It isn’t every day that a voice from San Benito County is heard
at the national level, but it’s happened with the appointment of
Tonya Antle to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Advisory
Board.
It isn’t every day that a voice from San Benito County is heard at the national level, but it’s happened with the appointment of Tonya Antle, vice-president of organic sales at Earthbound Farm in San Juan Bautista, to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Advisory Board.
Selected from 130 applicants nationwide, Antle is among 11 new members appointed by Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman.
“It really is exciting,” Antle said. “It happened real fast. This is a huge responsibility”
It was under the recommendation of Undersecretary of Agriculture for Research Joe Jen that Antle applied for one of the most influential positions in the industry.
When Antle found out about her appointment, a series of conference calls followed. Then she was off to Washington, D.C. for her first meeting to learn about the process.
“It was a perfect opportunity to bring in California agriculture with the organic emphasis included in the research,” she said.
Being closer to the money in the nation’s capital helps focus on prioritizing where federal funds are appropriated for agriculture, Antle said.
“It seems it’s always about the appropriations bills,” she said. “But we’re all stakeholders in this.”
The goal is to secure funding specifically for the economic research of organic production, Antle said.
“Organics is hot,” she said. “We’re going to focus at research, and hopefully we get our fair share.”
Growing and processing organic foods is a $7.8 billion industry that captures 2 percent of the food system, averaging an annual growth rate of 20 percent.
Earthbound Farm was instrumentally supportive of the USDA’s National Organic Standards that went into effect in October, 2002.
“The new ruling legitimizes and adds credibility to the organic industry,” Antle said.
A leader in the organic food industry for 13 years, Antle has volunteered her services to industry leaders and helped propel the movement toward organic food from a niche segment to one of the fastest-growing supermarket categories today.
“It’s not hard when you’re passionate about what you do,” she said.
Excited to be giving back to the country, Antle is looking forward to her next challenge – influencing the stakeholders.
“I’m honored to have this opportunity,” she said.
