Raspberries & Blackberries Australia (RABA) has appointed Jonathan Eccles as its executive officer and industry development manager.
Eccles, who begins his appointment in early January, has held positions with a number of leading Australian horticultural industry bodies and is widely recognised for his role in steering the banana industry through the Queensland floods in 2011 and the aftermath of Cyclone Yasi.
RABA president Phil Rowe said Eccles would play a vital role in developing the organisation and assisting the industry with the management of research and marketing levy funded programmes.
“His (Eccles) skills and wide experience in industry research and development, communications, marketing and leadership, as well as his horticultural knowledge, will be an asset to RABA”, Rowe said.
Eccles replaces outgoing executive officer and industry development manager, Alison Brinson, who has been with RABA, and its original incarnation Australian Rubus Growers Association, for 11 years. Rowe praised Brinson for her long-term contribution to the Rubus industry.
“Alison’s retirement will mark the completion of a major stage in the maturity of the industry and of RABA in representing it,” Rowe said.
Australian raspberry and blackberry production has risen from less than 500 tonnes per year in 2004 to in excess of 2000 tonnes of premium quality fruit in 2012. The Rubus industry is expected to continue its rapid expansion, with RABA forecasting production will double over the next three years.
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