Fruit and Vegetable Marketing Specialist

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement, including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. FOR THE GS-11 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-09 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates: Applying grading standards and/or inspection regulations to make difficult, controversial, and borderline determinations and to recognize and identify extremely rare commodity defects and diseases; Serving as technical expert performing final grading on reviews, making appeal determinations, resolving controversies, or providing broad technical guidance on difficult and controversial grading inspection problems; OR Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M., if related. FOR THE GS-12 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-11 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates: Providing oversight, direction and coordination to operational activities; providing technical supervision to personnel regarding sampling, inspection and certification of fresh and processed fruits and vegetables and specialty crops; Developing new initiatives and processes when programs change; Communicating logically and concisely in both oral and written form when rendering decisions and/or interacting with management, employees and industry. NOTE: There is no education substitution at this grade level. FOR THE GS-13 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-12 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates: Interacting with affiliated managers to supervise the technical aspects of fruit, vegetable and nut inspection; Planning, assigning, organizing, controlling, and coordinating work of self and others on a regional level involving various government agencies in the area of fruit, vegetable and nut commodities; Organizing and planning of one or more programs, providing information, or taking action concerning basic marketing and/or inspection operations pertaining to a broad field of marketing fruits, vegetables and nuts. NOTE: There is no education substitution at this grade level. TRANSCRIPTS are required if: You are qualifying for the position based on education. You are qualifying for this position based on a combination of experience and education. This education must have been successfully completed and obtained from an accredited school, college, or university. COMBINATION OF EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-11 GRADE LEVEL: Applicants may have combinations of successfully completed education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify for that grade level. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional, philanthropic, religious, spiritual, community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

The duties described are for the full-performance level. At developmental grade levels, assignments will be of more limited scope, performed with less independence and limited complexity.
The duties may include, but are not limited to:
Plans and conducts reviews of all aspects of the shipping point grading and inspection program to evaluate the respective State Cooperator’s compliance with the Federal Quality System Service Standard.
Reviews the Cooperator’s training programs for prospective licensees and their refresher training programs to ensure that they adequately cover the principles of conduct and grading procedures.
Recommends and authorizes qualified licensees to perform supervisory work on behalf of Specialty Crops Inspection Division.
Interprets the official specialty crops grade standards and inspection methods, office procedures, visual aids, handbook updates, directives, and other written instructions.
Communicates during the inspection season with Cooperator managers in an effort to build, improve and/or maintain relationships.
Works with industry officials in determining equitable fees for the various types of grading services which will provide for the operation of the Federal-State grading inspection service.