A look back at inside-WSDA happenings

Kathy Davis
Communications

The beginning of the calendar year is an opportune time to reflect back on the year just past and some significant changes affecting WSDA.

State employees outside the Natural Resources Building
in Olympia check out the solar eclipse on Aug. 21.

A number of developments were aimed at providing more support for agency employees. We also saw some changes at the program level, and improvements in communications. 

Focus on workforce support

Recognizing how much administrative functions such as technology, human resources, financial services, communications and more have changed in our modern world, WSDA approved an increase in the rate that funds these functions for the entire agency. The rate, which is a percentage of certain portions of WSDA’s fee-for-service account, funds centralized support services. 

The increased admin funding will, for instance, allow IT to keep critical systems updated and better protect the agency from growing cyber threats. Enhanced HR support will help keep pace with turnover from an aging workforce and the unique demands of hiring hundreds of seasonal workers. Communications, performance planning and regulatory support have also been enhanced. 

The agency’s Safety Program took big strides during 2017 to serve internal customers and protect workers from injury and hazards. The team created a recognition program, started publishing a quarterly newsletter, and has been regularly shadowing workers to learn about and address on-the-job conditions that could jeopardize safety. 

Other highlights of administrative achievements include:

• Started using the Learning Management System (LMS), a state web-based tool to search, manage and register for job training. 
• Programs and teams reviewed and updated the action plans created as part of the agency’s formal strategic planning effort. 
• Employees began receiving new standardized agency ID cards as proof of employment to show customers and the public.
• Staff relocated within the Natural Resources Building (agency headquarters) – as the NRB space workgroup continued planning for the future – including two programs moving to the third floor. 
• A record year in policy development produced 30 new or revised policies and 25 new or revised procedures or guidelines. 

Communications ups its game

The fact that you’re reading this article on an online blog marks just one of the advancements made in WSDA communications over the past year. In April, the Communications Office unveiled a refreshed and redesigned intranet homepage, featuring blog-based stories for and about WSDA employees, along with other improvements. 

In addition, we’ve made big strides in using social media. In the past year, our Facebook followers more than doubled, now surpassing 8,000! WSDA recently added two more platforms – Instagram and Flickr – to our social media toolkit. 

Other communication progress includes:

• Moving ahead with the formal process to contract for a whole new redesign of the agency’s 15-year-old internet (public) website. 
• Responsibility for developing and managing forms shifted to the Administrative Regulations office, adding capacity for professional graphic design services. 
• Hired a summer communications intern, adding service capacity and introducing a recent college grad to state government work. 

Program news

WSDA programs took shape and changed shape during 2017: 

• The Produce Safety Program, funded through federal grants to implement major food safety legislation, added staff to assist state produce growers comply with the law. 
• The Industrial Hemp Research Pilot, started in 2016, issued licenses to the first growers in Washington. 

  

  The state’s first modern-era industrial hemp farmers receiving their
  WSDA licenses and seeds. From left Cory Sharp, Emily Febles
  (former Industrial Hemp Research Pilot coordinator), Victor Shaul
  (Seed Program manager), and Shane Palmer.

• The Regional Markets staff (previously paired with Food Assistance within Food Safety and Consumer Service Division) joined the International Marketing Program within the Commodity Inspection Division. 

And lastly…

On a fun note, many WSDA staff, along with folks across the country, went outside on Aug. 21, using special solar glasses or other protective devices to take in the unique experience of a near-total solar eclipse. 

To learn about more agency accomplishments and happenings during 2017, check out the latest post on our external blog, Ag Briefs. 

In summary: A lot happens in a year! Reflect back on some of the significant developments that affected our workforce and organizational support in the past year.

Pesticide Management Division surmounts personnel changes

Kathy Davis
Communications

The leadership scene within the Pesticide Management Division has been shifting over the past several months. 

Leading the division, Robin Schoen-Nessa was permanently appointed assistant director in September. A lengthy recruitment and screening process led to Robin being tapped after serving in an acting capacity since April, when former AD Brent Barnes left the agency. 

Also during 2017, the former manager of the Compliance Program, Alberto Isiordia, took a job with the state Employment Security Department, and Ginny Prest, who headed the Dairy Nutrient Management Program (DNMP), retired. 

Representing the Pesticide Management Division, left to right, are Robin Schoen-Nessa,
 Tina Zimmerman, Joel Kangiser, Kelle Davis and Chery Sullivan.

