OFA Announces Newly Elected Governing Council and
Policy Committee Leadership for 2025

Organic Farmers Association, a national membership organization working to build a strong voice for certified organic farmers in order to grow a healthier planet, has announced the election of its next Governing Council and Policy Committee members. This is the fifth term of leadership elected since OFA’s creation for and by organic farmers to represent their policy priorities in Washington D.C.

OFA puts farmers in the driver seat to advocate and educate for more domestic organic farms, strong organic standards, and technical assistance and education to support a national growth of organic farming. For the 2025 leadership term, 18 Governing Council and Policy Committee Members were elected or reelected to serve organic farmers.

Governing Council
The Governing Council serves as the governing body of Organic Farmers Association and oversees the health and effectiveness of the organization, ensuring it remains a strong, farmer-led voice for the organic movement.

Policy Committee
The Policy Committee ensures that the diverse voices of organic farmers are represented in critical policy decisions by working with OFA members to set the policy agenda for OFA.

Each OFA region is represented by two certified organic farmers and one regional organic farm organization, making up OFA’s 24 voting certified organic farmer members and 12 advisory organizational members across both leadership bodies. Members are elected by OFA farm-members and serve 2-year terms, up to three consecutive terms.

Leadership members are regionally diverse and reflect the national diversity of organic farms. Only our certified organic farm members on the Policy Committee and Governing Council have voting rights, while the organization representatives serve an important advisory role.

The new leadership will officially take their positions during OFA’s Annual Meeting and Farmer Fly-In in Washington, D.C., in March 2025 where OFA members gather to advocate for policy changes that will benefit organic farms and farmers across the U.S.

“I’m always so impressed with the expertise and diversity of experiences that our leadership brings to OFA. This year we have five new organic farmers joining our leadership and one new organic organization. I’m grateful to our high-quality returning leadership willing to serve another term as well. OFA’s strong leadership is incredibly important this year as we aim to keep organic agriculture a strong priority for the incoming administration.”

Kate Mendenhall, OFA’s Executive Director

Since its establishment, Organic Farmers Association has worked to build a robust national coalition of certified organic farmers.

“Ten years ago, OFA leadership built the infrastructure of a new organization that reflected the mission to represent and advocate for organic certified farmers. OFA’s leadership team took the organization forward into a powerful promoter of organic farmers by practicing good governance and being an effective advocate and leader in representing farmers’ interests. I am proud to have served as a leader for this organization and look forward to supporting the next generation of farmers who will lead the organic movement into the future.”

Ed Maltby, Executive Director Northeast Organic Dairy Producers
Alliance (NODPA) and OFA Founding Member and Governing Council Member

To learn more about OFA’s leadership roles and responsibilities, please visit our leadership page.

Please join OFA in welcoming and congratulating OFA’s newest leaders!

The complete 2025 leadership roster is below and newly elected members are denoted in green.

CALIFORNIA

I have been farming greenhouse microgreens year-round for over 35 years and have always farmed organically (certified since 1982), and have only ever used organic seed (90k lbs. per year). My wife and I run the farm with 10 full-time employees and five part-time employees. I have served on the Board of Directors for the following organizations: Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF) (10+ years), Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau Board (6 years), Agriculture Policy Advisory Commission (10 years), Monterey Bay Certified Farmers Markets, Action Pajaro Valley (farmland preservation task force), Santa Cruz County GMO Commission (we banned GMO’s), and served on the Board of Directors for CCOF for many years.

I am completing my first term as a member of the Policy Committee and was honored to be part of OFA’s annual Advocacy Day on Capitol Hill in March. I have previously represented Sonoma County on the California Farm Bureau’s Marketing, Organics, and Produce Food Safety Issue Advisory Committee. Little Paradise Farm is located on a 33-acre site, with about two acres under cultivation. The farm supplies fruits and vegetables to local restaurants and regularly contributes fresh produce to community food banks. The farm has been CCOF certified since 2013 and Real Organic Project certified since 2021. The farm is proud to have received a Snail of Approval award from Slow Food USA.

