Vienna, Va. – The U.S. Apple Association (USApple) announced the selection of Nancy E. Foster as USApple president and chief executive officer at the association's Apple Crop Outlook and Marketing Conference held in Chicago last week. Nancy will take the helm at USApple in mid-September, following seven years as vice president of legislative affairs with CropLife America, formerly the American Crop Protection Association.

"We are excited that Nancy will be assuming leadership at USApple," said USApple Executive Search Committee Chairman Phil Glaize. "Nancy has a very strong track record in Washington, D.C., and she is an experienced manager who understands the legislative process and has the vision and drive to lead our industry in these very challenging times."

Since 1995 Foster has served as the vice president of legislative affairs for CropLife America, the Washington, D.C.-based trade association representing the developers, manufacturers, formulators and distributors of plant science solutions for agriculture and pest management in the United States.

Prior to joining CropLife America, Foster directed the Washington, D.C., office of the American Dietetic Association. Previously, she served as vice president of public affairs for the American Soybean Association, worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Independent Petroleum Association of America and the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives.

Foster replaces Kraig R. Naasz, who departed USApple at the end of May to become president of The Fertilizer Institute. USApple Vice President James (Jim) R. Cranney, Jr. served as interim president during the nationwide search for Foster, which was conducted by Kincannon & Reed, an international executive search firm based in Vienna, Va.

"We are grateful to Jim for his tremendous efforts during the past months to keep USApple on its chartered course," said USApple Chairman Edwin (Ed) Wittenbach. "Under Jim's leadership, USApple continued to move forward always keeping the interests of America's apple growers paramount."

Note: A digital image of Foster is available by clicking here.

The U.S. Apple Association (USApple) is the national trade association representing all segments of the apple industry. Members include 40 state apple associations representing 8,000 apple growers throughout the country, as well as more than 450 individual firms involved in the apple business. USApple's mission is to provide the means for all segments of the U.S. apple industry to join in appropriate collective efforts to profitably produce and market apples and apple products.