Britt Cobb, chief of staff for Gov. Perdue, presents Cathy Ma the Governor's Award for Excellence as NCDA&CS Assistant Commissioner Dr. Richard Reich looks on.
Cathy Ma, an international trade specialist with the department, received the Governor’s Award for Excellence for Outstanding State Government Service Tuesday during a ceremony at the N.C. Museum of History.
Through the International Trade Office, Ma works with processed food, meat and seafood producers across the state to identify market opportunities abroad. She also coordinates international trade missions, hosts inbound missions and organizes trade shows for food producers.
“Exports are so important to agriculture and agribusiness in North Carolina,” said Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler. “Cathy has been a tremendous asset in developing new markets for exports, especially in China.”
China is increasingly becoming a major trading partner for N.C. agricultural exports. Ma’s contributions have opened up new opportunities for services the department can provide to N.C. companies. For instance, Ma helped assemble a Chinese language team to transform trade missions into interactive events for buyers interested in N.C. products.
Earlier this year, Ma was recognized by the Southern United States Trade Association at its annual meeting in Louisiana. She won in three categories: Most Companies Recruited for an Inbound Trade Mission; Most New Companies for Overseas Generic Event; and Activity Manager of the Year for 2011. Ma also received the 2011 Employee of the Year Award from the department.
Check out the video below from the Governor’s Award for Excellence ceremony.
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