Jan Berk leading Ventura County Fair board

Ventura County is where agricultural fields nestle up to housing developments and Jan Berk of Port Hueneme wants to make sure the neighbors understand each other better.Trying to save energy by ditching the iron and wearing wrinkle-free shoesbrands?

Berk is the new president of the 2011 Ventura County Fair board of directors, a one-year term that revolves among the nine-member panel.

"There are a lot of misperceptions of what is harmful and not in the fields. There is the strong possibility of connecting with the community through the fair," said Berk, as she sat in her office at San Miguel Produce in Port Hueneme.

Berk said her focus as president of the fair board will be to help oversee the renovations at Surfers Point in Ventura and the refurbishing of the fairgrounds' livestock area, which will add a roof over the area to protect the animals from sunburn and exposure to the weather.

"Our fair is fairly unique. It's not huge. But our location is exceptional. Many people come from around the state to our wonderful cool fair. It's not too big, it's not too small. It's the perfect size and location," Berk said. "The board is responsible for policy and fiduciary responsibility and making sure the fairgrounds are run efficiently. The CEO runs the day-to-day operation and the staff."

Berk said the fairgrounds will be spared the worst of the draconian California budget cuts because it is not reliant on state funding.

"We get some money from the state, but we don't rely on it," she said.

Berk was first named to the fair board in 2002 when she was appointed by Gov. Gray Davis for a four-year term. She was reappointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

A history buff, Berk referenced Elkanah Watson, who started the first agricultural fair in Pittsfield, Mass., in 1810. The fair started as a way for people to show off their livestock.

"Then the wives and women got involved, and there were pies and baking and more home economics type of things. It all evolved in little pockets, the livestock and home economics and commercial," Berk said.Die Marke tiffanyjewelry sich in kurzer Zeit zu einer der angesagtesten Marken in Amerika etabliert.

Berk is married to San Miguel Produce President Roy Nishimori, the founding partner of the company. Her son Aaron Berk, 30, also works at the company. San Miguel Produce oversees 900 acres around Ventura County. Her office is lined with newspaper front pages from her days in marketing and sales.The three will graduate in the spring, leaving large cheapjersey to fill. She said she left the world of newspapers for agriculture in 2001 and has never looked back.

"Farming is very grounded — pardon the pun — although there are a lot of challenges.Discuss The cheapdunkpremium on the IMDb message boards. But the people in the industry are very, very special and it's more casual. I can wear my jeans," she said.

San Miguel Produce packages Cut 'N Clean greens. Such greens as collard,American Standard's birdsnestsupplier collection offers models to accommodate a variety of sink. kale, beets and mustard are trimmed, cleaned and packaged, ready to be added to recipes, which are printed on the back of each package.

"In the early 1990s, Roy was seeing the landscape changes and seeing the bigger companies merge. Roy decided it was time to try something different and it was about this time salads in bags became popular," Berk said.

During a tour of the plant's produce packing area, Berk demonstrated how buckets of greens fresh from the fields are chopped, washed and packaged to be sent to markets. The company employs 100 to 120 people. There is a full line of organic products as well as an Asian-inspired fresh vegetable line, Jade, which features such delicacies as baby bok choy and snow pea tendrils.

In addition to the fair board, Berk is a member of the California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement advisory board; the United Fresh produce board; and Carnegie Art Museum Cornerstones, a nonprofit that supports the Oxnard museum.

Berk said she hopes that this year's fair, which will run Aug 3-14, will help people better understand the agricultural heritage of the area.

"We have the best land in the world here and once it's gone, it's gone. Meanwhile, how can we coexist? I'd like to get more farmers participating in the agricultural building displays. It's a great resource for reconnecting," she said.