers have demonstrated through their keen understanding that an industry must invest in sound research to meet the challenges of a constantly evolving environment, marketplace and consumer,” said Martin. “The Citrus Research Board, industry, staff and research community have stepped up to take on looming challenges, specifically huanglongbing, that have devastated citrus production within other regions, both domestically and globally. This is an area I am passionate about, and I look forward to bringing my experience in the technical and regulatory arena to the team.”
Dreyer said, “The Board is pleased to have Marcy Martin taking the helm of CRB. Her extensive experience with commodity organizations and local, state and federal regulatory agencies will be a key ingredient to the success of CRB projects and priorities. She comes to the CRB with extensive knowledge of fresh tree fruit production and the agricultural use of plant protection products. Our Board members were impressed by her dedication to and passion for agriculture.”
“The California citrus industry is an important economic contributor and an icon of the Golden State,” Martin said. “Citrus is part of our American and Californian agricultural footprint – a commodity we need to preserve and foster. I’m honored to be part of this continuing tradition.”
Martin officially will join the CRB on October 1 and will be based out of the CRB headquarters in Visalia, California. She will take the reins from Interim President Franco Bernardi.
“We cannot thank Franco enough for his dedicated service to the CRB throughout the past year,” said Dreyer. “He did an excellent job in guiding the organization through a challenging period, and the Board has been truly grateful for his leadership.”
About the Citrus Research Board
The CRB administers the California Citrus Research Program, the grower-funded and grower-directed program established in 1968 enabling the State’s citrus producers to sponsor and support needed research. More information about the Citrus Research Board may be found at www.citrusresearch.org.
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Please save the date of October 4, 2019 for The Lindcove Citrus Gala.
The Lindcove Citrus Gala is a special fundraising event for anyone who feels connected to Lindcove, citrus research and the citrus industry and who wants to generously contribute to the Sweetening the Future of Citrus at Lindcove enhancements.
The goal of this event is to raise money to enhance the support that LREC provides to the citrus industry through facility improvements and educational program developments. LREC is an advocate for the industry every step of the way, providing research and information for protection, growth and health of citrus.
The event will include a cocktail hour, dinner, guest speakers and more.
REGISTRATION NOW CLOSED
The Citrus Research Board (CRB) welcomes all industry personnel to participate in the upcoming Citrus Growers Educational Seminar Series, co-produced by the University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE). Three different meeting dates and locations will give growers from different regions the opportunity to attend and receive regional updates from the industry. The CRB will host a luncheon at all three locations to celebrate the organization’s 50th anniversary.
Continuing Education Units Available:
Continuing Education (CE) Units have been applied for through the California
Department of Pesticide Regulation for license categories
PCA, QAL, QAC and Private Applicators.
Certified Crop Adviser (CCA) Units have also been applied for and are pending approval.
April 24-25, 2019 | Santa Barbara, California
The 40th Annual Citrus Post-harvest Pest Control Conference held on April 24-25 in Santa Barbara, California brought together over 70 researchers, industry personnel and service company representatives to learn about the latest updates in post-harvest disease control, export requirements and food safety. Technical presentations were given during the first day and a half of the conference and several CRB-funded researchers including Spencer Walse, Ph.D., Sandipa Gautam, Ph.D., Chang-Lin Xiao, Ph.D. and Jim Adaskaveg, Ph.D. were invited to present their latest work. On the afternoon of April 25, a citrus industry food safety forum, led by Mr. Ted Batkin, was held to allow conference attendees the opportunity to openly discuss food safety issues important to the industry including molecular detection technologies, consistent auditing processes and standardized industry practices.
For more information, contact:
Carolina Evangelo
559.738.0246
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Citrus Research Board and UC create a $1 million endowment for citrus research
VISALIA, CALIF. – October 22, 2018 – The Citrus Research Board and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources have established a $1 million endowment to fund the Presidential Researcher for Sustainable Citrus Clonal Protection at the UC Lindcove Research and Extension Center. The endowed researcher will provide a UC Cooperative Extension scientist a dedicated source of funds to support scholarly activities focused on the long-term sustainability of the citrus industry.
“I wish to thank the Citrus Research Board for establishing the Presidential Researcher for Sustainable Citrus Clonal Protection at LREC endowment,” said UC ANR vice president Glenda Humiston. “This gift, coupled with the $500,000 match from the UC Office of the President, will help to ensure the long-term success of exemplary research focused on the California citrus industry.”
UC President Janet Napolitano provided half the funds for the endowed researcher; the CRB donated the other half.
“We are gratified that President Napolitano has selected the CRB for this prestigious match program,” said CRB Chairman Dan Dreyer. “It will be invaluable in helping us to pursue critical research that will yield beneficial findings to support the sustainability of the California citrus industry.”
