Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has appointed two Californians, James Greenwood and Eric Schwartz, to the National Organic Standards Board.

The 15-member federal advisory board was established under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 and operates in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act to help develop standards for substances used in organic production, and to advise the secretary on aspects of the National Organic Program.

James Greenwood, appointed to fill the open environmental protection and resource conservation seat, is an organic avocado farmer and handler and has served on the board of directors for the USDA Hass Avocado Board.

He has served on the faculty of the School of Public Health at University of California, Los Angeles, where he has worked with UCLA’s Institute of the Environment and Sustainability and the Center for Public Health.

Greenwood holds master’s degrees in public health and microbiology and a doctoral degree in microbiology.

Schwartz, appointed to the open organic handling seat, has been involved in organic growing, harvesting and processing for more than 20 years.

The CEO for the United Vegetable Growers Cooperative, he previously served in a number of roles at Dole, including as senior vice president for operations, and served on several panels and boards, including the California Healthy Soils Initiative.

He co-chaired the start-up of the California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement and served on its board.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in logistics management from the Pennsylvania State University.