More than 650 farmers and Farm Bureau members gathered in Franklin for the 84th annual Tennessee Farm Bureau Federation Presidents Conference. The conference was a two-day event that featured motivational and agricultural speakers.
Dr. Keith Carver, senior vice chancellor/senior vice president of the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture kicked off the conference with an overview of UTIA’s strategic plan. The general sessions featured several panels, including information on BARN events, farmland preservation and hearing from both Speaker of the Senate Randy McNally and Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton. Nick Parker, Marine Veteran, past Farm Bureau Insurance of Tennessee agent and fighter of Parkinson’s + cancer provided an inspiring message on faith over fear, and American Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall also encouraged attendees and stressed the importance of the role of a county Farm Bureau president.
“This is my favorite conference of the year because there is no stress and no hustle,” said Cumberland County Farm Bureau President Al Wilson. “We’re proud to be here and proud to kick off the policy process here at Presidents Conference.”
For years, some have said Presidents Conference is the unofficial start of our policy process, and while technically the policy process is year-round, it is a great spot to start discussing policy for the upcoming year. One topic on several folks’ minds is addressing the rate of farmland loss.
“For the last couple of years, farmland loss has been a constant topic at our policy development meetings,” said Tennessee Farm Bureau President Eric Mayberry. “We talk about being the voice of agriculture, but when it comes to farmland preservation right now, we want to be the ears of agriculture and hear what our people think is the best way to address this issue.”
To get the conversation started, the farmland preservation panel featured former Tennessee Farm Bureau president and current Deputy Commissioner of Agriculture Jeff Aiken, alongside friends from Kentucky Farm Bureau – President Eddie Melton and Aleta Botts, both integral in creating the Kentucky Farmland Transition Initiative earlier this year. Kentucky started the initiative to provide resources to farmers and landowners seeking to keep more Kentucky farmland in the hands of active farmers, much like the goal of the effort this past year with TFBF and Governor Bill Lee’s farmland preservation bill which was unsuccessful. Both TFBF, Governor Lee and the department of agriculture plan to work with stakeholders and lawmakers to get legislation across the finish line as a starting point for addressing the rapid loss of farmland.
“Tennessee is such a diverse state from East Tennessee to West Tennessee,” said Hardeman County Farm Bureau President Justin Smith. “On all topics, but especially this topic, we need different representation of farmers from across the state, and it’s why it’s so important at events like this one to represent our counties and our communities as best as we can.”
This discussion combined with our Agriculture in the Classroom Donor Recognition program and the many networking opportunities made the 2024 Presidents Conference nothing short of a success.
Special thanks to the Tennessee Soybean Promotion Board for sponsoring Ray Starling of Aimpoint Research as the closing speaker, encouraging attendees on the current state and future of our food industry.
