By Samantha Shackelford, 2025 Sunbelt Social Media Intern Samantha Shackelford
This morning at the Sunbelt Ag Expo opening ceremonies, individuals were honored for their dedication to the agriculture industry.
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture Tyler Harper, and Sunbelt Ag Expo Executive Director Chip Blalock spoke at the ceremony. They thanked the audience for their attendance and encouraged them to attend as many events today as possible.
The ceremony, held in the RW Griffin building, also featured a number of awards.
The first set of awards delivered were the Innovation Awards. The companies honored were:
- FAE USA, Inc.- Product: SFL Multitask Attachment for Tractors,
- Galileo Wheel- Product: SkidCup,
- Hiwassee Products, LLC- Product: Bio-Extractor – X350, X250, X150
- J. Assy Co.- Product: Visum Seeder RF
- Kelley Manufacturing Co.- Product: KMC Litter Pulverizer
- Mechanical Transplanter Co.- Product: Model 910 Plastic Mulch Layer
- MJE Livestock Equipment- Product: Cattle Worth™ Mobile App
- PhiBer- Product: PhiBer Drone Carrier
- Plot Blaster- Product: The Original Plot Blaster
- Valley Irrigation–A Valmont Company- Product: AgSense® 365
For more information on the Innovation Awards check out the website: https://sunbeltexpo.com/innovation-award/.
The overall winner for the Southeastern Hay Contest, Jon Pope from Coats, North Carolina, participated in the Alfalfa Hay Category. With a Relative Forage Quality (RFQ) score of 354, a Total Digestive Nutrient (TDN) score of 75.3, and a Crude Protein (CP) score of 30. The Southeastern Hay Contest awards were delivered by Dr. Lisa Baxter. For more information on the Southeastern Hay Contest check out the website: https://sunbeltexpo.com/2025-southeastern-hay-contest-winners-announced/.
