APHIS names acting administrator

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The Department of Agriculture has appointed Cindy Smith as acting administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

Smith is acting as a replacement for Dr. W. Ron DeHaven, who retired from APHIS Aug. 3 after 28 years with the service. He had served as the administrator since 2004. On Aug. 9, Dr. DeHaven joined the AVMA staff as the new executive vice president.

Smith began her career with APHIS in 1979. Later, she earned her bachelor's degree in microbiology and a master's degree in business management from the University of Maryland.

Smith has held positions in APHIS Plant Protection and Quarantine and APHIS Wildlife Services, including associate deputy administrator for the latter.

More recently, Smith was deputy administrator for APHIS Biotechnology Regulatory Services. She helped shape the APHIS biotechnology regulatory structure, establishing more rigorous requirements for field tests of genetically engineered crops and initiating efforts to review and strengthen overarching biotechnology regulations.

Smith had been an associate administrator of APHIS since April.