Morris named Deputy Administrator of USDA agricultural and livestock program

Washington, D.C. - 5/18/07 - The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) announced the selection of Craig A. Morris as the deputy administrator of AMS' Livestock and Seed Program.

With his entire career focused on the meat and poultry industry, Morris, PhD, will lead the program's focuses on meat grading and certification services; livestock, meat and grain market new service; voluntary, user-fee, audit-based programs available to agriculture product and services suppliers; and seed regulatory and testing activities. The program also purchases meat and fish for federal feeding programs, oversees research and promotion programs and develops standards and purchase specifications for livestock and meat products.

Since 2004, Morris has served as deputy administrator of AMS Poultry Programs and before that, associate deputy administrator heading the agency's services for the chicken, turkey, egg and rabbit industries. He has also served as assistant vice president of food safety for Future Beef Operations, LLC, in Kansas, and as the manager of scientific and technical affairs for the American Meat Institute in Washington, D.C.

"His varied background and proven abilities in various leadership positions make him an ideal choice for this important post," says AMS Administrator Lloyd Day of Morris.