Hort Innovation Deputy Chairman and Chair of the 2016 Director Nomination Committee**, Mark Napper, said, “This is an exciting time. The organisation is approaching its second year as Horticulture Innovation Australia and, with industry, it is driving a significant amount of positive change in the areas of research and development, marketing and trade”.

He said the new Board would play a pivotal role in ensuring the organisation’s, and the Australia horticultural industry’s, ongoing success. “The candidate line up is strong, and it will be interesting to see who grower members will elect to help steer the organisation into its next phase of growth.”

Following a call for nominations in May, applications were formally assessed by recruitment company, Rimfire Resources. The Hort Innovation Director Nomination Committee – made up of Napper and two independent third parties – then interviewed shortlisted candidates, rating their suitability against a number of set criteria including their experience across areas such as growing, marketing, exporting and agriscience.

Napper said each candidate conveyed a commitment to horticulture and a drive to increase the productivity, farm-gate profitability and global competitiveness of Australian horticulture industries.

The Committee has nominated the following eight candidates for election or appointment as a Board Director in 2016:

Renata Brooks:

With a background in leadership and governance of agricultural research and development (R&D) in the public sector, she has a long-standing interest in creating opportunities through innovation. Brooks is currently Deputy Chair of the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation, having been a non-executive director of FRDC for seven years. She has significant experience in public policy, particularly in relation to agriculture, biosecurity and natural resource management, and has a proven executive management track record. Brooks is a graduate and fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Prof. Rob Clark:

Clark is a current Director of Hort Innovation and Emeritus Professor of Agricultural Science at the University of Tasmania. He is also a horticultural producer, as owner and Managing Partner of Lanoma Estate, a 500ha intensive agricultural property in the Derwent Valley Tasmania. Clark was a Foundation Director of the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture Research, and his prior appointments also include Deputy Chair of Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, a member of the National Research and Development Council, and a member of the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation Advisory Board, among others.

Paul Harker:

Harker has more than twenty years of retail experience spanning store operations, supply chain, and buying and marketing, including four years heading up the fresh produce buying team of one of Australia’s largest retailers. Through his professional background, He has an extensive understanding of retail, including strategy, operations, logistics, technology, and consumer marketing coupled with an extensive knowledge of the produce supply and value chain. Harker is a former non-executive Director of PMA A-NZ, and is currently the Director and owner of Highland Farms Pty Ltd, a small horticultural operation in the central tablelands of NSW.

Jenny Margetts:

Margetts has worked in the horticultural industry for more than 25 years in a range of roles across the supply chain. She has a background in agronomy, R&D management, industry planning and business management, and holds qualifications in applied science (horticulture technology), business and marketing. Jenny has a wealth of experience from both an industry and commercial perspective, and for the past twelve years, Margetts has managed her own consulting business.

Dr Lesley McLeod:

Dr McLeod has seventeen years general management experience in the agribusiness sector, has spent nine years as CEO of Dairy Innovation Australia and is a current Director of Fisheries Research and Development Corporation. He has a depth of skill and experience in innovation, agribusiness, strategic planning and corporate governance, as well as experience in managing academic and applied research, sourcing research funding and designing and delivering training. Dr McLeod is a graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Fran Raymond:

Raymond is an experienced Director with an extensive background in financial services, member-owned organisations, and the not-for-profit sector, and as an executive in the Commonwealth Government in a number of Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer roles. She has worked as the Chief Financial Officer for the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and the General Manager Corporate at the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. She is also a Board member of UN Women Australia and the Chair of Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee for the Canberra Institute of Technology, among other roles.

Selwyn Snell:

Snell is the current Chair of Hort Innovation and Barawyn Pty Ltd. With more than forty years of experience at senior executive and CEO level in agriculture, biotech and life sciences industries, he has served on numerous listed, unlisted and not-for-profit companies both internationally and domestically.  Snell has served as the former chairman of the Council of Rural Research and Development Corporations, non-executive Director of Plant Health Australia Ltd, and non-executive Director of the APVMA, among other roles. He is a fellow of the Australian Institute of Management and a graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Peter Wauchope:

Wauchope is a current Director of Hort Innovation, and current Chair of the Hort Innovation Trade Assessments Panel. He is also CEO of Center West Exports, a vertically integrated carrot growing, packing and marketing enterprise and recognised as one of Australia’s leading carrot producers and exporters, with customers in over seventeen countries. Wauchope has enjoyed more than thirty years’ experience in marketing fresh produce overseas and has travelled extensively throughout Asia, Middle East, Europe and USA visiting and servicing customers, and increasing market access for Australian fresh produce. Originally from the Manjimup district of Western Australia, his family still grows stonefruit and avocados in the district.

Two of these eights candidates will be elected as Directors by voting members at the AGM in the Sydney CBD on Friday, November 25. Three further candidates will then be appointed as Directors by the continuing Hort Innovation Board members (those who were elected/appointed in 2015). More information about each of the candidates will be provided to Members with the Notice of AGM next month, along with proxy voting details.

Levy-paying members of Hort Innovation are encouraged to complete and return their Annual Levy Return Forms by the cut-off date of Friday, September 30 to be eligible to vote at the AGM. Any levy-payers who are not current members of Hort Innovation may submit a Member Application Form and have the opportunity to complete an Annual Levy Return Form by the end of the month to secure their voting entitlement.

Horticulture Innovation Australia is a not-for-profit organisation charged with investing more than $100 million in research and development (R&D) and marketing programs annually and is funded by levies, Commonwealth Government matching funds for R&D, and external co-investment funds.

*The organisation’s Constitution requires that five (5) Directors retire from the Board.

**The committee responsible for the nomination of Director candidates for election / appointment.