NORTH COUNTY - A third-generation farmer, Chuck Badger Jr. of San Marcos, will become the next president of the San Diego County Farm Bureau.

Badger said that he wants the bureau to continue advocating for farmers in an age of greater international trade.

He said that U.S. authorities should give as much attention to searches of agricultural imports as they do to searches for drugs, weapons and contraband.

Local avocado growers, for example, are concerned that pests found recently on some imported Mexican avocados pose a threat to their groves.

"It seems that agriculture is the first American industry sacrificed and made into a bargaining chip for trade issues," Badger said. "That would be acceptable if the costs of growing crops in the United States was not so much more expensive than the cost of growing it in so many other countries. Expenses, like water and labor, cost more here."

County farm bureau board member and past President Janet Kister said that Badger's approach to problems and his background in the industry will make him a good president.

"He thinks through the issues at hand and comes up with good solutions," Kister, of Fallbrook, said in an interview Wednesday. "Plus, his family has roots in agriculture in this area, so Chuck has a good, solid perspective on farming in San Diego County."

Badger, owner of the family's lemon grove management business, R.E. Badger & Sons, will officially be installed as president at the bureau's annual meeting and picnic May 19.

With headquarters in Escondido, the San Diego County Farm Bureau is a nonprofit trade organization that has more than 7,000 members.

R.E. Badger & Sons has its offices in Rancho Santa Fe, with citrus groves in Rancho Santa Fe and Olivenhain. Badger, a 43-year-old North County native, followed in the footsteps of his father, Chuck Sr., and his grandfather Raymond Badger - who started the grove management business in 1922.

Chuck Badger Jr., who earned a bachelor's degree from Biola University and a master's degree in hsitory fomr the University of Arizona, joined the company full time in the early 1990s.

"I enjoyed living in San Diego, and it's fun to work in nature and to produce a crop of value," he said.

Badger will succeed David Van Ommering, a dairy farmer from Lakeside. His term will run through May 2009.

With headquarters in Escondido, the San Diego County Farm Bureau is a nonprofit trade organization that has more than 7,000 members.

R.E. Badger & Sons has its offices in Rancho Santa Fe, with citrus groves in Rancho Santa Fe and Olivenhain. Badger, a 43-year-old North County native, followed in the footsteps of his father, Chuck Sr., and his grandfather Raymond Badger - who started the grove management business in 1922.

Although Chuck Sr. started working in the family business in the 1950s, Raymond Badger remained active in the company until his death in 1979 at age 82.

Chuck Badger Jr., who earned a bachelor's degree from Biola University and a master's degree in hsitory fomr the University of Arizona, joined the company full time in the early 1990s.

"I enjoyed living in San Diego, and it's fun to work in nature and to produce a crop of value," he said. Chuck Badger Jr. said about why he started working at the family business full time. "Crop production offers you a different challenge every day."