|
 |
||||||||||||||
 |
Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation
Agricultural News and Information
Knight re-elected as Farm Bureau concludes 91st annual meeting
JACKSON – Nearly 650 Farm Bureau members, representing the state’s
82 county Farm Bureaus, took part in the three-day meeting where, in addition
to the election of officers and directors, the delegates adopted policy
to guide the organization’s efforts during 2013. Policies relating
to national issues will be forwarded to the American Farm Bureau Federation
for consideration at its annual meeting, which is scheduled for Nashville,
TN, in mid-January.
Randy Knight, a dairy farmer from Pelahatchie, Mississippi, was re-elected
to his second term as President of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation.
Donald Gant from Merigold was re-elected as Vice President-North Mississippi;
Ted Kendall from Bolton was re-elected as Vice President-Central Mississippi;
and Reggie Magee from Mt. Olive was re-elected as Vice President-South
Mississippi.
The delegate body identified several areas of interest as priority issues
for the upcoming year including protecting animal husbandry practices
based on sound science, protecting landowners from trespassers’
lawsuits, and supporting adequate funding for animal health issues.
Governor Phil Bryant gave the keynote address to the assembled delegates.
He thanked Farm Bureau for their work in the Legislature and emphasized
the importance of agriculture to Mississippi. “I was very proud
to see that the agriculture industry in Mississippi is responsible for
$7.2 billion worth of income,” said Bryant. “The agriculture
industry in this state adds so many jobs – about 29 percent, think
about that. Nearly 30 percent of the state’s workforce is directly
or indirectly involved in agriculture.”
Newly elected or re-elected directors on the MFBF Board include Lowell
Hinton, Corinth; Chris Lively, Clarksdale; Kelcey Shields, Mantachie;
Kenny King, Ackerman; Jimmy Whitaker, Satartia; Oliver Limerick, Shuqualak;
Vander Walley, Waynesboro; David Barton, Raymond; Mike McCormick, Union
Church; Larry Jefcoat, Soso; and Louis Breaux, IV, Kiln. Jon Koehler Bibb
of Tunica will sit on the Board due to his election as Young Farmer &
Rancher Committee chairman.
Scott Cannada was selected as Farm Bureau’s Young Farmer Achievement
Award winner and will travel to Nashville to represent Mississippi in
the National Young Farmer Achievement Award competition. William and Julie
White of Starkville were selected as the Young Farmers and Ranchers Excellence
in Agriculture award winners. Cory Williamson of Water Valley won the
Young Farmer Discussion Meet, an event that challenges contestants’
discussion skills and their ability to persuade others to see their side
of an issue. He will also compete in the national competition in Nashville
in January.
Farm Bureau’s highest award, the MFBF Distinguished Service Award,
was presented to Louis Breaux of Kiln. Mr. Breaux has worked closely with
Farm Bureau for more than half a century in various county and state positions.
He is currently an Honorary Vice President on the Mississippi Farm Bureau
Board of Directors.
There were two recipients of the Friend of Agriculture Award. Senator
Billy Hudson of Hattiesburg and Representative Preston Sullivan of Okalona
received the award for their support of agriculture and Farm Bureau in
the Mississippi Legislature.
The Excellence in Leadership Award went to Jan Holley of Itawamba County
for her many years of dedicated service to agriculture in Mississippi.
Paul Ott of Summit was given the Ag Ambassador Award for his work in promoting
agriculture and Mississippi.
Molly Martin of Simpson County won the Farm Bureau Ambassador competition
sponsored by the Women’s Program. Molly will be a spokesperson for
Farm Bureau and agriculture during 2013.
(30)
The