MIDWEST (Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania)

My work as a farmer started out in Niger, West Africa where I was stationed as a Peace Corps volunteer. This experience helped inform my love for growing food and community through systems and practices that ensure nutritious clean food for the present and future. My long standing work as a Pennsylvania organic farmer and collaborations with regional organizations like PASA Sustainable Agriculture and the Rodale Institute inspire me to seek out ways to support the organic movement on the national level. I believe that my experience as a farmer, educator, and community organizer provide me with skills that will aid OFA’s efforts to further promote and advance the organization’s efforts. The Dickinson College Farm is an 84-acre educational production farm. Each year, the farm raises 10 acres of certified organic produce that is destined for the Dickinson College dining hall, 150 member Campus Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, on-campus farm eatery & retail store, and for sale at our local producer-only farmers’ market. Dickinson students and graduates actively engage in the work of the College Farm as student farmers and apprentices. They assist with all aspects of operating a diversified vegetable production farm, as well as helping with managing our AWA and Certified Grass-Fed livestock operation, field research, and educational outreach programming. As the Director of the College Farm, I supervise the farm’s full-time staff members and help hire, mentor, and supervise seasonal and student staff. In addition to assisting with the day-to-day operations of the College Farm, I serve as the lead liaison with Dickinson academic departments and provide support for curricular development, faculty and student research interests, class visits, and guest lecture requests. Off the farm, I work collaboratively with community partners on regional food systems & sustainable ag initiatives. As a contributing lecturer to the Food Studies Certificate program at Dickinson, I teach introductory, senior seminar and regional food system-focused courses that support student interests and participation in this academic program. I have 24 years of farming experience, focused primarily in certified organic vegetables and grass-based meat production.

I graduated from Ohio State University with a degree in Agribusiness and Applied Economics and a Crop Science minor. Recently, I completed The Executive Program for Ag Producers (TEPAP) at Texas A&M University. I have been involved with OFA and the Ohio Ecological Food and Farming Association (OEFFA), helping with policy work at the federal, state, and local levels relating to strengthening our organic and sustainable ag policies and programs, including the formation of the Ohio Soil Health Initiative. I have also worked to make crop insurance simpler and more accessible to organic farmers and continue to work to strengthen the enforcement of fraudulent imported organic grain. Through all this involvement, I have hosted politicians, media, and other visitors on our farm to see our sustainable organic ag practices first-hand. I have also participated in numerous lobbying opportunities with politicians at all levels of government organized by OEFFA, OFA, and the National Organic Coalition (NOC). Through this experience and my work with organic and sustainable ag practices first-hand on our farm, I feel I bring a wealth of expertise to OFA and represent all types and sizes of organic farmers.

He has more than a decade of experience working at the grassroots level of the organic and local food movement. He has served as a primary organizer for the last 12 OEFFA conferences and has worked with farmers of all different styles and scales throughout Ohio on educational programs, fundraising events, and advocacy. Throughout his time with the organization, Milo has been a key voice in OEFFA’s strategy for serving farmers and food system advocates across the state. Prior to coming to OEFFA, Milo worked for the natural grocery delivery service Green BEAN Delivery where he did everything from deliver groceries to lead its Central Ohio marketing efforts. Milo currently resides in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from The Ohio State University and a Master of Science in Arts Management from the University of Oregon. Formed in 1979, the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) cultivates a future in which sustainable and organic farmers thrive, local food nourishes our communities, and agricultural practices protect and enhance our environment. OEFFA runs both an organic certification program which includes an organic transition program and an extensive farmer-education program.

NORTH CENTRAL (Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin)

Matthew grew up on his family’s organic grain farm, Fitzgerald Farms in Central MN, and has been a partner in the farm over the last several years. His family has been farming organically since 1994, and raise wheat, alfalfa, corn, soybeans, edible beans and are always looking to improve and diversify the operation. Matthew has helped diversify crop rotations and implement new technology into the operations. The farm was featured in a video by Mad Agriculture where you can learn more about Matthew and see the farm. He is also a certified organic inspector with the International Organic Inspectors Association (IOIA). Matthew is excited about the future of farming and working to support the next generation. Matthew also runs a farmer consulting business with his father, where they advise and train on: planning, storage, seed selection, equipment, pest and weed management, best practices, risk management, technology, USDA organic certification and marketing. Matthew has also testified to the state legislature on behalf of MN farmers and worked with the National Young Farmers Coalition (NYFC) to help pass a Beginning Farmer Tax Credit in Minnesota in 2017. He currently serves on MN Senator Tina Smith’s Emerging Farmer Advisory Board.

