USDA ANNOUNCES APPOINTMENTS TO SHEEP INDUSTRY BOARD
WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 1999 -- Agriculture Under Secretary Jill Long Thompson today announced the appointment of Linda S. Campbell and the reappointment of John L. Faulkner to the board of directors of the National Sheep Industry Improvement Center. The Sheep Center was established by the 1996 Farm Bill to support projects that bolster the nation's sheep and goat industries.
"I am pleased that John Faulkner will continue his service on this board and that Linda Campbell will be added to the board," Long Thompson said. "Both are able and experienced leaders in the industry and are willing to do what is necessary to revitalize the sheep and goat industries nationwide."
Campbell, of Luray, Va., raises dairy goats for breeding stock and for export and domestic sales, as well as the meat market. Campbell is a past president of the American Dairy Goat Association, the Virginia State Dairy Goat Association and the Shenandoah Valley Dairy Goat Association. She is also a member of the Virginia Agribusiness Council, Southern States Cooperatives and Virginia Farm Bureau.
Faulkner, of Gooding, Idaho, feeds sheep and runs a ewe-lamb operation in Idaho, California and Arizona. He is a former president of the Idaho Wool Growers, director of the American Sheep Producers Council, director of the National Wool Growers Association and the American Sheep Industry Association. He also has served as chairman of the Bureau of Land Management District No. 5 Advisory Council and the Sawtooth Forest Advisory Board.
Campbell and Faulkner were both appointed to three-year terms to fill seats reserved for active sheep or goat producers. The nine-member board consists of seven voting members who are nominated by national sheep and goat industry trade organizations and two non-voting members. The two non-voting members are the Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural Development and the Under Secretary of Agriculture for Research, Education and Economics.
The center's main duty is to operate a $20-million revolving loan fund to finance projects that strengthen the sheep and goat industries, such as new product development and expansion of sheep or goat processing facilities.
The center is holding its annual meeting Feb. 17-18 in Washington.
Media Contacts: Dan Campbell, (202) 720-6483
dacampbe@rdmail.rural.usda.gov
Jean Carter (202) 690-0513
jacarter@rdmail.rural.usda.gov
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