WASHINGTON – The Organic Trade Association has added to its technical and regulatory team by hiring Joelle Mosso as senior director of technical and regulatory affairs and Scott Rice as director of regulatory affairs.

Ms. Mosso most recently was chief scientific officer for the Eurofins Product segment of Eurofins Scientific, which provides international analytical testing services. She previously was on the quality management team at Earthbound Farm, an organic produce company. Ms. Mosso is on the Center for Produce Safety Technical Committee, the International Fresh Produce Association Food Safety Council and the US Department of Agriculture’s National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods. She has served on the USDA’s National Organic Standards Board.

Mr. Rice has more than 20 years of experience in the organic industry. Most recently he oversaw outreach and external affairs for the Washington State Department of Agriculture Organic Program. He also served on the executive committee of the National Organic Standards Board and was chair of the Accredited Certifiers Association.

“We are extremely fortunate to have Joelle and Scott join the OTA team,” said Tom Chapman, chief executive officer of the Washington-based Organic Trade Association.  “We are confident that their solid experience and in-depth knowledge of organic will enable us to keep pushing organic forward in these challenging times and be a vital source of support for our members looking to grow their businesses or navigate increasingly complex organic regulations.”

Gwendolyn Wyard, currently vice president of regulatory and technical affairs for the OTA, will depart in June to form a new business called Strengthening Organic Systems, which will aim to improve the resilience and integrity of the global organic supply chain.