Jack Payne, senior vice-president for agriculture and natural resources at the University of Florida (UF), has announced that Jacqueline Burns has been appointed as director of the Citrus Research and Education Centre (REC) in the US state.
'Jackie Burns is a tremendous leader and a pre-eminent researcher in her own right,' Payne explained. 'I believe very strongly in her leadership abilities and her vision for the Citrus REC. She knows what the state's citrus growers need and want and works tirelessly to ensure that our scientists get the most pertinent, valuable information to them.'
In the role, Burns will focus on the physiological processes related to abscission and harvesting, and maintaining fresh citrus fruit quality during handling, shipping and storage.
She said that she welcomed the challenge of leading the centre's faculty and staff as they work to support the state's citrus industry, while overseeing UF's citrus research and extension efforts statewide as IFAS citrus programme coordinator.
'I intend to work hard to be sure our scientists have no obstacles as they work to solve citrus issues and help keep Florida's citrus industry the strongest in the world,' Burns added.
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