WASHINGTON — Edward M. Avalos will be nominated by President Barack Obama to serve as Undersecretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

"Edward Avalos has spent a lifetime in agriculture, including 34 years in agricultural marketing," said Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture. "He has spearheaded innovative marketing techniques that have improved the economic viability of rural areas and established export marketing programs that have placed American crops on tables around the world."

For 29 years Mr. Avalos has served with the New Mexico Department of Agriculture where he established the New Mexico Specialty Crops Program. This program provides matching funds to entities that can improve rural economies and need assistance with marketing projects for specialty crops and value-added products. He also spent five years with the Texas Department of Agriculture.

He has implemented many trade promotions and trade missions during his career. He has worked in Mexico, Japan, China, Canada and Latin America, promoting New Mexican livestock and crops.

Mr. Avalos was raised on a family farm in New Mexico's Mesilla Valley where they grew cotton, wheat and a variety of specialty crops. He is a member of several agricultural promotion organizations in the state and received his Bachelors and Masters degrees from New Mexico State University.