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The Cherry Industry Administrative Board (CIAB) is an instrumentality of the United States Department of Agriculture formed under the authority of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937. The purpose of the organization is to support the national red tart cherry industry and, ultimately, to improve prices paid to producers for their cherries. These goals can be accomplished by using such production research, marketing research and development projects, such container and pack requirements, such standards of quality and maturity or such grading and inspection requirement as will accomplish the orderly marketing of red tart cherries.

The principal regulatory element currently utilized by the CIAB is the matching of supplies of red tart cherries with the demand for such products through the Optimum Supply Formula (OSF). Under the OSF, regulation of the amount of fruit that goes to market may be required in years when supply exceeds the demand for red tart cherries.

The CIAB is both industry created and funded. Its organizational meeting was January 8, 1997, following an industry wide referendum that enacted the terms of the marketing order. Annual assessments are authorized by the order and collected from processors. These assessments are used to pay for the costs of operation of the CIAB and the oversight of the regulatory activities.

The states included in the Order are: Michigan, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin. The Handlers processing cherries from states producing more than 6 million pounds of cherries are regulated, which means that they must divert cherries from the market in years of surplus production. Red tart cherries in excess of demand are diverted from the market in any one of several ways which include either in the orchard, at the plant or through unique markets such as food bank donations, exportation and new product development.

The information on the following pages is primarily provided for producers and handlers of the nation's red tart cherry crop. Periodic information will include crop reports, opportunities for diversion certificate acquisitions, amendments to the Order and other information such as the quarterly newsletter.