Subsequently, other division leaders have stepped up. Filling in behind Robin after she became AD, Kelle Davis has been acting program manager of the Registration and Licensing Program. Her former position remains vacant. However, when Tina Zimmerman joined the program in April, she assumed the duties of supervising the Licensing Section – a brand new role that has helped ease the gap. 

Recently, Joel Kangiser was made permanent manager of the Compliance Program. He had been filling the spot since May when Alberto left. Joel held that position previously, and he’d been serving as the division’s policy assistant for the past couple of years. 

Since summer, Compliance has also undergone structural changes aimed at providing more support for field operations. 

Specifically, Tim Schultz, long-time case review officer and former area manager, now fills the role of operations manager, where he supervises all program area managers and reports to Joel. Scott Nielson, Spokane area manager, takes on Tim’s case review duties, along with continuing to supervise the two Spokane investigators. 

Since Scott will be focusing more time on case reviews, long-time compliance specialist Tom Hoffmann takes a lead role in the Moses Lake office, supervising investigators there. In addition, Tom is coordinating activities between Compliance and the Technical Services and Education Program (TSE). 

“TSE is expected to grow as demand for their services continues to increase,” Robin said. “Having Tom as a liaison links compliance and training so we can be in synch as issues emerge.” 

Flor Servin (red jacket) and Ofelio Borges (center) lead farmworker training
for the Technical Services and Education Program.

Ofelio Borges has been leading TSE since September 2015. Soon, his former supervisor position will be filled by Flor Servin. Flor has been an agricultural educator at Department of Labor & Industries the past two years, and is returning to WSDA where she previously was a farmworker educator.  

Looking ahead

Given the time and care it takes to recruit and hire new managers, Robin said she plans to fill one program manager position at a time. 

The DNMP program manager recruitment announcement has been posted and will be open through Jan. 2. Chery Sullivan, formerly DNMP supervisor, has been acting program manager for the past couple of months. 

The Registration and Licensing program manager should be hired soon thereafter. Once these lead roles are in place, other technical and supervisory positions will be stabilized as well.  

“If you like a challenge and have a strong science background, please stay tuned for more opportunities in the Pesticide Management Division,” Robin said. 

While it’s been a lot to sort out and adjust to over a brief period, Robin acknowledged change is a constant. 

“We need to always be planning ahead and working on succession, especially knowing that we have many long-term employees in key positions,” she noted.  

In summary: The Pesticide Management Division has been undergoing a number of changes during the past year, with several leadership positions and some organizational structures shifting.

Candace Jacobs has new plans for the new year

Mike Louisell
Communications

Dr. Candace Jacobs

Dr. Candace Jacobs has had a remarkable career. She’s worked all across the U.S. -- with the Air Force, as a state toxicologist in Nebraska, veterinary work in two states, and with some of America’s largest food and beverage companies. That list includes Coca-Cola, Campbell’s Soup, Chobani Yogurt and Starbucks.

Candace’s pattern has been to move wherever there’s an opportunity, and she’s had plenty in her life. Now she’s moving to retirement at the end of December, after two periods of working with WSDA for a total of nearly 15 years.

From Nebraska to WSDA

“When I grew up in Nebraska and baked cookies as a 4H Club member, I never dreamed I’d serve 24 years with the Air Force and become a colonel, live in 12 states and travel to major destinations across the globe,” Candace said.

Her secrets to success include determination and a strong belief in pursuing an education that supports your interests. For Candace, that includes a bachelor’s degree in zoology from the University of Arkansas, a master’s in public health from San Diego State, and a doctor of veterinary medicine from Oklahoma State.

WSDA career

Candace, third from left, wins senior swim competition

During her first go-around with WSDA from 1994 to 2000, Candace served as a policy assistant in the Director’s Office, a public health adviser, and as assistant director of the Food Safety and Animal Health Division. She returned to WSDA in mid-2015 to head a reorganized division (Food Safety and Consumers Services) that includes Food Safety, Animal Feed, Food Assistance, and the Food Safety and Consumer Services Laboratory.

“I’m very proud to have worked with so many excellent managers and the employees of these programs,” Candace said.

 A highlight of her work in the FSCSD includes directing the division’s response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Food Safety Modernization Act. And more recently, creating a Produce Safety Program. The program assists farmers in complying with FDA rules on produce safety.

“Many of our efforts involve working with farmers and food producers to reduce public health risks,” she said. “Our employees work vigorously in trying to prevent foodborne illnesses and with our regulatory partners and our licensees to minimize outbreaks.”

Candace and her leadership team have been recognized for their great work.

