April 1, 2010

New VDACS commissioner has lifelong tie to agriculture

HARRISONBURG—Del. Matt Lohr, R-Broadway, recently appointed as Virginia’s commissioner of agriculture and consumer services, has been involved in agriculture his entire life.

Lohr grew up on his family’s Virginia Century Farm and after high school served as national FFA vice president.

He later would serve as president of the Rockingham County Farm Bureau and with his wife, Andrea, win honors from both the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation and the American Farm Bureau Federation.

“I truly love being part of such an important industry,” Lohr said. He currently represents Harrisonburg and parts of Rockingham County in the Virginia General Assembly.

The Lohrs served on the VFBF Young Farmers Committee from 1998 to 2000 and were presented with its 2009 Warren Beach Award for support of young producers. In 2003 they won the VFBF and AFBF Excellence in Agriculture Awards.

Lohr is a 2004 graduate of the AFBF Partners in Agriculture Leadership program and was appointed to a committee that prepared the AFBF Making American Agriculture Productive and Profitable report.

“Serving on the MAAPP committee from 2004 to 2005 gave me key insight into what can be done to keep agriculture viable and profitable across our nation,” he said. “It was a great opportunity to travel the country and find out more about what it takes to keep agriculture successful. Farm Bureau has played a great role in my leadership development.”

Gov. Bob McDonnell said Lohr “understands the importance of agriculture to Virginia’s economy. Virginia’s farms don’t just grow food; they also provide critically important jobs and revenue for our commonwealth. I want an aggressive, experienced leader to head up the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. … Matt’s background in farming, his service in Richmond as a delegate, and his commitment to the citizens of the commonwealth make him the perfect individual to take on this important position.”

Lohr said his focus for the first few months on the job will be jobs for rural Virginia. “Most of our farmers rely on off-farm income to keep their farms going. With more jobs, farmers will be able to stay in farming.”

VFBF President Wayne F. Pryor said Lohr will be “an outstanding commissioner for VDACS and will bring all of his knowledge and passion for our great industry to the office.”

Contact Lohr at 540-437-1450 or Sherri McKinney, VFBF senior video producer, at 804-290-1148.