Tag Archives: farm economy

Dairy Industry 2025: Challenges & Optimism for Farmers

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Perry, Ga |

It’s been quite the roller coaster for dairy producers over the past few years as fluctuating prices and input costs have resulted in quite a bit of uncertainty. However, things are currently trending upward after a promising 2024.

“In 2022, you had some supply and demand. You had increased demand for milk. There’s not that supply to go with it. Prices went up, but like with everything else, with inflation, those input costs skyrocketed with it. So, you didn’t really have a margin. You just had higher prices for everything. Supply and demand will reverse itself. You get enough supply; demand goes back down. Price goes back down. But those input costs didn’t come with it. So, ’23 you saw the margins shrink or disappear completely. ’24 you finally had those feed costs, labor, fuel, some of these things the farmers really can’t control come back down to where the milk price was and demand had been relatively stable,” says Bryce Trotter, Executive Director of the GA Milk Producers.

With nearly twenty percent of all US milk products being exported, a recent trade war with Canada and Mexico is a point of concern as it has the potential to reduce that demand.

“Is the export market going to stay where it is? We don’t export a lot of milk products in the southeast. But the dairy economy nationwide kind of feeds off of itself. So, if those export markets go away, you got excess supply of milk. That all kind of trickles back down and affects the demand, which will affect the price for milk. So, export markets and what’s going on with tariffs and trade policy is going to a big thing that our farmers are going to watch,” says Trotter.

They will also be keeping a close watch on the current avian influenza outbreak that has found its way into more than 900 dairy herds across seventeen different states.

“Our producers are keeping an eye on it. I wouldn’t say that anyone is worried, but we’re paying attention and that’s what we should be doing. We’re in constant communication with the Department of Agriculture here in Georgia to come up with a plan if it does come to the Southeast. But our farmers are just keeping an eye on it, doing what they can on their farm to beef up biosecurity and prepare,” says Trotter.

The health of the industry will also depend on a number of dairy operations bouncing back from the storms that swept across southeast Georgia late last year.

“Not only did the storms come through during harvest season, but our harvest season is every day, three hundred and sixty-five days a year. So, a lot of the impacts that we see aren’t just the day of and the day after the storm, but those effects on the cows and their milk production, the stress from the storm, you can feel that for weeks afterwards, decreased milk production,” says Trotter.

In spite of some of these issues and hardships within the industry, 2025 is shaping up to be a promising year for producers thanks in large part to the rising number of consumers around the region.

“We’re seeing a trend here in the Southeast where a lot more people are drinking fluid milk which is what we produce, especially whole milk. So, we’re quietly optimistic for a good year for dairy farmers and we’re just happy to see that trend in fluid milk consumption and dairy consumption overall continue to tick up,” says Trotter.

By: Damon Jones

Labor Shortages & Rising Costs: Can the H-2A Program Save U.S. Farmers?

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Atlanta, GA |

Over the next few months some of Georgia’s signature fruits and vegetables like peaches, onions and blueberries, will all be ready to come out of the field. And in order to maximize both quality and quantity, it’s essential to have a reliable workforce.

“You have to have enough labor there on the busiest day to get them harvested, get them packed. This is timely work. It’s so timely to have harvest at the right days. So, we’re always very conscious. That’s our number one issue behind probably weather is labor availability,” says Robert Dickey, Chairman of the Georgia House Agriculture Committee.

That’s where the H2A program comes in, as it helps supplement a small number of domestic workers, while also complying with stronger immigration policies.

“If we’re going to continue to feed America with American grown crops, vegetables, and fruits, we got to have a labor force. Unfortunately, we don’t have a domestic force to do that. And that is why we have transitioned to this H2A program. You see other industries desperately wanting that, with our shortage of labor in this country. And so, this has been a good program for us. It has kept us all one hundred percent legal,” says Dickey.

Despite their workers being documented, many Georgia farmers are hoping there can still be some compromise on the recent immigration crackdown.