Candace's blue ribbon quilt at the 
Thurston County Fair 2017

Candace was awarded the 2017 Sanitarian Award from the International Association for Food Protection. She also received the 2017 Food Safety Veterinarian of the Year award from the American Associaton of Food Safety & Public Health Veterinarians.

Also two of her division’s managers were selected in the past two years to receive the Governor’s Award for Leadership in Management. Kim Eads, Food Assistance Program, and Dr. Yong Liu, head of the division’s food safety laboratory, have both earned this distinguished state honor.

We wish Candace well in the next chapter of her life and thank her for her many years of service, here in the Evergreen State and elsewhere.

In summary: Assistant Director Candace Jacobs is retiring from WSDA at the end of December, capping a career of military service, positions with major food and beverage companies, and state agencies in support of improved food safety across the U.S.

Intern grows professionally while learning about ag world

Hannah Street
Communications intern

Hannah Street

From everything I was told about internships, from peers, professors, and the media (see “The Devil Wears Prada”), I could only surmise that they were grueling in their monotony, unbearably menial, and essentially free labor. 

I now have a new perception of internships based on my time with the WSDA Communications Office. 

I never took a coffee order or ran a personal errand, and working as a paid intern communicated a heightened level of respect and appreciation for the position. I wrote blogs, took photos, edited documents, and wrote my first project proposal. 

I never felt like I was “paying my dues” in order to get somewhere else. I only ever felt like a valued member of a team, and someone whose input was heard and appreciated. I felt like my job was important. 

Support made the difference

My supervisor, Communications Director Hector Castro, was forever asking me how I was doing and what I wanted to do. Were there blog subjects I was interested in? Was there anything I wanted to help with or organize or write? 

Photo by Hannah; learning about cherry processing on assignment to write an 
Ag Briefs blog post about an International Marketing Program in-bound mission. 

Karla Salp entrusted me with a very expensive camera for an assignment on my first day, and Kathy Davis let me take the lead on one of the biggest long-term projects I’ve ever worked on. And as I worked, I knew that a team of experts was just down the hall, ready and willing to help. That support made all the difference.

Bad internships are out there, so perhaps the gloomy foreshadowing wasn’t exactly a tall tale. But I do know if internships like mine were the norm, Andi would have become an assistant editor instead of quitting Vogue in the middle of Paris Fashion Week. (Seriously, just watch “The Devil Wears Prada.”)

Photo by Hannah; taken at a waste pesticide disposal event
in Seattle in June, which was covered by news media.

Sometimes my job here felt like an oasis from the harsher reality of the outside world. I’m so glad I started my post-graduate work experience at WSDA, because moving forward I’m more aware of my strengths and my worth as a professional who can make a positive impact. 

Interns add value

I hope the agency has more internships like mine in the future. As a general rule, college students are eager, innovative, and smart. I think many people at WSDA would benefit, not only from some extra help, but also from introducing more young professionals into the agriculture industry. 

I’ll be staying with WSDA a little longer, joining the policy team. The work I’ll be doing and the legislative session will be a new experience, and I’m excited to get started. 

In summary: Intern Hannah Street reflects on her experience in her first post-graduate, professional position as a member of WSDA’s Communications Office.

Planning, Lean aids Chemical and Hop Lab as hops industry booms

Mike Louisell 
Communications

Washington’s hop industry has experienced spectacular growth for the past five years, bringing planted acreage and harvests to new records.

While that’s kept things busy at WSDA’s Chemical and Hop Laboratory in Yakima, some careful planning and recent Lean projects have allowed the lab and its staff to keep pace with the growing workload.

The hop team works seven days a week from late August to November each year to support this key commodity. Their customers are hop growers and dealers from Washington and a handful of clients from Oregon and Idaho.

“In five years we’ve had almost a 50 percent increase in hop bales we’ve inspected,” lab manager Mike Firman said.  “Meanwhile, the number of employees we have working the season has stayed about the same.”

WSDA’s hops role

Sorting hops for seed, leaf and stem percentages

Hops are the essential ingredient to flavor and preserve beer. The lab staff test hops for quality by measuring leaf, stem, and seed content. The lower the percentage of seeds, leaves and stems, the better the price growers receive.

Employees sampled a record 413,500 hop bales, up from 347,000 bales in 2016. They also issued 2,900 commodity inspection certificates for each lot of hops, up from 2,670 certificates the previous season.

Certificates document U.S. Department of Agriculture requirements for seed and leaf/stem percentages. WSDA serves as a neutral third-party to determine the results. The sale price of hops is based on information in the certificate, which also lists the hop variety inspected.

