American Lamb Board appoints new members

Tom Colyer, Gwendolyn Kitzan, Martin Auza, and Jeffrey Oatman have been appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, to serve on the American Lamb Board. Each appointee will serve a three-year term, effective January 2016.

The Board is composed of six producers, three feeders, one seedstock producer and three first handlers. The Secretary of Agriculture appoints one third of all board members each year.

“We are very fortunate to have the four new Board members appointed to the Board. Their industry experience and expertise will be invaluable as we work to build demand for American Lamb,” Wes Patton, Chairman.

Tom Colyer from Hubbardston, Massachusetts has been appointed to represent producers with 100-500 head. Tom has been engaged in lamb production for 30 years and has been an active member in the sheep industry as past Executive Board Member of the American Sheep Industry Association and the president of the Massachusetts Federation of Sheep Producers Association.

Gwendolyn Kitzan from Nisland, South Dakota has been appointed to represent producers with 500 or more head. Gwen is a fourth generation sheep producer and is a member of several Industry organizations including the South Dakota Sheep Growers Association, the American Suffolk Sheep Association, the National Sheep Improvement Program and the American Sheep Industry Association.

Martin Auza from Brawley, California has been appointed to represent feeders. Martin has been engaged in the sheep Industry for 50 years and is the past president of the California Sheep Commission and an active member of the National Lamb Feeders Association.

Jeffrey Oatman from Eaton, Colorado has been appointed to represent first handlers. Jeff has been engaged in the sheep Industry for 12 years and is a member of the National Lamb Feeders Association and the Colorado Wool Growers Association. Oatman works for JBS Swift & Company, in Greeley, Colorado.

The American Lamb Board (ALB) is a national promotion, research and information organization whose purpose is to strengthen the position of lamb and lamb products in domestic and foreign markets. The work of the Board is overseen by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agriculture Marketing.

–American Lamb Board