“I hope the administration can look at the history of some of our workers from whatever industry they’re in, in this state who have been here for many, many years and contributed to the economy and have families here, maybe even homes and things. Maybe give them some pathway to citizenship, some legal status so they can continue working and helping our industries,” says Dickey.

Labor shortages aren’t the only concern, as growers have seen wages increase exponentially over the past few years, which has opened the door for more foreign competition.

“So far, we haven’t had any real issues, a few little hiccups but, that program has worked well. I hope it’s no changes to it other than trying to get some costs back in line. Those costs for us have gone up over thirty or forty percent in the last two or three years and just raising our grower cost to not be competitive with foreign imports. So, that’s one of our big concerns,” says Dickey.

And it’s a concern that will likely continue into the future, unless some changes are made to the program.

“We don’t have that labor and don’t have it at a competitive rate, it’s just going to make foreign imports from Mexico, Chile, and South America much more available to domestic grocery stores. There’s going to be less costs and our industry will just really go away if we don’t do something to stem it,” says Dickey.

By: Damon Jones

Growing Georgia’s Citrus Future: Innovation, Challenges & Expansion into Juicing!

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Tifton, GA |

In Tifton recently, citrus growers gathered for their annual conference. This year’s theme: “Growing Georgia’s Citrus Future” – a fitting one, as attendees got to hear from experts and industry professionals on how to keep the citrus industry thriving in the state for years to come.

“It’s not only a membership meeting, but it’s a conference to talk about the challenges that Georgia Citrus has had and just how we can work to cultivate success. And it’s important to come and, network, not only network but just hear about the latest innovation and technology and what other people are experiencing; that’s how you grow and that’s how you learn is to hear from others and try to not make the same mistakes and come up with ways to solve problems,” says Lindy Savelle, Executive Director of the Georgia Citrus Association.

One problem that’s on the minds of most producers is citrus greening, which has decimated more than eighty percent of Florida’s citrus industry, however there is research being done that will hopefully eliminate the disease and will greatly benefit the industry in Georgia.

“It was four or five years before we realized we had it. By then it had spread throughout the entire state and the Florida Department of Agriculture declared that it was not able to be eradicated. We were going to have to try to live with it. As we’ve seen, that has been very, very difficult to do. We do have a number of therapies, though, that are working, and these are therapies that we hope are going to keep our industry alive long enough to get to where this tree of the future, this resistant tree, or a tree that’s more tolerant is going to bail us out once and for all, but what I mean for Georgia is that you’re going to be the beneficiary of this long runway. In other words, you have many years before your disease is going to become endemic, if it ever gets to that point. And my message today was, don’t let it get there. Your goal needs to be eradication. You can still do it,” says Rick Dantzler, C.O.O. of the Citrus Research & Development Foundation.

However, despite those concerns, Savelle says growers are still optimistic about what the future holds for the industry, as she explained there is some excitement around expanding from just being a fresh fruit industry to possibly a juicing one.

“I just see that this industry in Georgia is going to continue to grow. Continue to diversify. We are likely going to have a window of opportunity to go into the juicing industry as well as the fresh fruit industry. Florida has become known more for its juice industry, whereas Georgia has been fresh fruit, but I see that kind of turning the corner a little bit. And it’s not only South Georgia, but it’s North Florida that we’re joining forces together to kind of make this a regional citrus industry and I think those are all good things. Anytime you can collaborate with another state and have a bigger footprint, that’s a good thing,” says Savelle.

By: John Holcomb

Georgia Corn Comeback? Farmers Prepare for 2025 Amid Rising Costs & Drought Challenges

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Tifton, GA |

After seeing a significant drop in acres of corn being planted in Georgia last year, those numbers look to be on the rebound in 2025, especially with the issues other crops around the state are experiencing.

“I think that given some of the constraints with some of the other commodities, that we’re probably going to see an increase in corn acreage this year. I have a prediction but we’ll see if it comes to fruition this year, but I think there’s going to be a significant increase with the crop,” says Nicholas Shay, Extension Grains Agronomist.

Despite seeing prices surge by more than thirty percent over the past six months, growers must still walk a fine line in order to turn a profit, especially with the ever-increasing cost of production.

