Georgia Ag Week Begins Today

Spring is coming, which means Georgia farmers are gearing up to harvest strawberries, Vidalia onions, blueberries, and wheat.

Organizations throughout the Peach State are observing Georgia Ag Week March beginning today. Georgia Ag Week runs through March 23.

National Ag Day is happening on Tuesday, March 19.

National Ag Day was founded 51 years ago and is traditionally celebrated on the first day of Spring.

Georgia Farm Bureau President Tom McCall tells WLHR News Georgia’s farmers and ranchers are hard at work producing our food and materials used to make our clothing and build our homes.

He added that farmers are worth celebrating, and he asks all Georgians to take a moment to recognize the critical role agriculture plays in our state. They also work to preserve wildlife habitat and natural resources for future generations.

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) statistics show that Georgia farmers play a big role in feeding us.

They are the top peanut producers in the United States growing almost half the peanuts grown in our country, with most used to make peanut butter and snacks.

Georgia farmers lead the nation in growing broilers, the chickens used to make our favorite chicken sandwiches, tenders, and wings.

In 2022, Georgia pecan growers led the U.S. in the production of pecans.

Georgia ranked second in the production of cantaloupes, watermelons, and cotton.

Georgia ranked third in the U.S. for the production of peaches and bell peppers, and fourth for blueberry and cucumber production, according to USDA data.

We can also thank Georgia farmers for growing cotton to clothe us and timber to house us. Georgia cotton farmers placed second in the U.S. in 2021 for both the quantity and cash value of lint and seed produced. Georgia consistently ranks as the top forestry state in the nation.

Georgia’s Top 10 commodities for 2022 were: broilers ($6.7 billion); cotton ($1.3 billion); eggs ($960.2 million); peanuts ($790.8 million); timber ($780.8 million); beef ($730 million); greenhouse nurseries ($611.2 million); corn ($522.7 million); blueberries ($449.4 million) and pecans ($400.8 million) according to UGA CAED reports.

Visit https://gfb.ag/AgWeek2024 to download free activity sheets, no-cook pecan recipes, easy craft ideas, and much more.