Georgia’s citrus industry has a new leading lady. Actually, she’s a familiar face who has a new title.
While Lindy Savelle will continue to promote Georgia citrus, it will be under the title of executive director of the Georgia Citrus Association (GCA).
Savelle was the president of GCA for almost eight years. Now, the association has put a succession plan in place to line up the future of its board and move to more of a governing body.
“Since I’ve been the face of the organization for all of these years, the board thought it would be a good opportunity to put in place an executive director position — somebody that can go to meetings and be a champion for our industry,” Savelle explained. “This was just a way to continue to have me be our cheerleader, so to speak, and work on some things. There’s still much to be done.”
Savelle, with JoNina Farm in Thomas and Mitchell counties, has been a key player in marketing Georgia citrus. Along with serving as the GCA president for nearly eight years, she was one of five members appointed to the Georgia Citrus Commission last year.
Her executive director tasks will remain much the same as her presidential duties — advancing the industry in Georgia. She will collaborate with board members and stakeholders; cultivate strong relationships within the ag sector at the regional, state and national levels; and work to secure financial support for the industry.
“Obviously, we want to continue to grow the volume of citrus here so that it continues to be recognized as a relevant commodity for our state,” Savelle said.
One of her main tasks will be to develop a plan to combat the threat of citrus greening. Savelle noted that no formal action plan is currently in place in the event that Asian citrus psyllids are detected or citrus greening is found in a grove.
“We believe that we’ve got to do something to protect the industry and protect the investment that everyone has put in,” Savelle said. “That plan will be a way to mitigate the impact of what we might find out there.”
By Clint Thompson