There is in the department the Processing Tomato Advisory Committee, which consists of 10 members. The director shall appoint five members who shall be producers of tomatoes for processing and five members who shall be representatives of processors engaged in the processing of tomatoes. The director may appoint one additional member of the committee, who shall be a public member.
Upon the director’s request, the committee shall submit to the director the names of three or more natural persons, each of whom shall be a citizen and resident of this state and not a producer, shipper, or processor nor financially interested in any producer, shipper, or processor, for appointment by the director as a public member of the committee. The director may appoint one of the nominees as the public member on the committee. If all nominees are unsatisfactory to the director, the committee shall continue to submit lists of nominees until the director has made a selection. Any vacancy in the office of the public member of the committee shall be filled by appointment by the director from the nominee or nominees similarly qualified submitted by the committee. The public member of the committee shall represent the interests of the general public in all matters coming before the committee and shall have the same voting and other rights and immunities as other members of the committee.