The Board

The Natural Products Marketing (BC) Act provides for not more than ten members to be appointed to the British Columbia Farm Industry Review Board (FIRB). Members are appointed by the Lieutenant Governor‑in‑Council on the recommendation of the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, following consultations with the chair of FIRB. Appointees are part-time and are paid on a per‑diem‑plus‑expenses basis, at rates established by Treasury Board. Meetings are held at the call of the chair.

As of November 1, 2003, board members that were originally appointed to the British Columbia Marketing Board and the Farm Practices Board, had their terms continued under the British Columbia Farm Industry Review Board.

Any person interested in being appointed to serve on FIRB is encouraged to write or e-mail the chair (for addresses click here). Please provide your resume with your letter of interest (specific information on how to apply is outlined on the Board Resourcing and Development Office web site). Experience in or sound knowledge of the marketing and/or production of agricultural products is an asset.

Mr Richard Bullock is a Kelowna orchardist and managing director of a large Okanagan orchard and agri-tourism operation. He is active in industry organizations and has served as president of the BC Fruit Growers’ Association, BC Tree Fruits Ltd., and Sun-Rype Products Ltd., and Director of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture. Mr Bullock has extensive experience in international consulting, including the production and processing of agricultural crops. He was appointed to the British Columbia Marketing Board as a member in 1998, and to the British Columbia Farm Industry Review Board as Chair on August 1, 2004. His current term expires on July 31, 2007.

Ms Christine Elsaesser is a lawyer residing in Kamloops. She has practiced law in the Interior of BC for 14 years, in a general civil litigation practice including family, municipal and personal injury law, and has extensive experience in administrative law relating to agriculture issues. Ms Elsaesser holds both a Bachelor at Science and Bachelor at Laws degrees from the University of British Columbia. She is a member of British Columbia Council of Administrative Tribunals. She was appointed to the British Columbia Marketing Board as a member in 1994 and vice chair in 1997, and vice chair of the Farm Practices Board in 2002. Effective August 1, 2006, the Chair of FIRB, after consultation with the Minister of Agriculture and Lands, appointed Ms. Elsaesser as a member for an additional six-month term expiring on January 31, 2007.

Mr Wayne Wickens, P.Ag., was employed by the then BC Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries from 1964 until his retirement in 1997, and held positions in Extension including Regional Director, South Coastal Region. For three years from 1997 to 2000, he served as the Chair of the Pricing and Production Advisory Commission for the BC Chicken Marketing Board during the mediation and negotiation of prices and production levels for chicken in British Columbia. He was appointed by the British Columbia Marketing Board as interim chair and sole member of the BC Chicken Marketing Board in March 2003 until a new chicken board was appointed. Mr Wickens is President of the Agriculture Institute of Canada Foundation, a member of the BC Institute of Agrologists, the Canadian Society of Extension, and the BC Farm Writers Association. He graduated from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture Degree (B.Sc.Agr.), majoring in Poultry Sciences. Appointed to the British Columbia Marketing Board in June 2003, his current term expires on July 31, 2008.

Ms Sandra Ulmi has extensive experience in the dairy industry, having worked many years for the BC Dairy Foundation as the Director of Nutrition Education. She has served as an advisor on a number of agriculture-related committees including the Animal Welfare Program at the University of British Columbia, and the UBC Dairy Education and Research Centre. She has been involved with local, national, and international organizations such as the BC Directorate of Agencies for School Health, the BC Nutrition Council, the Canadian Living Breakfast for Learning Foundation and the international Utrecht Group. Ms Ulmi holds a degree in Home Economics from the University of British Columbia and a Masters of Adult Education degree from St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia. Appointed to the British Columbia Farm Industry Review Board on October 7, 2004, her term expires on October 7, 2009.

Mr Garth R. Green is the President of Dundee Logistics and a former Operations Department Manager at Saputo Inc. He is a past Director of the BC Dairy Council and served as the BC processor advisor to the BC Milk Marketing Board and the Canadian Milk Supply Management Committee. Mr Green has been a member of the BC Institute of Agrologists since 1974, the Canadian Association of Logistics Managers and the Institute of Industrial Engineers. Within his community, he has been active with Scouts Canada and as a volunteer with many other community groups and events. Mr Green has a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture from the University of British Columbia. Appointed to the British Columbia Farm Industry Review Board on October 7, 2004, his term expires on October 7, 2009.

Ms Honey Forbes resides in Duncan and is currently working as a coroner in her community. She has a broad range of knowledge and experience with food, health and agriculture issues. Ms Forbes was raised on a dairy farm in Alberta, was a long time consumer representative on the Consultative Committee and the Canadian Milk Supply Management Committee of the Canadian Dairy Commission, a consumer representative and Board member of the Canadian Agri‑food Research Council and a consumer representative on Health Canada and the Heart and Stroke Foundation's Trans Fat Task Force. A former saskatoon grower in Alberta, she remains actively involved in family agri‑business interests in Alberta and BC. She holds an RN diploma, BScN and LLB degrees from the University of Alberta, and a Leadership diploma from the Canadian Farm Business Management Council's CALL program. Appointed to the British Columbia Farm Industry Review Board on July 31, 2006, her term expires on July 31, 2008.

Mr Dave Merz, owner/operator of Nechako Bend Ranch in the Central Interior, has participated in the agricultural industry in British Columbia since 1964. He is currently an appointed member of the Farm Credit Corporation Appeal Board and President of the BC Forage Council. In the past, he has chaired the Nechako‑Kitamaat Development Fund, the BC Cattle Industry Development Fund, the BC Cattlemen's Association Aboriginal Affairs Committee, and the Cattle Industry Development Council. Mr Merz has also been President of the BC Cattlemen's Association and was an appointed member of the BC Farm Debt Review Board. He has been an elected Director to the Canadian Cattlemen's Association, the BC Federation of Agriculture, and the American Forage and Grassland Council. He has been active in the Bulkley-Nechako Regional District Area Planning Commission and the Northern Interior Regional Advisory Committee (Aboriginal Affairs). Mr Merz holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Engineering from Oregon State University. Appointed to the British Columbia Farm Industry Review Board on July 31, 2006, his current term expires July 31, 2008.