Press Release: 44th Annual Sunbelt Ag Expo – The New Era of Agriculture
News Release Contact: Becca Turner 229-985-1968 Email:[email protected] For Immediate Release 2022 - The New Era of Agriculture The Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition will celebrate its 44th Anniversary show October 18029, 2022. Over 1,200 exhibitors will display and demonstrate products and...
2022 Sunbelt Shorts: Must See Opportunities at Expo
SWISHER FARMER OF THE YEAR Since its inception in 1990, the Swisher/Sunbelt Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year Award has evolved into the most prestigious honor in the southeast and nation with 265 outstanding agribusiness leaders being honored for their “excellence in agriculture.” Ten states...
2022 Sunbelt Ag Expo Temporary, Part-Time Staff
The Sunbelt Ag Expo is seeking 75 temporary, part-time lot attendants/flaggers to help with this year's Expo. We look forward to a great event. Please see the attached flyer for more information. Apply online at www.employgeorgia.com. If you have questions, reach out to [email protected].
Experience Dairy at the Sunbelt Ag Expo
UGA Animal and Dairy Science students are currently doing some amazing work that is expected to benefit farmers. One of these is looking at the voluntary waiting period, essential to monitoring cows' reproductivity. Once monitored, they can be put on an artificial insemination schedule to be bred...
Aquaponics at the Expo
If you are looking to diversify your agricultural knowledge on fish farming, hydroponics, or a more sustainable way to grow your food; look no further, visit the Aquaculture Building. This exhibit will provide you with tremendous learning opportunities through hands-on demonstrations, interactive...
Focus on the Board – Carla Hornady
Carla Hornady has served as a board member for the Expo since 2017; however, her involvement in the agricultural community dates much further. Carla Hornady is a native of Billingsley, Alabama, a small rural community in Autauga County, where she grew up on her family’s cattle farm. She was very...
2022 Youth Activities at the Expo
To sign up for the contests and learn more, click here. Students experience numerous learning opportunities and participate in various activities. Both high school and college students will have an opportunity to attend the Expo to compete in “Advocacy in Action”, sponsored by the Georgia Farm...
2022 American Stock Dog Grand Finals
Guest Blogger Darby Masters, 2022 Sunbelt Ag Expo Intern The 2022 American Stock Dog Grand Finals are here. Stock dogs and their handlers come from across the southeast to compete in the stock dog trials held at the Sunbelt Ag Expo. Stock dogs are dogs that help farmers with livestock by moving...
Opportunities for Youth at Expo
While the Sunbelt Ag Expo serves as a central hub during the third week of October for those in the agricultural industry to conduct business, it also serves as a place for students and young adults with a particular interest in the field of study to learn from the leaders in the industry. Aside...
Focus on the board – Ron Carroll
Since his first time attending the Sunbelt Ag Expo in 1990, Ron Carroll has become a huge supporter of the Expo, its mission, and the role it plays in the community. In the past 32 years, Carroll has only missed 2 shows and taken on many active roles in our program as he celebrates his 14th year...
Are You Planning to be at Field Day?
If you don’t have it on the calendar, add it now. The Sunbelt Ag Expo Field Day will be Aug. 2, 2022. Farmers are invited to join us to learn practical information from the region’s top agricultural scientists about the newest technologies to improve farming operations. Visitors will once again...
Field Day – Join us next Tuesday, August 2nd
Rain may have caused us to delay Field Day, but we look forward to welcoming you to the Darrell Williams Research Farm next Tuesday, August 2nd, at 8:00 a.m. To get excited about the featured plots, see the list below. We can’t wait for you to experience the latest in ag innovation! UGA...
Robert E. Saunders | Virginia Farmer of the Year 2022
In a reflective mood Robert Saunders, of Saunders Brothers, Inc. in Piney River, Virginia, quoted Mark Twain’s famous advice, “Always do what is right. It will gratify half of mankind and astound the other.” Growing up on a family farm as one of seven brothers was full of adventures that ran the...