“To navigate that, we have to try to really manage our input efficiency the best we can, and really go back to the drawing board and count our pennies to make sure that we’re being as efficient as possible with our agronomic management or crop management plan in that, for the season,” says Shay.

Another major issue for growers is the long periods of dry weather throughout the state each and every year. It’s a factor that should always be accounted for when planning crop management.

“I think we can bet that every single year, there has been some sort of level of intermittent drought that has occurred. And so, I think really staying on top of your nutrient management and understanding how a crop responds to drought or to a treatment or a fertilizer application that you’re going to apply in the growing season,” says Shay.

The biggest defense against drought conditions is to implement preventative strategies as soon as possible.

“We have to prepare that crop for those stressful environments instead of reacting to a common symptom entomology we may see in the field. If we’d be proactive and have a proactive mitigation strategy, then maybe we can alleviate some of that stress in the growing season, especially when it comes to drought,” says Shay.

With that in mind, it’s never too early to start preparing, especially with planting season right around the corner.

“Growers should obviously be focusing on making sure their equipment is ready, land preparation this time of year, making sure that they have a good plan in place to start the year as far as fertility, as far as weed management, preparing that ground. Then making sure that they have that plan A, plan B in place to be proactive in their approach to mitigate those midseason or early season stresses that we can almost expect are going to occur,” says Shay.

By: Damon Jones

Georgia Peanut Farmers Face 2025 Challenges: Weather, Yields & Market Outlook

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Tifton, GA |

With Georgia growing six times more peanuts that any other state in the country, keeping those farmers up to date on the latest research, technology and equipment is vital for the health of the industry as a whole. Events like the Georgia Peanut Farm Show help accomplish this by gathering all those involved under one roof.

“Number one, it’s very good information. It’s a chance for farmers to get together and rub elbows with their neighbors and friends that they may not have seen from people come from all over the state and the Southeast, but you also get to see the latest and greatest in machinery, technology, chemicals, and peanut production practices. We’ve got Scott Monfort is going to lead our production session, and we’ve got a seed session. It helps to just give us an opportunity,” says Joe Boddiford, Chairman of the Georgia Peanut Commission.

Even though the number of acres dedicated to peanuts in Georgia remain high, yields did take a major hit in 2024, thanks in large part to the unpredictable climate.

“Weather for the last two years have taken some yield from us. This past year has taken more than it has in a long time. You know, we lost some top end irrigated yields in ’23 of about a thousand pounds. This year, fifteen hundred pounds or better and across the state when you look at the state average, we didn’t move that much in ’23. We were at forty-one hundred and something. This year, we dropped down to thirty-eight fifty, and that’s the lowest we’ve been in twenty years,” says Scott Monfort, Extension Peanut Agronomist.

With that in mind, growers must now walk a fine line in 2025 between cutting costs and maximizing production.

“We know you need to make change. We know you need kind of cut back if you can, but the biggest thing is we know you need to make money. That’s the highest yields possible. And what we’re here trying to get them to understand is that it’s easy to say I’m going to cut this out, this out and this out. And that’s going to save me money, but in retrospect, every time you cut something, it’s going to affect your yield or potentially affect your control of a pest that affects your yield,” says Monfort.

The silver lining created by that drop in numbers is a potential for the prices to remain steady through these uncertain times.

“We did get lucky by not producing as much in the state of Georgia. So, that kind of helped us potentially. I’m not going to say it is, but it potentially did. If we would have yielded forty-one, forty-two hundred pounds, we know where we would be this year. It would be starting way low. I’m hoping that’s not going to be the case this year and we can at least keep that price up to where we can at least pay some returns back on our investment,” says Monfort.

As for advice to growers preparing for the new year, Monfort suggests working with your local county extension and sticking with the basics.

“The main thing is don’t forget your base programs. Make sure fertility, fungicides, pest management, lyme, calcium, the things you need to do, let’s make sure we do them and we’ll be okay,” says Monfort.

By: Damon Jones