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Text Size12/06/2004 Georgia Farm Bureau Federation Annual Meeting
Prepared Remarks of Governor Sonny Perdue
Georgia Farm Bureau Federation Annual Meeting
(Note: The Governor sometimes deviates from prepared remarks)
(Introduced by Wayne Dollar, GFB President)
Thank you, Wayne. Good morning, everyone. It's a pleasure to be here with you today. As a Governor with a strong commitment to strengthen Georgia agriculture, I always appreciate an invitation from Georgia's largest voluntary agricultural organization.
And as a grown-up farm boy and an agri-business owner, I enjoy a chance to spend some time with my kind of folks.
The Georgia Farm Bureau Federation is one of the strongest voices for Georgia Agriculture. You work constantly to improve and enhance the quality of life for all Georgians by helping Georgia agriculture grow.
We're tilling the same field with that goal.
I'm committed to creating good jobs and economic opportunity for all Georgians … in all parts of the state. One of the best ways to fulfill that mission is to support Georgia Agriculture.
Members of the Georgia Farm Bureau are knowledgeable, experienced and, above all, passionate about doing just that. So this morning I want to update you on some my agriculture initiatives. I want to thank you for your support, and I'm going to ask for your help.
Last year, as you know, I appointed my Agriculture Advisory Commission, composed of 22 individuals from across the state, representing all areas of Georgia Agriculture. I also appointed Donnie Smith as Georgia's first Governor's Agriculture Liaison.
I asked the Commission to be my eyes and ears in the Ag community and to implement actionable, doable initiatives.
Today I want to compliment Donnie and the Commission members on the job they've done to date. I want to especially recognize two GFB district directors who serve on the Commission -- Gary Paulk and Zippy Duval.
With the Commission's help, we have addressed issues of concern to farmers and to the Georgia Farm Bureau. We have also launched new initiatives in Ag technology and agri-tourism, among others.
The Advisory Commission has been very active serving as a direct pipeline for bringing concerns and ideas from the Ag community to my attention.
For instance, the Commission helped us stem the loss of county extension agents by working with the University System on the issue of retiree benefits for agents. This was a big concern for county agents and was leading to a high attrition rate.
I know this was high on the Georgia Farm Bureau's agenda too. I believe we've now addressed the problem to give our county agents peace of mind so they can continue to share their expertise with our farmers.
We also worked closely with the Georgia Farm Bureau to pass one of your priority issues, the poultry contract bill, HB 648, in the 2004 Session.
We've worked with you on the meeting the needs of our farmers in the tobacco buyout. And GFB will have an important seat at the table as we address the state's water management issues to ensure that agriculture's needs are met.
I appreciate the Georgia Farm Bureau's efforts and advocacy in all these areas, and others. By working together, we're strengthening our Ag industry. And I want to continue working closely with you.
I've just mentioned several issues we've worked together on. These are all good successes and I'm proud of the results of our cooperation.
But, as you know, there are always new issues to address. Without exception, the most contentious Ag-related issue I've heard from folks on lately is Ag education.
This one has been lighting up the phones. I've heard from the Ag community through the Commission, through the Farm Bureau, and I've heard from folks on this just about everywhere I've gone lately.
I know the importance and the success of Ag education in Georgia. You can see the results in the success of Georgia's Future Farmers of America members, who brought home more awards than any other state at the National FFA Convention.
We're proud of our young people, and we want to continue giving them the support and learning opportunities they deserve.
You know, to me the uproar on Ag education is encouraging. It shows me the depth of support and the passion that exists for educating our next generation of farmers and Ag leaders. It gives me a good feeling.
And it sends a strong message. A message I believe has been received.
When I spoke to this issue at the Sunbelt Ag Expo in October, I said that the soil has been turned and we just needed a little patience to see what the results would be.
Today, I'm pleased to tell you that the crop has come in -- Ag education will be fully funded next year!
So this is one more area of cooperation and advocacy I thank you for.
Now let me tell you a little about those initiatives I mentioned.
While I guess the basic principles of growing crops and livestock haven't changed in 10,000 years or so, the available technology sure has. Here in Georgia, we've made a commitment to embrace and advance agriculture technology.
By constantly improving our technology, we can make our farming operations more efficient, more productive, and more environment-friendly than ever before. We can make our food supply both safer and more abundant.
That's the thinking behind initiatives like the Agriculture Innovation Center in Tifton that I announced earlier this year. The Ag Innovation Center will serve as a vital link to bring University system agricultural and environmental research into the market for commercial applications.
This Center will come to be seen as one of the secret weapons of Georgia Agriculture and will help Georgia Ag stay competitive in the 21st century global economy.
Technology is one way to improve our competitiveness, but my Advisory Commission has also been actively promoting niche and value-added agriculture, as well as agri-tourism.
We want to develop innovative approaches to creating new markets and new sources of revenue for farmers, whether it's growing specialty crops or operating a corn maze.
In times past, “Agri-tourism” would have been a nonsense phrase, because in our mostly agricultural nation, most people had direct experience with farms, crops and livestock.
For all of you, of course, that's still true. But in a society that is increasingly urbanized there is still that yearning among many city folk for a direct experience with the land.
That can be anything from school tours to hay rides to farms that let you pick your own peaches, like at the Lane Packing Company or Cagle's Dairy Farm in Canton, which offers school tours, corn mazes and a fall harvest festival, among other attractions.
We want to encourage agri-tourism for several reasons.
First, agri-tourism can create new sources of income for farmers and farming communities.
Second, it's a crossover point that helps grow another traditional industry with big potential, Georgia tourism.
And, third, exposing more people to the land and to an appreciation for rural Georgia and the contributions of farming to our state and society is a positive in my book.
If you ask some kids where milk comes from, they'll tell you “the store.” I think it's good to expose them to a little more of the story than that.
The Rural Development Council has an initiative underway to develop more agri-tourism and help attract more visitors to Georgia and more income to rural Georgia.
Agri-tourism will also be part of my Southern Tourism chairman's platform when I serve as chairman of the Southern Governor's Association in 2005.
So whether it is through creating and applying new technology …
Creating new markets through agri-tourism …
Or developing niche crops and value-added operations like the new poultry processing plant in Colquitt County or the Peanut Co-op in Donalsonville …
We'll continue to be innovative, aggressive, and, yes, passionate about growing Georgia Agriculture.
Georgia's farmers – and the Georgia Farm Bureau Federation -- represent the best of modern American agriculture. You combine the latest techniques and technology with good old-fashioned hard work and love for the land.
I'm proud to call you my kind of folks, and I thank you for all you do for Georgia agriculture and for our nation.