Grimmway executive appointed to federal farming committee

A senior executive with Bakersfield-based carrot giant Grimmway Farms has been appointed to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 37-member Farm, Ranch and Rural Communities Federal Advisory Committee.

Russ Hamlin is Grimmway's president of farming operations.

The appointments were announced in a news release dated Wednesday in which EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said six of the committee members had been reappointed, not including Hamlin, who was among 18 new appointees.

It said the committee provides independent policy recommendations to Regan on "crucial environmental issues affecting agriculture and rural communities."

"EPA remains committed to ensuring agricultural and rural communities ... are fully engaged as partners in our work to protect our environment and advance public health," Regan stated in the release.

"The diverse perspectives of these new appointees, along with our dedicated returning members, will be instrumental in helping us navigate environmental challenges and deliver science-based, practical solutions that strengthen our nation's food and agriculture systems for generations to come."

Members were chosen for their expertise in subjects prioritized by EPA, including climate change and sustainable farming practices, the release said.

Grimmway said in a news release Hamlin oversees the management of conventional and organic vegetable crops at Grimmway's operations in more than 10 states. It added that he brings diverse academic, farming and scientific experience to his EPA advisory role.

"Good intentions and a desire to give back are important but must be combined with an equal measure of experience and depth of understanding to be effective in shaping meaningful policy," Hamlin said in the release. "Working with my advisory board colleagues, I look forward to applying my scientific background and common farm sense to understand and find practical paths forward to address environmental problems facing the nation's farmers."

Hamlin serves as chairman of the California Fresh Carrot Advisory Board and the Organics Committee of the International Fresh Produce Association. He is on the Advisory Board for the Grimm Family Center for Organic Production and Research at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

He earned bachelor's and master's degrees in horticulture at the University of Georgia before going on to get a doctorate from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in plant and soil sciences.