The new endowment supports the UC Citrus Clonal Protection Program, which distributes pathogen-tested, true-to-type citrus budwood to nurseries, farmers and the public to propagate citrus trees for commercial and personal use. The CCPP maintains blocks of trees that serve as the primary source of budwood for all important fruit and rootstock varieties for California’s citrus industry and researchers.
The CCPP is a cooperative program between UC ANR, CRB, the California Citrus Nursery Board and the California Department of Food and Agriculture. CCPP director Georgios Vidalakis, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in plant pathology at UC Riverside, shared his appreciation for the efforts that led to the creation of the new endowed researcher position.
“My thanks to the citrus growers for their decades-long support, especially the members of the CCPP committee of the CRB for their vision, and UC’s Greg Gibbs for coordinating all of the efforts,” he said. Vidalakis also praised Lindcove director Elizabeth Grafton-Cardwell “for making the case to our growers about the importance of this endowment and for making plans to house the UC ANR endowment at the LREC.”
A selection committee will award the endowment to a distinguished UC ANR academic. An annual payout will be used to provide salary, graduate student and/or program support. The researcher will be named for a five-year term. At the end of that period, the appointment will be reviewed and either renewed or taken back to a selection committee to choose another UC ANR academic.
“I would like to thank the CRB for this generous gift and their continued support of our research for CCPP at the LREC,” said UC ANR Director of Major Gifts Greg Gibbs.
The CRB administers the California Citrus Research Program, the grower-funded and grower-directed program established in 1968 under the California Marketing Act as the mechanism enabling the state’s citrus producers to sponsor and support needed research. More information about the Citrus Research Board may be found at www.citrusresearch.org.
The Presidential Researcher for Sustainable Citrus Clonal Protection is the fifth $1 million UC ANR endowment to support California agriculture. The other endowments are:
- UC Cooperative Extension Presidential Chair for Tree Nut Genetics, formed with the California Pistachio Board in October 2015
- UC Cooperative Extension Presidential Chair for Tree Nut Soil Science and Plant Water Relations, formed with the California Pistachio Board in October 2015
- UC Cooperative Extension Presidential Chair for California Grown Rice, formed with the California Rice Research Board in September 2016
- UC Cooperative Extension Presidential Chair for Agricultural Education in Orange County, formed with the Orange County Farm Bureau in October 2017
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The Citrus Research Board presented the $500,000 endowment to the University of California on October 10, 2018 at the 2018 California Citrus Conference. Pictured are (left to right): Dan Dreyer, Chairman, Citrus Research Board; Beth Grafton-Cardwell, Ph.D., Director of Lindcove Research and Extension Center and Research Entomologist, University of California, Riverside; Tu Tran, Associate Vice President, Business Operations, University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources; Greg Gibbs, Director of Major Gifts, University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources and Georgios Vidalakis, Ph.D., Professor and UC Extension Specialist in Plant Pathology, University of California, Riverside and Director, Citrus Clonal Protection Program.
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VISALIA, CALIF. – October 8, 2018 – The Citrus Research Board (CRB) is pleased to announce Franco Bernardi will serve as the organizations interim president. As of October 15, Bernardi will lead daily staff operations and management.
Bernardi’s leadership will guide the CRB during the next several months as it celebrates its 50th anniversary and continues to invest in solutions to huanglongbing (HLB), the deadly citrus disease that has devastated other citrus-growing regions worldwide.
“We are extremely fortunate to be able to call on one of the leaders of our industry to steer the helm as our search committee looks for a full-time president,” said CRB Chairman Dan Dreyer, who will announce Bernardi’s appointment formally on October 10 at the annual California Citrus Conference, which is attended by hundreds of citrus growers, researchers and other industry representatives.
Bernardi held a seat on the CRB Board for 27-years, serving as CRB chairman from 1997-99, Bernardi had chaired a number of CRB committees during his nearly three decades on the Board. He also served on the boards of other organizations, such as the Central California Orange Growers Cooperative, California Citrus Advisory Committee, California Citrus Mutual and the California Citrus Quality Council, to name only a few.
Early in Bernardi’s career, he worked at Del Monte Foods in their ag research division and then as a senior research associate for the University of Arizona. For 38 years prior to his retirement, he served in management at a number of citrus operations, including Superior Farming, Paramount Citrus, Sun World, Duda Farm Fresh Foods and Agricultural Capital Management.
The Lucca, Italy native is a 28-year resident of Visalia, who studied agricultural science at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. He and his wife Kathy have been married for 52 years and have five children and 11 grandchildren.
The CRB administers the California Citrus Research Program, the grower-funded and grower-directed program established in 1968 enabling the State’s citrus producers to sponsor and support needed research. More information about the Citrus Research Board may be found at www.citrusresearch.org.
