Tag Archives: Georgia farming news

Farmer-Turned-Senator Uses Ag Roots to Educate and Advocate at State Capitol

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Moultrie, GA |

For State Senator Sam Watson, agriculture isn’t just a policy focus—it’s a way of life. A former vegetable farmer, Watson has long been embedded in Georgia’s farming community through organizations like FFA and Georgia Farm Bureau. His experience in the industry is exactly what drove him to seek public office.

“We had been involved back in, I guess it was, 2012. There’s some immigration legislation, 2011, 2012. Obviously, being in the vegetable business, it impacted our industry tremendously,” said Watson. “We kind of realized that there wasn’t a lot of folks involved in this industry at the Capitol.”

Now serving under the Gold Dome, Watson is one of only a handful of full-time farmers in the Georgia legislature. It’s a perspective he says is invaluable—especially when it comes to educating his fellow lawmakers about agriculture.

“To be a part-time legislator, you have to know a lot about a lot of different things,” Watson explained. “Coming from the farm, that’s one of the things that we offer—we do know a lot about a lot of different things, because we have to deal with a lot of different things. When you start telling people about it, they get really interested and want to ask more questions.”

Watson says many misunderstandings about agriculture in politics aren’t malicious—they’re born from a lack of exposure. And that’s why a large part of his role is simply education.

“Sometimes people think that they don’t like us, but really it’s just they don’t know,” he said. “They haven’t been involved in it like we have, or they don’t live in areas where what you see behind us happens every day.”

Supporting Watson and other lawmakers behind the scenes are agricultural lobbyists, such as those with Georgia Farm Bureau. Watson says their help is vital to keeping lawmakers informed and legislation moving in the right direction.

“I can’t be everywhere, and I can’t understand everything fully… and that’s kind of where we depend on the lobbyists and the folks like Adam,” said Watson. “They’ve got the time to go through that and make sure we understand it fully or be where we can’t be because we’re in another committee meeting or in caucus.”

With the demands of the session and the complexity of agricultural policy, Watson believes it’s a team effort to ensure Georgia’s number one industry continues to thrive.

By: John Holcomb

2024: A Tough Year for Georgia Soybean Farmers – What’s Next?

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Macon, GA |

2024 was a challenging year for Georgia agriculture across the board. That includes soybean growers around the state as they saw a significant drop in yields to go along with falling commodity prices.

“For Georgia soybean growers, the hot summer that we had in June really hurt some of the yield potential we had. Then, also with the lower prices, it just made for just a bad year for soybeans. So, I’ve talked to several farmers around and it’s just not an exciting time right now,” says Greg Mims, Chairman of the Georgia Soybean Commission.

So, getting things back on track is the top priority for the Georgia Soybean Commission, who recently held their planning and budgeting meeting to determine the best path forward.

“We get together with committee members because we have some missions of research products. And we have to approve those every year. We have to go through them and evaluate and see which one’s the best and then make a decision on what we want to approve with the budgeted money that we have,” says Mims.

And there are a number of programs they are excited to support that will help maximize yields in the near and distant future.

“A lot of the soybean breeding is always a pretty significant funding for us, just trying to create varieties that work for us here in the southeast and in Georgia. So, that’s kind of a big push that we try to every year. Another thing is just insect trials. This year, we’ve seen a lot more insect damage and more insect problems than we have in the last five years. So, just trying to keep up with what’s coming down the pipe and new things that are coming around that we’re going to be running into for the next couple of years,” says Jesse Patrick with the United Soybean Board.

Looking at 2025, the increase in global production specifically in Brazil and Argentina, has resulted in greater supplies. That means the industry must now find creative ways to market their product.

“As a Georgia soybean farmer and a US soybean farmer, I think our biggest thing is competition right now. Trying to find newer export markets to be able to push some of these newer products that we have; high oleic soybean mill with aviation fuel coming into effect with soybean oil and some biodiesel,” says Patrick.

While Georgia might not be the one of the larger production states, it is still important growers around Georgia voice their issues and concerns on the national level.

“To have that big voice across the US, we still need a voice in the southeast and specifically in Georgia. Just because we don’t grow the same amount of acres doesn’t mean we don’t have the same problems or want to see the same things accomplished across the US,” says Patrick.

By: Damon Jones