I have been the Executive Director at Marbleseed since September 2020. Since joining Marbleseed, I led the organization through a rebrand and strategic planning process that centers ecosystem services for the regenerative and organic farm community. My background includes work related to community and environmental health, social justice, and food access. From 2014 to 2020, I left public sector work and brought all those things into focus opening a community-supported farm-to-table restaurant in New Glarus, WI. I live on a small farm near Monticello, WI, where my partner and I grow vegetables and raise chickens and goats.Formerly known as the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES), Marbleseed was established in 1995 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to supporting farmers in their transition toward sustainable, organic farming systems that are ecologically sound, economically viable, and socially just.  We work in community with human-scale farmers to support peer-to-peer learning with free and farmer-led programs, print and digital resources, and in-person events that support thriving regenerative and organic farms and food systems. Marbleseed is widely known for hosting the Marbleseed Organic Farming Conference. Established in 1989, it’s the largest organic farming conference in the United States. As the organic food and farming landscape continues to evolve and grow, Marbleseed remains committed to the roots of the organic farming movement: care for the planet, nourishment for communities, and support for regenerative and organic farmers who are working in relationship with the ecosystems that sustain us. 

I started transitioning into organic production in 2017. Not having a clue what I was doing, I started searching on social media to find other organic farmers who would be willing to share their successes and failures in organic practices. It was difficult to find a group of organic farmers or an organic Facebook page that was more than just vegetable farmers in third world countries. I decided to start a page, Modern Organic Row Crop Producers. This started out with me and three guys I knew, and has now grown to nearly 2000 members. This has built an amazing platform to serve as a sounding board for ideas and innovations in modern organic production. The recent issue of clawback in regard to the Global Processing bankruptcy is one example of where the site proved to be effective to bring together a large group of farmers affected by this issue. Together we have built a network of people, organizations and legal counsel to take this on as a group instead of just on our own. As one man stated: “This is how armies are made” Through this process I realized that with my background of serving 22 years with Iowa Farm Bureau at the grassroots level, we have the connections and ability to have our voices heard to make a difference. These laws need to be changed, and we need advocacy for our industry.We run a diversified row crop and small grains operation consisting of 700 acres conventional and 700 acres organic. I have been active in production agriculture since I graduated from Iowa State University in 2002. I took over the entire farming operation in 2017 and began transitioning to organic row crop at that time. We have multiple hog confinement sites that allow us access to hog manure, which we apply with our umbilical system. We also do drainage tiling on our own ground as well as some custom tiling, custom harvesting, trucking and manure application. We have implemented several different practices into our operation including strip till, no till, cover crops, inter cropping as well as conventional tillage. Organic farming has been an exciting and rewarding experience and I take great pride in my operation and my crew. I give much credit to my success to the network of friends and mentors that I have met through the Modern Row Crop Organic Producers Facebook Page I started in 2020. This has become a sounding board for ideas, practices and processes that many farmers have come to rely on for information in an industry that simply “has no written playbook” This has been an incredible journey and I look forward to many more years of my farming career and networking with other farmers across the nation and the world.

WESTERN (Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, Idaho, Utah, New Mexico, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas)

Steve has farmed using organic methods since 1994. He has been active in numerous on-farm organic research projects ranging from organic fertility, organic weed control, insect and disease management and fruit thinning as well as being instrumental in organizing the first two National Organic Tree Fruit Research Symposiums. Steve has served on and chaired the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) and the Organic Farming Research Foundation Board. In addition to being an orchardist he works part-time for the National Organic Coalition as their NOSB Specialist and is responsible for drafting comments twice yearly for NOSB meetings. He is knowledgeable of the Farm Bill and rule making processes and is committed to ensuring the integrity of the organic label. Above all, he holds a belief that farming should improve the environment, be climate smart, and utilize an ecosystem approach that maximizes human health and quality food .Ela Family Farms is a 100 acre certified organic, fourth generation tree fruit farm located in western Colorado. We became 100% certified in 2004 and began certification in 1994. Steve is the grower/owner and has farmed full time since 1990. We produce peaches, pears, apples, plums, sweet cherries, heirloom tomatoes and rhubarb. In addition we have an on-farm commercial kitchen where we process our excess fruit into organic jams, fruit butters, apple sauces, dehydrated and freeze dried artisanal products. We find uses for all our fruit and are a zero food waste farm. We market our fruit through seven farmers markets, CSA’s, and select wholesale accounts.

