Northwest Horticultural Council

Foreign Trade Committee

Charter

1. Name: Foreign Trade Committee

2. Authority: The Foreign Trade Committee (FTC) is a standing committee of the Northwest Horticultural Council (NHC) and serves at its pleasure. It acts and communicates through the Trustees and staff of the NHC.

3. Function: To help identify and evaluate international trade barriers affecting NHC represented products and to suggest strategies and priorities for the elimination of these barriers. This process takes into account the staff time and monetary resources available to the NHC. The committee is expected to give its advice to the NHC Trustees on ocean transportation matters and other issues touching upon trade which may be referred to the committee from time to time by the Trustees.

4. Commodities Covered: Apples, pears, cherries, and other deciduous tree fruits, whether fresh or processed, grown in Idaho, Oregon, or Washington and represented by the NHC.

5. Membership: Committee membership is to be appointed by the NHC’s chairman from the industry-at-large in accordance with the following criteria: (1) Each state represented by the NHC shall have at least one member appointed to the FTC; (2) Priority will be given to appointing representatives of the top ten industry fruit firms engaged in international trade; (3) Only one member employed by the same industry fruit firm shall serve at any one time on the FTC; and (4) Should a committee member be unable to attend a specific meeting, that member, or his or her employer, by notifying the Foreign Trade Committee’s chairman, may designate an alternate to attend that meeting. Any such alternate will have the right to fully participate in the committee’s discussions and votes.

A representative of the staff of each of the following industry organizations will be invited to attend each Foreign Trade Committee meeting as a non-voting participant: Northwest Cherry Growers, Northwest Fruit Exporters, Pear Bureau Northwest, and Washington Apple Commission.

Total Membership: No more than 16 voting members shall serve on the committee. Membership will be for two year terms. Members may be reappointed. Members of the committee will commit to paying all expenses, including travel costs, which may be incurred as a result of committee business.

6. Chairman: The chairman of the Foreign Trade Committee shall be appointed by the chairman of the NHC Trustees. The chairman will be invited to attend each meeting of the Northwest Horticultural Council’s Trustees.

7. Staff Coordination: Employees of the NHC will serve as staff to the committee.

8. Frequency of Meetings: The Foreign Trade Committee will meet at least once a year, and at such other times as there is need and the committee desires.

9. Subcommittees/Working Groups: Resolution of a specific international trade issue may require more concentrated attention and effort than the full committee can reasonably devote. In such case the chairman of the Foreign Trade Committee may form either a subcommittee or special working group. Appointees to a subcommittee or special working group by the chairman may be members of the Foreign Trade Committee, special technical experts, or from the industry at large.

10. Date of Formation: March 3, 1989

Charter amended December 14, 1990; July 31, 1993; February 3, 1994; May 18, 1995; April 19, 2005; and December 16, 2005; May 14, 2015.