John M. Harrison | Tennessee Farmer of the Year 2022
Philadelphia, Tennessee, the home of Sweetwater Valley Farm, was settled as part of a Revolutionary War land grant in the early 1800s. At the turn of the twentieth century, it became a dairy farm, with the original barn built in 1917. Seventy years later, John and Celia Harrison purchased interest...
Keith Allen | South Carolina Farmer of the Year 2022
Betty Allen Farms in Latta, South Carolina, has been in Keith Allen’s family for nearly 200 proverbial lean and fat years. Growing from a modest holding in 1837 to 3800 acres today, the farm has experienced everything from near loss at auction in 1917 to two recent 1000-year floods and drought....
Kevin Matthews | North Carolina Farmer of the Year 2022
Kevin and Cindy Matthews own and operate Matthews Family Farms of North Carolina, Inc., Precision Nutrient Management, Inc., and Deep Creek Grain, Inc. in East Bend and Yadkinville, North Carolina. Matthews is the fourth generation on his family’s farm. He said, “With the economic crisis of the...
Michael L. Wagner | Mississippi Farmer of the Year 2022
Located in the rich, highly organic, blue gumbo clay soil or ‘terroir’ of the Mississippi Delta is Two Brooks Farm, owned by Michael L. Wagner. His family can count an unbroken line of ten generations of farmers back to 1742. Their prodigious, consistent labor has produced a whopping 281...
Wesley C. Parker | Kentucky Farmer of the Year 2022
Wesley Parker was raised on a 150–acre dairy farm in Christian County, Kentucky, where his family grew silage and hay for their cows and a small crop of tobacco. In the late 1970s, they transitioned out of the milk business into raising hogs. Parker recalled, “My dad, brother, and brother-in-law...
Scotty Raines | Georgia Farmer of the Year 2022
Scotty Raines didn’t grow up on a farm, but his father kept a large garden at home. His mother, a beautician, had abeauty shop behind their house. So Scotty began his agrarian career by selling produce from the garden—tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and corn—to her customers. He also participated in...
Jerry Dakin | Florida Farmer of the Year 2022
Jerry Dakin’s family dairy farm was started by his dad, Romanus (Pete) Dakin, in Livermore, Maine in 1948. From a modest sixteen cows, the operation grew over the post-World War II years. When Pete Dakin returned from a trip down south in October 1963, he informed his wife Jeannette that she and...
Chris Sweat | Arkansas Farmer of the Year 2022
Chris Sweat is a fourth generation farmer who grew up on a full-time poultry and cow/calf operation. His great grandparents started a beef and dairy farm, and his dad later established his own chicken and cattle operation. As a youngster, Chris was active in 4-H and FFA. He recalled, “I wasn’t...
Mark Byrd | Alabama Farmer of the Year 2022
Mark Byrd of Byrd Farms in Danville, Alabama, bought a used tractor and hay baler when he was only fourteen years old. Inspired by a FFA vocational ag class in high school, after graduation he planted 15 acres of rented land with soybeans while working a full-time job. Byrd recalled, “That first...
Focus on the Board – Jason Davison
While 2022 marks Jason Davison’s first year as a member of the Sunbelt Ag Expo board, this is far from his first encounter within the rural community. Davison earned a bachelor’s and master’s degrees in agricultural education and communication emphasizing leadership development from the University...
Celebrating Freedom to Farm in Georgia
Guest Submission: Georgia Farm Bureau Staff As we celebrate the Fourth of July and our freedoms as Americans, Georgia farmers can also celebrate the Georgia General Assembly passing the Freedom to Farm Act, which Gov. Brian Kemp signed into law on April 13. The Freedom to Farm Act provides farms...
Sunbelt Expo is a valuable location for south Georgia forage
Guest Blogger: Lisa Baxter, UGA Extension Forage Specialist The Sunbelt Ag Expo’s Darrell Williams Research Farms provides an exceptional opportunity to highlight forage research in south Georgia. These hayfields provide an outdoor classroom for UGA Extension county agent in-service trainings,...
“Horsing Around” at the Expo
Each year, the equine barn at the Sunbelt Ag Expo is home to lots of action and fun. From beauty queens to trick riders, the barn hosts an array of featured guests and demonstrations. Visitors with backgrounds in the equine industry or those with a love for the thrill of trick riding will enjoy...