Ben Bowell currently serves as the Organizational representative for the Western Region on the Governing Council and would like to run for another term. He is the Education and Advocacy Director at Oregon Tilth where he has worked for over 11 years. Ben oversees all educational programs and partnerships which are focused on conservation, transition to organic, and farm viability. Prior to this role, he led Oregon Tilth’s national partnership with USDA NRCS. Before joining Oregon Tilth, Ben worked for American Farmland Trust advocating for the protection and sustainability of working lands. He has a B.A. from Wake Forest University and a M.S. from Tufts University’s Agriculture, Food, and Environment Program. Ben lives in Portland, OR. Oregon Tilth is a leading nonprofit certifier, educator, and advocate for organic agriculture and products. Since 1974, we have worked to build a brighter food future for all by balancing the needs of people and the planet. Our mission is to make our food system and agriculture biologically sound and socially equitable. Oregon Tilth shaped the first organic standards, created programs to support the adoption of organic climate smart practices, and directly works with thousands of farmers. Oregon Tilth is an Accredited Certifying Agent for the USDA’s National Organic Program.

I am a certified organic grain and beef cattle producer located in Bozeman, MT. As a first-generation farmer and rancher, I started my operation in 2004 and received organic certification in 2009. From my original leased 10 acres in 2004 my operation today consists of 806 acres on which I produce organic small grains and grass-finished beef cattle. Over the past several years we have identified ways to increase the market options for our crops and provide additional market outlets for our neighbor farmers. To this end, we have added certified organic processing to our operation and produce pelletized organic poultry, hog and layer feed as well as alfalfa pellets. In addition to my work as a farmer, I currently serve in the farmer seat on the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). I have testified on behalf of organic farming before the US House of Representatives (2019) and work closely on policy solutions to help improve the integrity of the organic seal while fighting to make sure organic farming remains profitable for US producers. Since 2011 I have worked as an organic inspector, and as of 2024 have inspected over 3,000 operations in 48 states. I currently serve as a lead training for the International Organic Inspectors Association.

Tilth Alliance works in community with Washington’s farmers, gardeners and eaters for a more sustainable, healthy and equitable food future. Our strategic priorities include advancing organic, regenerative and sustainable growing practices, to increase demand for healthy food grown in Washington using organic, regenerative and sustainable growing practices, and to raise awareness of the critical relationship between food production and climate change. Our membership base is composed primarily of certified organic farmers. We serve our base through advocacy at the state and county level, by providing training opportunities, by directly connecting organic farmers to consumers through the Washington Farm and Food Finder, and by producing an annual conference where organic farmers from Washington can convene to learn, network and socialize. Melissa Spear has worked at the intersection of conservation and agriculture for the past 15 years. She started out at The Trust for Public Land, successfully protecting a number of iconic farms in Connecticut. She then spent 9 years as Executive Director of a non-profit organic urban farm and environmental education center serving the city of New Haven, CT. She served as the vice-chair of the Working Lands Alliance in Connecticut, an advocacy organization working to ensure farming remained a viable enterprise in the state. She moved to Seattle and became Executive Director of Tilth Alliance in 2018 where her focus is squarely on promoting and supporting the adoption of organic practices. Under her leadership, Tilth Alliance helped form a Coalition for Organic and Regenerative Agriculture that will advocate for organic farmers and farming practices both here in Washington state and in Washington D.C.

SOUTHERN (Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa)

Shawn’s farm is solely organic. He is a third-generation farmer, and started farming early with his dad and branched out on his own about 20 years ago. Shawn switched to organic farming in 2009. He and his family farm approximately 1500 acres. They grow sweet potatoes, edamame, black-eye peas, soybeans, rice, and corn. They find it exciting to find new crops to grow and diversify more each year. Shawn handles some of each aspect that goes into a farming operation. He is hands-on and fully involved in each decision that goes into the operation. Shawn has served on the USDA’s Specialty Crop Committee. He has also served on a dicamba specialty task force. Shawn enjoys speaking at meetings and conventions to share his knowledge and experience with others. He thinks organic farming is the future and wants to see it grow. Shawn will stand tall for his beliefs and advocate for what he believes in.

