FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 16, 2022
Contact: media@thehia.org
Hemp Industries Association Announces the Results of Board Elections
Members Choose Four Directors with Emphasis on Hemp Foods, Safety, and Science
VANCOUVER, Washington – The Hemp Industries Association announces the results of its 2021 Board of Directors Election, with the conclusion of voting on December 31st, 2021. Voting members of the nation’s foremost nonprofit hemp group elected Lauren Graham, General Counsel for Beneficial Blends, Vanessa Snyder, Director of Business Development for Eurofins Food Chemistry Testing, Christopher Ware, CEO of KCA Laboratories, and re-elected Anndrea Hermann, Principal at The Ridge International to her fifth consecutive term.
“All of the remarkable things HIA has accomplished in the past were only made possible through of the dedicated efforts of its volunteer leaders,” said HIA’s Executive Director Jody McGinness, “So it is just incredibly encouraging to see today’s members choosing such committed and qualified Directors to guide this association into the future.”
The 2021 election was the first since the democratic association formed in 1994 to be conducted entirely by remote ballot, and featured eleven candidates from across the hemp industries that make up the diverse membership of HIA. Filling four seats on the HIA’s 13-member, all-volunteer Board, voting members chose to add new Directors who bring expertise in the crucial areas of hemp foods, safety/compliance, and analytical testing, while returning to service Anndrea Hermann, whose more than two decades of hemp industry experience encompasses international hemp grain exports, hemp building, education, activism, and more.
Departing the Board is Todd Runestad, Senior Editor at Natural Products Insider, who stepped in for 18 months to fulfill the term of a vacated seat. Annie Rouse, CEO of Anavii Market, OP Innovates, and Hemp Mellow, whose elected term also ended December 31st, was appointed to the remaining vacant seat for one year.
“I am excited to continue my work with HIA,” said Rouse, “The industry is at a pivotal point where the decisions the industry makes now will impact the crop’s future for decades to come. I look forward to lending my support and expertise to help advance hemp’s future.”
The new and returning Board members are elected for three years, beginning January 1,st 2022, and join a distinguished list of hemp activists and business leaders who have contributed to the organization’s leadership over the years. Business and farming members with at least two consecutive years of membership are eligible to stand for election.
ABOUT THE HEMP INDUSTRIES ASSOCIATION
Founded more than 25 years ago by a group of hemp business owners and activists, The Hemp Industries Association is a membership-based nonprofit trade association that serves all facets of the U.S. hemp industry through education, advocacy, networking, and legal actions. Members include businesses, nonprofits, farms, schools, regulators, activists, advocates, consumers, students, and others who support ethical, sustainable, and inclusive practices for the hemp industry including: transparent labeling, responsible marketing, regenerative organic farming, community service, quality products, scientific accuracy, and concern for human rights. Its mission statement reads: “To advance the hemp economy and educate the market for the benefit of our members, the public, and the planet.”