USDA Seeks Nominees for National Honey Board

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is seeking nominations for the National Honey Board. Nominations are needed to fill three member and three alternate seats. Open seats include one first handler member, one producer member, one importer member, and their alternates. Newly appointed members and alternates will serve three-year terms from Jan. 1, 2027, through Dec. 31, 2029. The deadline for nominations is June 1, 2026.

Only qualified national organizations within the honey industry may formally nominate members. All nominees must meet the qualifications and have a completed application submitted. Producer members or alternates must produce a minimum of 50,000 pounds of honey in the U.S. annually based on the best three-year average of the most recent five calendar years to be eligible.

A nomination form is available online at https://honey.com/nomination-form. You may also contact the National Honey Board at [email protected]; or USDA Marketing Specialist Katie Cook at [email protected].

The current 10-member board includes three first handlers, three importers, three producers, one marketing cooperative representative, and their alternates. More information about the board is available on the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) National Honey Board webpage.

Since 1966, Congress has authorized the development of industry-funded research and promotion boards to provide a framework for agricultural industries to pool their resources and combine efforts to develop new markets, strengthen existing markets and conduct important research and promotion activities. AMS provides oversight of 21 boards, paid for by industry assessments, which helps ensure fiscal accountability and program integrity.

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