Wareham, Mass. – The USDA Cranberry Marketing Order, also known as the Cranberry Marketing Committee, USA (CMC) has received confirmation that the cranberry producers in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington and Long Island, N.Y. have approved the continuance of their federal marketing order program.
The USDA informed the Cranberry Marketing Order that 76 percent of all the producers voting –representing 84 percent of the volume of production by those voting – favored continuance. Approximately 470 eligible producers cast ballots in the referendum.
The Cranberry Marketing Order requires that a continuance referendum be held every four years in May. The USDA will not consider termination of the order if continuance is favored by more that 50 percent of the growers who vote in the referendum, provided they represent more than 50 percent of the volume of cranberries represented in the referendum.
The CMC will continue its work under new leadership, with the appointment of Michelle Hogan as the CMC’s Executive Director. Hogan has been the Assistant Executive Director for the majority of her 15 years with the Cranberry Marketing Committee. Prior to her employment with the CMC, Hogan spent 11 years working for the Cranberry Institute and the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers Association. She also managed the Frost Advisory Service for the cranberry growers of Massachusetts.
“As a devoted member of the cranberry industry, I am pleased that the cranberry industry has voted to continue the marketing order and its work, and I am honored to have been appointed the CMC’s new Executive Director,” said Michelle Hogan.
Hogan will be the primary contact for the organization and is responsible for working directly with the USDA, CMC Board of Directors and cranberry industry leaders. She will also provide management and oversight for all of the CMC’s International, Domestic and Trade policy programs.
The Cranberry Marketing Order was established as a Federal Marketing Order in 1962 and is a quasi-governmental agency under the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service. Its mission is to ensure a stable, orderly supply of good quality products in domestic and international markets. Working with the USDA, the Cranberry Marketing Committee develops global marketing and promotional activities, and may issue volume control regulations when needed and as authorized. Authority for its actions are provided under Chapter IX, Title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, referred to as the Federal Cranberry Marketing Order, which is part of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended. This Act specifies cranberries as a commodity that may be covered, regulations that may be issued, guidelines for administering the programs, and privileges and limitations granted by Congress. For more information about the CMC, visit www.uscranberries.com.
Source: Cranberry Marketing Committee USA
