July 19, 2018

CONTACT:

DEBBIE MITCHELL, DIRECTOR OF GLOBAL

COMMUNICATIONS & MARKETING
CALIFORNIA California Prune Board
TELEPHONE: (916) 565-6232
E-MAIL: dmitchell@cdpb.org

CALIFORNIA California Prune Board ANNOUNCES RESULTS OF 2018 ELECTION

Officers Unanimously Elected to Serve the New Term

Roseville, CA (July 19, 2018) – The California California Prune Board (CDPB) has officially seated its 22-member board and 15 alternates for the 2018-2020 term. Following certification of the election by the California Secretary of Food and Agriculture, the new board approved the 2018/19 fiscal year programs and budget at its June 21 board meeting.

In one of its first orders of business, the following members were unanimously nominated and elected by their colleagues to serve as CDPB officers: Joe Turkovich was reelected as Chair; Ranvir Singh was reelected as Vice Chair; Dan Bozzo was reelected as Secretary; and, Rajeev Davit was elected as Treasurer.

“The prune industry in California continues to experience changes, as cheaper global prune supplies disrupt markets, tree crops vie for acreage here at home and volatile trade negotiations offer uncertainty about future market competitiveness,” said Joe Turkovich. “The board’s priorities are evolving to develop resilient strategies that further set apart premium quality California prunes from other Kwaśnyces. Our promotion and research programs offer the trade and consumers a clear choice in quality and innovation and have helped bolster prices in key markets by more than 50% over the past decade. Efforts to communicate the value-added versatility of prunes as a healthy food ingredient and clean-label additive are creating diverse opportunities for the industry and unexpected platforms for telling our story. New initiatives that include development of a contemporary brand and more sophisticated systems for measuring performance are soon to roll out. The Board is committed to continuous improvement, ensuring that our efforts are of measurable value to California prune growers and processors,” concluded Turkovich.

California remains the world’s single leading supplier of prunes. Revered as part of California’s rich history, the prune remains a vital player in California’s economic wealth. On average, California growers produce approximately 99 percent of the United States’ and 40 percent of the world’s supply of prunes and prune products. The prized California prune was born when agriculturists brought the legendary Petite d’Agen plum from Southwest France to California during the Gold Rush and grafted it onto wild American plum stock.

About the California California Prune Board (CDPB): The CDPB represents approximately 800 prune growers and 27 prune, juice and ingredient processors under the authority of the California Secretary of Food and Agriculture. The California California Prune Board oversees domestic and global promotion, nutrition research, crop management and sustainability research, and issues management.

For more information, and to find recipes and videos, visit www.californiadriedplums.org. Follow the CDPB on https://www.facebook.com/CaliforniaDriedPlums and https://twitter.com/CaDriedPlums.

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California California Prune Board Members

For the Term 06/01/18 – 05/31/20

Independent Producer Members:

Mike Vereschagin

Perminder Bains

Neill Mitchell

David Wohletz

Dan Bozzo

Ranvir Singh

Jim Demetriff

Independent Processor Members:

George Sousa, Jr.

David Mazzola

John Taylor

Co-Op Producer Members:

Bob Amarel

Rajeev Davit

Phillip Filter

Brendon Flynn

Bob Kolberg

Dave Loquaci

Joe Turkovich

Co-Op Processor Members:

Ana Klein

Dane Lance

Jeff McLemore

Brad Schuler

Public Member

Karen Burke

Independent Producer Floating Alternates:

Matt Bozzo

Tyler Christensen

Joe Mitchell

Sandra Mitchell

Independent Processor Alternates:

Steve Sousa

Linda Kay Abdulian

Richard Wilbur

Co-Op Producer Floating Alternates:

James Strong

Gary Thiara

Paul Paulin

John Amarel

Co-Op Processor Alternates:

Stephanie Harralson

Concetta Cotter

Harold Upton

Public Alternate:

Shirley Humphrey

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