“Our goal is to issue certificates to our customers for each lot within 24 hours of receipt of the core sample at our lab,” Mike said. A “lot” can range from one bale to several hundred bales, grading 10 percent of the lot per client.

Process improvements

Lean initiatives Mike and his team have undertaken in recent years have helped lab personnel stay on top of the increased workload.

“We’ve put our emphasis on improving employee productivity and making equipment changes that streamline our processes,” Mike said.

Supervisor Chris Wiseman agrees, reporting the program took several steps to improve operations.

“We anticipated a larger hop crop this year, so we increased the size of the cooler where we temporarily store samples,” Chris noted. The hop cooler preserves hops so they don’t degrade prior to being evaluated.

“Plus, the cooler helps cut down on overpowering hop aromas in our work areas!”

Hop Lab's Chris Wiseman takes core sample from bale

Scanning barcode info from hop core samples

Program staff bought mobile stainless steel racks to put the hops on, spending less time transferring and carrying samples and boxes around the work stations.

Strategies and personnel

Work strategies changed as well. Hop samplers, who work either at a hop dealer business or have a route going to hop farms, mark all bales with a food grade marker. Samplers pull a sample core from 10 percent of the bales from each customer’s lot and deliver the cores to the Chemical and Hop Lab.

Lab officials decided the core samples should be delivered to the lab toward the end of the day so hop graders would be better prepared for the next morning’s work.

“Consistency of personnel also played a key part in being able to handle this year’s workload,” Chris said. “Not having to stop and train one or two new people every week helped increase our productivity. We had a cohesive group working well together.”

Over the past four years, the program has pretty much “Leaned” out work steps. One of the best examples of process improvements is using tablets and scanners in the sampling process, enabling them to barcode the samples.

Barcoding reduces human error in transcribing numbers and calculating seed, leaf, and stem amounts. It speeds up the process and helps keep things more organized. Data and certificates get emailed to customers so they’re quickly aware of results.

Hop stats show growth

The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) lists hops as the eighth highest-ranked crop in the state at $382 million in 2016, up from 10th place the prior year at $280 million.

Washington produces 75 percent of all hops grown in the U.S., and from just two counties—Yakima and Benton—in the Yakima Valley.

In 2016, the latest figures available, Washington growers harvested 37,444 acres of hops weighing 65.4 million pounds.

In summary: Washington’s hop industry is booming and that’s kept WSDA staff at the Chemical and Hop Laboratory in Yakima ultra busy.

WSDA hosts western states' horticultural inspectors

Sue Welch
Plant Services

Nursery inspectors from 11 states visited the Tri-Cities last month, meeting with our Plant Services Program inspectors as WSDA hosted the annual Western Horticultural Inspection Society (WHIS) meeting.

Each year, WHIS holds a meeting in one of the member states, hosted by that state’s inspectors. This year, it was Washington’s turn to host. More than 30 horticultural inspectors attended, including staff from WSDA’s Plant Services Program. The group was welcomed by Plant Protection Division Assistant Director Brad White.

WSDA hosted WHIS conference Oct. 10-12

During the three-day event, held October 10 - 12 in Richland, we shared information about our programs, discussed the import and export of plant material, and talked about plant pests and diseases. 

Plant Protection Supervisor John Wraspir of Mount Vernon organized the event, with assistance from our state inspectors, including Aaron Paul and Levi Strauss.

Insect trapping 

We started off with pest biologist Jenni Cena discussing the types of traps our Pest Program uses to verify the presence of invasive pests – from Japanese beetle to gypsy moths.

Compressed hay

We topped off the first day with a sense of camaraderie in our Richland hotel hospitality suite with Northwest wines, beer and snacks. It’s only appropriate since Washington is the second largest producer of premium wines in the U.S. Our beers aren’t too shabby, either. 

Our first tour the next day was to Zen-Noh Hay in Pasco to see how hay is processed and inspected, before being exported to places such as Japan, the United Arab Emirates and Canada. Washington is a major hay export state, enjoying a well-deserved reputation for quality.

From there, we traveled to Walla Walla Nursery. An inspector from each state shared information about their inspection procedures, their states’ current invasive pest concerns, trapping and other programs. 

SANC audit drill

We then split into groups, where we performed a mock “SANC audit.” SANC is an acronym for the Systems Approach to Nursery Certification. SANC is a National Plant Board program that works to improve nursery stock. The National Plant Board’s Aurelio Posadas led the audit drill. 

