A Viroqua woman has been appointed to serve on to the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) by United States Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack.

Wendy Fulwider, an organic farmer and the animal husbandry specialist at CROPP/Organic Valley, is one of five new members of the board, Vilsack announced Monday.

The appointees will serve terms beginning Jan. 24, 2010, and ending Jan. 24, 2015. Joining Fulwider are: Joe Dickson, Austin, Texas, certification director of Whole Foods; Jay Feldman, environmentalist, executive director of Beyond Pesticides; John Foster, an organic handler from McMinnville, Ore.; and Annette Riherd, an organic fruit and vegetable farmer from Oologah, Okla.

The NOSB includes four producers, two handlers, one retailer, three environmentalists, three consumers, one scientist and one certifying agent.

The board makes recommendations to the Secretary of Agriculture regarding the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances for organic operations.