Commissioner's Office

Portrait of Kate Greenberg Welcome to the Colorado Department of Agriculture. We support the state's agriculture industry and serve the people of Colorado through regulation, advocacy, promotion and education. Our team of more than 300 skilled employees works every day to strengthen and advance Colorado agriculture, promote a safe and high-quality food supply, protect consumers, and steward our environment and natural resources.

Whether you're a farmer interested in selling internationally, a livestock owner researching a brand, a landowner wanting to learn more about soil health, or a consumer looking to buy local, this information and much, much more can be found on these web pages.

Thanks for visiting our website. I encourage you to explore, and visit often to learn more about the many ways the Colorado Department of Agriculture serves you.

Kate Greenberg
Commissioner
Colorado Department of Agriculture

About the Commissioner:

Commissioner's Priorities:

About CDA:

With media inquiries, please contact cda_communications@state.co.us.

Regional Assistant Commissioners

Jo Stanko, Routt County

Portrait of Jo Stanko Jo Stanko was born and raised in Colorado and married into a ranching family in 1966. She was a teacher for most of her career, learning about ranching and agriculture along the way. Upon her retirement from teaching, she used her skills to advocate for agriculture at local, state, and national levels.

Stanko has held positions on the Cattlemen's Beef Board, the Colorado Agricultural Commission, and was the Chairperson of the state committee for the Farm Services Agency. She is also an active member in many other local, state, and national organizations. Her ranch near Steamboat Springs was started by her husband’s grandfather in 1907, with the fourth generation now taking the lead on running the cattle operation.

George Whitten, Saguache County

Portrait of George Whitten George Whitten was born into ranching in Saguache, Colorado. His Grandfather W.E. Whitten established a sheep, cattle and farming operation in the Northern end of the San Luis Valley in 1893. Whitten has been actively involved in managing this ranching operation since 1973. He is knowledgeable in all phases of sheep and cattle production and specializes in grass finishing techniques, genetics, soil health, organic production and certification, restorative ranching practices and marketing.

For more than three decades, Whitten has been using holistic management principles on his ranch and is an advocate for regenerative soil practices across Colorado. Whitten has served on the Board of Directors of the Rio Grande Water Conservation District for more than 25 years. He is also a founding member and current president of Sweet Grass Co-op and together with his wife is a founding mentor of the Quivira Coalition New Agrarian Ranch agriculture apprentice program. He has served one term on the Colorado Agricultural Commission and his term expires in February 2023. He will resign his post as a member of the Agricultural Commission and begin as Regional Assistant Commissioner effective February 6, 2023.

Nick Perchess, Pueblo County

Portrait of Nick Perchess Perchess has experience with diverse facets of agriculture, from a multi species pasture-raised and finished meat business with on-site processing facility, to the cultivation of stone fruit from her 400 tart cherry trees. Her farm, which operates through a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model, also produces honey, heirloom hot house tomatoes, and storage hardneck garlic. Nola Naturals is also home to Pastures of Liberty, a dairy operation that sustains more than 100 families across four southern Colorado counties.

Perchess has been involved in organizations such as the Colorado Cattlemen's Association and Pueblo County Stockmen’s Association, is on the board of SOIL Sangre De Cristo and the Pueblo County Farm Bureau, and serves as Vice President of Rocky Mountain Farmers Union.

Riley May, Prowers County

Riley May rides horseback on his ranch Riley May comes from a ranching and farming family from Prowers County. Like many farm kids, he started working at the family operation at a young age, raising and selling purebred cattle and raising irrigated alfalfa and corn. He now has his own irrigated farm and continues working daily in the family ranch and farming operation, as well as managing his own farm.

May has served on the State Veterinary Board and CDA’s Soil Health Advisory Committee and sits on the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Habitat Partnership Program State Council. May Ranch holds an Audubon Conservation Ranching Certification and participates in a carbon offset program through the Cool Effect. May is also an active member of Colorado Cattlemen's Association, National Cattlemen's Beef Association, Colorado Farm Bureau, and Rocky Mountain Farmers Union.

More about the Regional Assistant Commissioners

Regional Assistant Commissioners serve as liaisons between CDA, their communities, and agricultural communities across the state.

These part-time, remote positions make it more feasible for working farmers and ranchers to be part of the CDA team. The Regional Assistant Commissioners further the Department's efforts in cultivating relationships with local agricultural communities by sharing the Department’s priorities and available resources, helping guide CDA’s work to advance and support agriculture based on direct community input, and by creating a direct connection between rural communities and CDA.

Read the press releases about Regional Assistant Commissioners.