Representatives from Walla Walla Nursery, which is involved in the SANC pilot program, showed us around and explained their approach to keep nursery plants free from pests and disease.

Grapes ready for wine

The following day, we were in Prosser to visit Clean Plant Center Northwest. Run by Washington State University staff, this facility tests hundreds of varieties of fruit trees, grapevines and hops. Plants submitted by growers are “cleaned up” using heat therapy to remove viruses. The facility provides virus-free planting materials across the U.S. Many of these plants go to Washington nurseries that grow and sell them under WSDA’s certification programs.

Inland Desert Nursery

After lunch, we stopped by a vineyard for a first-hand look at a grapevine virus disease; then continued to Inland Desert Nursery in Benton City for a tour and a review of the Washington Grapevine Registration and Certification process. This is a process that several of our inspectors are deeply involved with. Inland Desert sometimes requests additional WSDA inspectors to get all of the vines certified during the busy growing season.

Marijuana growing at a Benton County nursery

Our last tour was at a cannabis growing and processing operation, also located in Benton City. The owner offered observations for growing and licensing marijuana with the state. In addition to the state Liquor and Cannabis Board, several WSDA programs are involved in regulating marijuana including the Chemical and Hop Laboratory, Weights and Measures, and Pesticide Management’s Registration and Licensing Services. 

Our interaction with inspectors from multiple states was most interesting and valuable. We concluded our conference at the Walter Clore Center in Prosser. 

Next year the Western Horticultural Inspection Society meeting will be held in Arizona.

In summary: WSDA hosted nursery inspectors from 11 states at the Oct. 10-12 meeting of the Western Horticultural Inspection Society in Richland. The group toured nursery facilities throughout Benton County. 

New WSDA program aims for safe produce in Washington

Kathy Davis
Communications

The federal Produce Safety Rule applies to fruits and
vegetables that are generally eaten raw. 

WSDA has a brand new program. Thanks to funding from a federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) grant awarded just over a year ago, the new Produce Safety Program is taking form within the Food Safety and Consumer Services Division. 

The five-year FDA grant aims to help Washington state comply with the Produce Safety Rule under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).  This sweeping federal reform of the nation’s food safety laws was signed into law in 2011. It aims to ensure the U.S. food supply is safe by shifting the focus from responding to contamination to preventing it.

The Produce Safety Program’s first hire was Roger Beekman, program manager. He said the first year has been focused on getting organized, creating the structure of the program, and hiring staff, as well as starting education and outreach activities with affected producers. 

Joining Roger on the team over the past year are Jill Wisehart, management analyst, Lyndsie Wilson, administrative assistant, and Karen Ullman, commerce specialist. Karen came from WSDA’s Regional Markets Program, where she worked with many of the same producers and farmers who will be affected by the produce rule. 

As they build capacity, the program’s next phase will involve inspection and enforcement of the rules. The newest member of the team, who will begin on Nov. 16, is Kelly Gregson, public health advisor based in Yakima. According to Roger, Kelly will serve as a regional manager, supervising a network of inspectors who will ultimately be spread around the state. 

Keeping fruits and veggies safe to eat
The federal produce rules regulate on-farm practices such as the quality of water used on the produce, soil amendments, animals – domestic and wild - on the property, and worker hygiene. 

The rules cover foods that are generally eaten raw, especially fruits, berries, fresh greens, and even carrots and onions. It does not cover produce that’s generally not eaten raw, such as potatoes, corn, asparagus and cranberries. There’s a specific section on sprouts, since they are often associated with foodborne illness outbreaks. 

Compliance is being phased in, based on farm size as measured by average annual produce sales. Producers with less than $25,000 annual growth sales are exempt. The largest firms and farms must begin complying in January 2018. Smaller businesses will start coming under the rule in subsequent years based on size. 

If the thrust of the Produce Safety Rule sounds familiar, you may notice similarities to USDA’s Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and Good Handling Practices (GHP). WSDA’s “Bridging the GAP” project has provided education, information and technical assistance to boost on-farm food safety. 

While the practices have similar aims, there are differences. 

“GAP is market-based and voluntary,” Roger said. “Producers pay to be audited and GAP compliance is used as a selling point.”

As the newest WSDA program takes shape, this team will focus on working with those who produce Washington-grown fruit and vegetables to safeguard the food supply for consumers.  

In summary: WSDA’s newest program, Produce Safety, is responsible for making sure Washington growers comply with sweeping federal food safety reform.