Agriculture Focus of Farm City Week Banquet

A Northeast Georgia agriculture teacher says there is no better time to be in agriculture.

That was the message of Kalie Hall, the featured speaker at Monday night’s Toccoa-Stephens County Farm City Week Banquet at First Baptist Church in Toccoa.

Hall is a former FFA National Officer and now teaches agriculture at Madison County High School.

She said that there is plenty of opportunity in agriculture right now.

“I was reading a study by Purdue University just a few weeks ago that are over 65,000 job openings in agriculture each year and there are about 35,000 college graduates who have the skill set and the proper education in agriculture to fill those jobs,” said Hall. “There is more opportunity than ever for our young people.”

Hall said that there is also economic opportunity for agriculture in international trade.

“As the middle class rises in developing countries, there is more and more interest and more and more need for protein and as a key supplier in protein both from cattle production and from poultry production in Stephens County, we have an opportunity to be a part of that,” said Hall.

According to Hall, for Stephens County to be successful, agriculture has to be successful.

She said that everybody has a role to play in that, from the farmers and producers all the way down to the people who end up buying the food at the grocery store.

“I tell my students that because agriculture is so efficient, we do not need very many of you to be farmers,” said Hall. “If that is in your heart, I want you to do that, but what we need are physical therapists, dentists, policy makers, business owners, teachers, and coaches who understand and value and advocate for agriculture in whatever role you fill in society.”

Hall said one way to support agriculture is to support those involved in it, especially youth in programs like 4-H, FFA, and others.

She said programs like these, as well as the agriculture industry as a whole, help develop future leaders.

“The investment that we make now may be 10 acres and it may turn into 100 acres when we see students not only leading agriculture, but leading Stephens County in the future,” said Hall.

Monday’s Toccoa-Stephens County Farm City Week Banquet was organized by the Stephens County Farm Bureau.