Focus on the Board – Tim Marshall
Tim Marshall has served as a board member for the Expo since 2019; however, his involvement in the agricultural community goes back much further. During this time, he served in various roles at colleges and universities including Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, the University of Florida, and...
Precision Ag Research at the Expo Farm
By contributing author: Simerjeet Virk - Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist in the area of Precision Agriculture and Machinery Systems at the University of Georgia The increased focus on improving application accuracy, placement, and timing of crop inputs is driving the growth and...
Research on the Farm – Why Does it Matter?
The Sunbelt Ag Expo may last only three days every October, but the research happening on the Darrell Williams Research Farm located on the Expo grounds happens 365 days a year. “We have the unique ability to work with university and corporate researchers on our research farm, where we continue...
Focus on the Board – Clay Talton
Monroe County resident, Clay Talton, has been serving on the Expo Board since 2018, but he has been involved in the agricultural world much longer than that. Originally from Kathleen, Georgia, Talton graduated from Perry High School before attending the University of Georgia. In 2003, he earned a...
Does Your Hay Make the Grade?
Once again, we are excited to welcome back to the Sunbelt Ag Expo the Southeastern Hay Contest. A tradition since 2004, The Southeastern Hay Contest has been keeping hay growers striving for the best for over a decade. Those interested in hay production make up one of the largest attendee groups...
Celebrating Education at Sunbelt
While the Expo’s mission is to provide ag companies a venue that is conducive to trade with customers, its extended mission supports the year-round education of all ages. Many students attend the Sunbelt Ag Expo each year. Those companies and educational partners that have realized the value of...
Field Day 2022 – Mark it on Your Calendar
Sunbelt Ag Expo boasts a 100-acre exhibit site; however, what makes it unique to other farm shows in the country is the 600-acre Darrell Williams Research Farm. Each year, near the end of March or or the beginning of April, when the longer days begin to warm the soil just enough, the Expo’s farm...
Focus on the Board – Ricky Brown
Brown Manufacturing has been exhibiting at the Sunbelt Ag Expo since the beginning. Its owner, Ricky Brown, has been serving as a Board Member for the Expo for 15 years. In addition, he’s served as President for 5 years. Born and raised in Ozark, Alabama, Brown is one of the biggest supporters of...
Focus on the Board – Chip Blalock
Since 1997, Chip Blalock has served as the Executive Director of the Sunbelt Ag Expo. Before joining the Expo team, Chip was the sales manager of Moultrie Farm Center for 7 years and served as an Extension agent for 3 years. A graduate of the University of Georgia, he and his wife, Donna, have...
It Takes a Village
While the staff runs the day to day operations at the office, it’s no secret that it takes a multitude of volunteers and organizations to pull off North America’s Premier Farm Show, the Sunbelt Ag Expo. One of the groups responsible for making the decisions for the show is the Executive Board. ...
Expo for the Entire Family
If you haven’t started already, now is the time to start planning your family’s trip to the 2022 Sunbelt Ag Expo in October. Expo is for the whole family. No matter your age or interests, join us…and bring the entire crew with you. While visiting Expo, farmers can enjoy equipment set-ups as well...
Are You Registered for the 2022 Expo? New Vendors Apply Today!
Today is the day! While returning exhibitors have been registering since December, we now invite any companies that are new to the show or haven’t been in a while to register for the 2022 Sunbelt Ag Expo. The Sunbelt Ag Expo, located in Moultrie, Georgia, is held in October of each year. The...
Prepping for a New Season of Growth
Each year the farm crew for the Darrell Williams Research Farm at the Sunbelt Ag Expo works with university and company researchers and representatives to plan for the most efficient use of the land to carry out experiments necessary to continue advancing agricultural products. The team is...
A Sunbelt Ag Expo Love Story: William + Courtney Faulkner
Back in 2010, a love story began at the blue bench in front of the Georgia Peanut Commission building at the Sunbelt Ag Expo. William Faulkner knew he had get his, now wife, Courtney Faulkner, the best Valentine's Day gift to date - the blue bench from in front of the Georgia Peanut Commission...