Steven is a first generation farmer that has been selling organic produce since 2008 from a small market garden at tailgate markets and has, along with his business partners, built a year round vertically integrated East Coast Organic vegetable brand. Steven started farming specifically to be an organic grower and has been committed to the organic movement since before he started farming. Steven also raised pastured poultry and pork for a number of years. He has experience and understanding in a diversity of organic farming scales because he started out with a small market garden selling at tailgate markets and now is a commercial scale organic grower packer shipper servicing large retail chains and distributors. TendWell Farm participates in the H2A visa program and has more than 75 employees. He understands the importance of policy and the way it affects the marketability and viability of real organic farming. Steven is one of the owners of TendWell Farm which grows about 600 acres of Organic vegetables in North Carolina and Florida. We supply organic squash, tomatoes, kale, lettuce, dandelion greens, and more to retailers and distributors on the East Coast year round. Steven started selling produce from a 1/16 of an acre market garden at local tailgate markets in 2008.

Roland grew up in Columbia, Missouri. His grandmother was a longtime subscriber to Organic Gardening; his family raised its own layer and fryer chickens, as well as grew most of their own vegetables. The family home was surrounded by conventional corn and soybean fields. Roland is a licensed attorney, and after the births of his children, he decided to devote his legal training and business experience to the service of promoting healthy agriculture for future generations. Roland lives in Pittsboro, North Carolina. Since 1979, CFSA has worked to unite farmers, consumers, and businesses from North Carolina and South Carolina to build a healthy, just, and sustainable food and farming system. CFSC provides farmers and food hubs with the tools, resources, and technical assistance they need to be resilient, profitable, and productive. They host conferences, workshops, meetups, and farm tours to keep stakeholders informed about the latest in local, organic food and farming. CFSC is also active in policy, driving local, state, and national policies to build a better food system.

NORTHEAST (New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware)

Eve and her husband Chris founded Garden of Eve organic farm in 2001, dedicated to providing delicious organic vegetables, fruits and beautiful flowers and to “making changes in the world by living them.” Invited to sell some extra produce from their garden (zucchini!) at a local farmers market they made $40 and were launched on their farming career. In the 20 years since then, they have expanded and now grow 60 acres of certified organic vegetables, flowers, raise 1500 pastured laying hens, and oversee a team of 20 at the height of the season. Garden of Eve sells produce through a large on-farm Market, 3 farmers markets, and nearly 1,000 households participating in their Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs at 20 locations in New York City and on Long Island. Eve holds a BA from Harvard in Environmental Science and a MS in Conservation Biology and Sustainable Development from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. She has also worked as a land preservation advocate with the North Fork Environmental Council and as Principal Planner for the Town of Southampton. In Eve’s over 20 years of operating a family-scale organic farm, She has been constantly challenged to overcome the innumerable challenges that farmers face, as well as the ways that the chemical farming industry overrides the interests of real farmers in national policy. She is a longtime supporter of several OG watchdog groups and has seen how “Big Food” continues to try to water down the organic standards that the rest of us work so hard to uphold. She is well qualified for the OFA Governing Council with her skills in advocacy and lobbying, through her longtime involvement in land planning and farmland preservation on the North Fork of Long Island. She has worked with groups both inside and outside of local government to help secure the preservation of large tracts of vulnerable land including what became the Hallock State Park; North Fork County Park, and farmland that has now been preserved for perpetuity through Purchase of Development Rights.

Katie Baildon, Policy Manager has worked on advocating for strong organic policy with NOFA-NY for three years. She works on behalf of NOFA-NY membership and the 1900+ certified organic operations in NY. In addition to fighting for organic integrity, NOFA-NY also certifies about 1000 organic operations and administers NY’s TOPP programming and partners in the Climate Smart Farming and Marketing Program. Founded in 1983, NOFA-NY is the premier organization growing a strong organic regenerative agriculture movement in New York State. We provide farmer-to-farmer educational programming and technical assistance to NYS farmers, connect consumers with local and organic products, and advocate for a sustainable and fair food and farm system. NOFA-NY provides USDA-accredited organic certification services to over 1,100 of NY’s organic farms and businesses.

Seth is 51 and his wife and he have two children in their late teens who have grown up on the farm. His farming career began as a summer hand on a small organic farm in coastal California. Moving east with his graduate school bound wife, he worked and managed farms in Massachusetts and New York before landing in Maine and starting Crystal Spring Farm almost 20 years ago. In his training as a farmer, he worked with and learned from the founding generation of organic growers who created a brand to support their belief that there is a better way to grow food. OFA consistently represents the organic issues he believes need to be heard in Washington DC. In addition to his experience as a certified grower, Seth has lobbied in DC for the farm bill, worked with both state and federal congressional staff on ag issues and spoken/presented at local and regional farm conferences.