Article 1. General Provisions of California Food And Agricultural Code >> Division 21. >> Part 1. >> Chapter 6. >> Article 1.

This act shall be known and may be cited as the N. Waters-Nielsen-Vuich-Berryhill Foreign Market Development Export Incentive Program for California Agriculture Act.

(a) The Legislature finds and declares that it is the policy of this state to actively encourage and promote the sale of agricultural products of California in foreign markets and to assist farmers, processors, distributors, and exporters in meeting world market needs.
  (b) The Legislature further finds and declares, as being consistent with the Thurman Agricultural Policy Act (Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 801) of Part 1 of Division 1), both of the following:
  (1) The harvest from approximately one out of every four acres of California cropland is now sold in foreign markets, thus the state's agricultural economy is dependent upon international trade.
  (2) It is in the public's best interest to assist California agriculture in market development for agricultural products, and to expand world trade in these products to maximize growth in the state' s economy.

The definitions in this article apply to this chapter.

"Advisory committee" means the State Board of Food and Agriculture.

"Agricultural commodities" means the products of California farms and ranches and items processed from these products, and includes forest products, aquacultural products, and fish and fish products produced in California and livestock fed in feedlots located in California.

"Constraint" means a condition in a particular country or region which needs to be addressed in order to develop, expand, or maintain agricultural commodity exports.

"Cooperator" means a private or nonprofit agricultural marketing organization; a nonprofit trade association, whose members market agricultural commodities, which has demonstrated expertise in the promotion of agricultural commodities that will coordinate a foreign market development program for its members; a federal marketing order board for California produced agricultural commodities; or a state marketing order board or commission organized pursuant to this code operating in California which is actively engaged in the marketing of agricultural commodities and has entered into a project agreement with the department to contribute cash, goods, or services to a foreign market development program.

"Marketing" means the advertising, sale, and distribution of agricultural commodities, including private brands and trade names, in foreign markets.

"Marketing plan" means the primary annual document prepared by cooperators and approved by the director which defines activities and budgets addressing constraints and the marketing of agricultural commodities.

"Project agreement" means a contract between the department and a cooperator under which the cooperator agrees to conduct activities that both address constraints and encourage the development or maintenance of agricultural commodity export sales.

"State funds" means the funds made available by the department under a project agreement.

"Third party cooperator" means a foreign government or private organization which has entered into an agreement with a cooperator to join in the marketing of agricultural commodities.

"Cooperator contributions" means contributions of money, personnel, materials, facilities, services, or supplies, expressed in terms of United States dollar value, that are furnished by the cooperator and any third party cooperator to help carry out the terms of a project agreement. Funds, services, or personnel provided by any state or federal agency, except funds from a state marketing order board, including those funds allocated to carry out commodity transportation offset programs, agricultural commission organized pursuant to this code, or a federal marketing order board for California-produc ed commodities, cannot be counted as a contribution.

The department shall adopt regulations, including criteria to establish what constitutes cooperator contributions, necessary to effectuate this chapter. Whenever applicable, the regulations shall be consistent with similar regulations adopted by the Foreign Agriculture Service of the United States Department of Agriculture.

The department shall, as one of its functions, provide assistance to persons from foreign countries who desire to purchase agricultural products produced in this state. That assistance shall include advice on establishing business contacts that will meet the needs of the prospective purchaser.

The department shall direct a portion of any additional funding, in excess of the original appropriation for purposes of this act, to be used for all of the following purposes:
  (a) To conduct agricultural market research, including trends in California agricultural industry and trends in foreign agricultural markets. The agricultural market research shall be utilized to determine viable opportunities to export California agricultural products successfully to foreign markets.
  (b) To conduct personnel training, including the training of California foreign trade office personnel.
  (c) To perform existing duties of the department under this chapter.