Growers receive commission appointments
SPOKANE—The Washington Grain Commission (WGC) is pleased to announce the appointments of Nicole Berg as the WGC commissioner for Wheat District 5 representing Benton, Franklin, Kittitas, Klickitat, and Yakima Counties; and Art Schultheis as the WGC commissioner for Barley District 6 representing Asotin, Benton, Columbia, Franklin, Garfield, Klickitat, Walla Walla, Whitman, and Yakima Counties.
“Nicole and Art will be great additions to the Commission. In addition to being highly respected farmers, they bring a breadth of leadership experience that will undoubtedly benefit the grain growers of Washington,” WGC CEO Casey Chumrau said.
Schultheis is a fifth-generation wheat farmer who is currently farming land homesteaded by his family in 1874 near Colton. He received his degree in agriculture mechanics from Walla Walla Community College and farms with his son Kyle and daughter-in-law Stacie. They grow winter wheat, spring wheat, malt barley, food barley, lentils, peas, oats, garbanzo beans, canola, and bluegrass seed, using a direct-seed system in Whitman County, the nation’s leading wheat producing county. Art is also an owner/producer for Shepherd’s Grain, a grain handling and milling company that maintains an identity-preserved supply chain for wheat that is produced by certified regenerative farming practices. Art and his wife, Sue, have two children and four grandchildren.
Berg received her degree in agriculture communications from Washington State University. Nicole returned to the family farm near the town of Paterson in 1997. She also serves on the board for the Washington Association of Conservations Districts, the Red Cross, and Community First Bank. She is a past president of the Washington Association of Wheat Growers and the National Association of Wheat Growers.
The WGC board of directors is made up of 10 members, which includes seven producer members representing 20 Eastern Washington counties, two representatives of allied industries, and one representative from the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA).
The appointees begin terms with the calendar year and will assume their seats at the WGC board meeting in Pullman on January 24.
Grain commissioners receive reappointment
In addition to Berg and Schultheis joining the commission this year, two board commissioners received reappointment letters from WSDA Director Derek Sandison in December.
- Wheat District 2 (Whitman): Ben Barstow
Whitman County is the nation’s leading wheat producing county. Barstow farms near the town of Palouse. He was previously one of two barley representatives for the WGC and served as the board chairman from 2023-2024. He succeeds Gary Bailey, who retired from the commission at the end of 2024. Barstow was appointed to the WGC in 2019, and serves as a commissioner for the Palouse Rural Fire District #4, as a board member for the Palouse Grain Growers, and is on the organizing committee for the Palouse Cabin Fever Brewfest. - Wheat District 3 (Columbia, Walla Walla, Garfield, Asotin): Brit Ausman
Ausman is wheat grower representing four counties that make up the southeast corner of the state. He was appointed to the commission in 2012, and serves on the board of directors for the Wheat Marketing Center in Portland, Oregon, and is a school board member for the Asotin-Anatone School District.
Terms for the four appointees run through December 2027. Producer commissioners must be active producers within designated districts and are nominated by constituents in their respective districts for appointment by the WSDA. Industry representatives are recommended by the board for WSDA appointment, and the Director of Agriculture appoints his representative directly. The WGC is a self-governing agency of the State of Washington that allocates assessment funds to programs designed to enhance the production and marketing of Washington wheat and barley. For more information on the Washington Grain Commission board and a map of districts, visit our website at https://bit.ly/2UL0P5I.