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On August 7-8, 2018, twenty-one federal and state citrus research funding agency representatives met at the USDA Agriculture Research Service Horticulture Laboratory in Fort Pierce, Florida to discuss the recommendation made by the 2018 National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) study on HLB research for all the HLB research funding agencies “to develop a fresh systems approach to HLB research prioritization and strategic distribution of resources for research leading to effective HLB management.”
The meeting opened with presentations by Dr. Tom Bewick, National Program Leader, USDA NIFA, Dr. Jacqueline Fletcher, Regents Professor Emerita, Oklahoma State University and chairman of the NASEM HLB Research committee and Dr. Jeff Gwyn, Program Director of the International Wheat Yield Partnership. Each of these presenters made the case for a coordinated funding model for HLB research. Dr. Fletcher, in particular, amplified the recommendations that the NASEM committee put forth, calling for greater coordination among the state and federal agencies funding HLB research.
Sixty‐two citrus rootstock and scion breeders, university administrators, citrus industry representatives, federal government officials and citrus research funding agency representatives met in Denver, Colorado to discuss barriers and find solutions to achieve more effective coordination and collaboration among citrus breeder scientists working on huanglongbing (HLB) mitigation. Participants identified four major areas of barriers based on the whole group’s discussion of the pre‐workshop survey: 1) Scientific Barriers, 2) Regulatory Barriers, 3) Intellectual Property and Tech Transfer Barriers and 4) Funder‐related Barriers. This final report outlines their findings and next steps to achieve more effective coordination and collaboration among citrus breeder scientists working on HLB mitigation.
NEW STUDY REVEALS CALIFORNIA CITRUS ECONOMIC IMPACT
Citrus Research Board Quantifies Industry Importance
May 16, 2018 – Visalia, Calif. – The total economic impact of California’s iconic citrus industry is $7.117 billion according to a new study commissioned by the Citrus Research Board (CRB).
“In updating our economic analysis, we selected a well-known expert, Bruce Babcock, Ph.D., a professor in the School of Public Policy at the University of California, Riverside, to conduct the research. His findings quantified the significant impact of citrus on California’s economic well-being,” said CRB President Gary Schulz.
According to Babcock, the California citrus industry added $1.695 billion to the state’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2016. “California citrus is a major contributor to the economic value of the state’s agricultural sector and is much larger than just the value of its sales,” he said. “Estimated full-time equivalent California citrus jobs totaled 21,674 in 2016-17, and estimated wages paid by the industry during that same timeframe totaled $452 million.”
Babcock added, “The application of management skills and capital equipment to efficiently utilize land and water to produce high-quality citrus also generates upstream and downstream jobs and income that magnify the importance of citrus production beyond its farm value.”
In 2016-17, the most recent marketing year of data compilation, Babcock found that the total direct value of California citrus production was $3.389 billion. This value generated an additional $1.263 billion in economic activity from related businesses that supplied materials and services to the citrus industry. Layered on top was another $2.464 billion in economic activity generated by household spending income that they received from California’s industry, according to Babcock, thus rendering a total economic impact of $7.117 billion.
The study revealed that 79 percent of California’s citrus was packed for the fresh market and 21 percent was processed in 2016-17, which is economically significant because fresh market fruit has a higher value than processed fruit.”
Of further note, California produced about 95 percent of all U.S. mandarins in the most recent reporting season.
California Citrus Mutual President Joel Nelsen commented, “The “wow” factor in this report is something as it relates to gross revenues and positive impact for the state, people and local communities. This enthusiasm must be tempered by the fact that huanglongbing (HLB) can destroy all this in a matter of a year if the partnerships that exist between the industry and government cannot thwart the spread of this insidious disease. Just this week, coincidentally, Brazil authorities reported a 20% reduction in fruit volume. Reading how that would affect our family farmers, employees and the state is sobering.”
The CRB study also looked at the possible impact of a potential 20 percent reduction in California citrus acreage or yield or a combination of the two that could result from increased costs associated with meeting government regulations, combatting the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) and warding off the invasion of HLB, a devastating disease that has decimated citrus production in many other growing regions such as Florida. Babcock calculated that such a reduction could cause a loss of 7,350 jobs and $127 million in associated employment income and could reduce California’s GDP by $501 million in direct, indirect and induced impacts. The CRB currently is devoting most of its resources to battling ACP and HLB to help ensure the sustainability of California citrus.
Babcock is a Fellow of the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association and has won numerous awards for his applied policy research. The economist received his Ph.D. in Agricultural and Resource Economics from the University of California, Berkeley and his Masters and Bachelors degrees from the University of California, Davis.
The CRB administers the California Citrus Research Program, the grower-funded and grower-directed program established in 1968 under the California Marketing Act as the mechanism enabling the State’s citrus producers to sponsor and support needed research. More information about the Citrus Research Board and the full report on the “Economic Impact of California’s Citrus Industry” may be found at www.citrusresearch.org.
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