Gov.-Elect Tom Wolf Tuesday announced his appointment of Russell Redding as Secretary of the Department of Agriculture.

“Russell Redding is well-respected by the agriculture community, and he has proven his abilities to grow Pennsylvania’s agriculture sector and make it an economic engine for our state economy,” Wolf said.

Russell Redding previously served as secretary of the Department of Agriculture from 2009 to 2011 under Gov. Rendell, where he helped establish a comprehensive economic development program that provided state funds that leveraged private capital to help agriculture expand, grow, and create jobs. Redding was also instrumental in preserving nearly 3,000 farms.

He has served as the dean of the School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at Delaware Valley College since 2011. In his role, he provided academic oversight for programs including plant science environmental science, landscape architecture, dairy science, animal science, equine science, agribusiness and food science.

Prior to joining DelVal, Redding served as Pennsylvania’s secretary of agriculture from 2009 to 2011, where he led the Department of Agriculture in all aspects of program implementation, administration, policy development, advocacy, and federal farm policy development. Redding spent a total of 16 years at the Department of Agriculture.

Previously, Redding served as agricultural policy advisor and executive assistant to U.S. Senator Harris Wofford. Redding currently serves as Chair of the USDA Advisory Committee on Biotechnology and 21st Century Agriculture.

He has a B.S. in agriculture education and a M.S. in agriculture and extension education from Penn State University. Redding resides in Adams County with his wife, Nina, and sons, Garrison and Elliot.

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