CalASFMRA Enters 2014 with New Logo, New Officers and New Direction

Taylor Hillman General

Nat DiBuduo

Nat DiBuduo

Nat DiBuduo, AFM, Allied Grape Growers, Elected President

CalASFMRA unveiled a new logo as officers were installed recently for the 2014 membership year. The California based organization is the second largest chapter of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers (ASFMRA) and under its new brand, CalASFMRA – Western Ag Professionals, has nearly 300 members in California and Nevada.

Nat DiBuduo, AFM, President of Allied Grape Growers in Fresno, was elected President of the professional organization. A native of the San Joaquin Valley, Nat has been a member of ASFMRA since 1994 and has served on the CalASFMRA board for five years. He has been President of Allied since 2000, leading the California wine grape marketing cooperative with its nearly 600 grower-members throughout the state. “As the newly elected President of CalASFMRA, I am excited about the direction and focus of the organization. It is both a personal and professional goal of mine to reach out to farm managers and agricultural consultants throughout our coverage area and to develop educational tools to help them in their careers. We have a strong program in place for appraisers and are looking forward to offering something similar for managers and consultants.”

In 2014, CalASFMRA will begin offering classes geared to farm management and agricultural consulting professionals that will include a certificate program along with the curriculum.

Other officers elected to the CalASFMRA Board include:

Mark Peterson, ARA, AFM, AAC – President-Elect / Kefa Capital, Inc. – Clovis

David Hamel, ARA – First Vice President / Hamel Appraisal – Santa Maria

Tony Toso, ARA – Second Vice President / Edwards, Lien & Toso, Inc. – Hilmar

Dan Whisenhunt, AAC – 2nd Year Board Member / John Potter Specialty Foods, Innovative Sales – Modesto

JoAnn Wall, ARA – 1st Year Board Member / Central Coast AgAppraisal – Templeton

John Maus, ARA – Immediate Past President / Farm Credit West – Woodland

Dorothy Bell, ARA – Secretary/Treasurer – Rabobank, N.A. – Reno

CalASFMRA is a member based organization whose mission is to provide rural and agricultural property economic professionals with the education and means to offer trustworthy valuation, management, consulting services. The group is a premier provider of agricultural appraisal education in California, publishes the widely recognized annual Trends in Agricultural Land & Lease Values publication, and presents the Outlook Agribusiness Conference each Spring. The Outlook 2014 event will be held on March 19 – 21 at the Radisson Hotel & Conference Center in Fresno.