September 23, 2025 • 25 mins
On this episode of The Extra Mile, Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce Commissioner Andy Gipson joins us to talk about the backbone of Mississippi—our farmers.
We take a look at the challenges they face, the benefits of "buying local," and the upcoming Mississippi State Fair.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:09):
MDOT presents the Extra Mile podcast.
Welcome into another edition
of the Extra Mile podcast here at Mdot.
I am wILLcraft.
And I am not joined,this time by my co-host, Paul Katool.
I'm going to do my best,to hold it down in his stead.
And he'll be back with usnext episode, for sure.
(00:30):
But today we got a great guest,on tap for us.
No stranger to the showor to Mississippians for sure.
Department of Agriculture Commissioner
Andy Gipson,thank you so much for joining us.
Well, it's great to be with you.
My hat's off to you.
Thank you all for doing thisgreat podcast.
Every time I'm a I'm a faithful listener.
When I get a chance. That's right.
We're going to
institute the gold jackets at some pointfor for numerous appearances.
(00:53):
Got his first inductee.Yeah, that's a great idea.
Well, Commissioner, as we were discussingon the way up, you are hard
and heavy out there running the roads,talking to folks, getting to the people.
Lots going on, lots to cover.
But how are thingsthat Department of Agriculture.
Things are going very well. Thank you.
The Department AG is a great, great agency.
We're really proud of our 200plus employees, most of whom work
(01:15):
in their vehicle all day, working out and doing the work
that has to be done out in the fieldor and testing the gas pumps.
The fuel pumpsmake sure folks are getting quality
fuel and test and everythingin the grocery stores make sure
everything scans up right on the scannersand just, really, it's
not an exaggerationto say that our agency touches
the lives of every single Mississippianin a positive way, every day.
(01:38):
We're proud of the work that our folks doand proud of the Department AG,
and I'm proud to be the commissioner, sir.
And, all marksdoing a great job out there.
And again, lots to cover.We've got a bunch of great stuff.
Dixie Nationaland some new initiatives rolling out.
But, one thing you just hit ona little bit there, the seasons.
Seasons coming and going and changeand we're in the fall.
Oh man, it's harvest season. That's right.
(01:59):
There we go.
I've just recentlygot a radio spot, in connection with the
transportationsafety initiative in the Delta.
So, reminding people
as you travel this fall,I know we're all thinking about
where we're headed and where we're goingand where we got to be.
But remember,you're going to see a lot more tractors.
You're going to see a lot more combine.
You're going to see more trucks hauling, product.
(02:21):
Mississippi's number oneindustries, agriculture.
You will see more of that on the road.
And they're not moving is they're notmoving 60 miles an hour and 65.
So so take a little extra caution,I remind folks, and be a little careful
because, you don't want to run into the back
of that load of soybeans and, not only for your for their safety,
but for yours as well,and for everybody's safety.
(02:44):
I encourage people to slow down,
pay a little more attention,especially when you're traveling in
rural areas, and just be on the lookoutfor for slow moving vehicles.
This is a critical time of the yearfor our farmers.
They're getting the crops in.
And, whether it's soybeans or cottonor whether it's corn or,
even, the harvest is going on and other products
(03:05):
pay attention to what's in front of youand look out and, y'all be safe out there.
Absolutely. That's right.
Whether you go into the gameor just go in to see family,
whatever it is, it only takes a fractionof a second, you know?
And sometimes those brakes just don't stopquick enough and try to get them.
Pay attentionand look at everybody be all right.
But it's a it'sa critical time of the year.
(03:26):
And I'll tell you if it's all rightto, to talk about farming right now.
Sure.
The farmers are facingsome difficult days.
Now, when I say agriculture or farming,that is a lot of very broad products.
Our poultry is our number one industry.
And then we, of course, got beef cattleand a lot of other great products.
But I'm talking about our crop producersright now, soybeans.
(03:47):
I'm talking about corn producers.
I'm talking about cotton.
Those three, big row crop commoditiesand others, are facing
some really stiff headwinds right nowdue to global trade, imbalance.
That's the best way I can put it.
China has been the purchaserof about 52% of American
soybeans, just taking them, for example,over the years, historically.
(04:11):
But over the last five years,we've had a trade imbalance
that has really been driven by China'sgoing out and buying product elsewhere.
So just taking soybeans, just one example.
China, this year has not placedone single order for American soybeans.
Wow. So this is a a game
(04:33):
changer in terms of, the
what what our farmers have come to expectin terms of trade and what's reality
now, what's happening is China'sbuying all their product from Brazil.
So they have outsourced their productsto their purchases from Brazil,
which is cutting down their rainforest
every day, triple crop and soybeansand wow, all of these factors,
(04:54):
it's just one example, but,we have so much production.
All right.
So we're blessed.
We're highly productive,the most productive soil.
And in America's in the Mississippi Delta.
But we have been so successfulin producing abundant
soybeans, corn, cottonthat we have so much of it.
Right.
And the demand is not there.
So President Trump is working.
(05:16):
I know, AG SecretaryBrooke Rowlands is working.
A lot of smart people are workingto, to to,
crack open new markets,
but also trying to renegotiatea deal with China
that'll get them back to the table.
That's happening right nowas we're recording this podcast.
President Trump is in Englandnegotiating a new deal for our farmers.
(05:37):
So we're we're in a really tight time.
The cost of production have been sky high.
The demand has not been there.
So the prices are low.
And for many farmers,this is a make or break situation.
Sure.
So we've been in talkswith everybody in DC.
I've been to DC several times,and we actually had
Secretary Brooke Rollinshere in Mississippi this last week and,
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talk with her about these times.
She gets it, the president gets it.
Everybody understandsthat our farmers are facing tough times.
And, the first thing on the agendais to pass a farm bill.
So we've been in talkswith our congressional delegation.
Everybody is so good to work with,but it can't happen soon enough.
And then that, this past week, 260
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farm organizationsnationwide wrote Congress and,
I, you know, begged them toto pass a bipartisan farm bill.
So that's that's somethingthat's got to happen in the near term
before the end of this year.
Any markets we can open up,
getting China back to the table,trying to get a deal done with India
and that which is the a larger marketthan China, as a matter of fact.
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So, just everybody be aware out there
we are in 2025,America is in the midst of a farm crisis.
And it's not an exaggerationto call it a crisis, but
I know our farmers well enough to knowthey're going to persevere.
We're going to get through this.
I believe DC, I believe Washington,the Congress will come through,
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and I know President Trump and his teamare ready and able and willing to help.
And we're going to get through this.
And, in the meanwhile,
well, we gotta do what we can do herein Mississippi to help.
Exactly. Right.
So what we started last week,
was a private sectorled group of, agriculture leaders,
private sector farmers,aid groups, organizations
(07:28):
who understand these issuesbetter than any politician ever will.
And, meeting around a table at our office,
we kicked off this initiativewith a presentation by a professor Keith
Coble,director of the Agriculture Department
at a Mississippi State University,kind of painting a broad picture
of the issues and what our intentis to travel the state.
(07:48):
I'm already traveling the state myself,
but we're going to take this groupof ag experts and farmers around the state
listening to local producersand in the Delta, in northeast Mississippi
and central Mississippi, southwestand in the southeast and the Gulf Coast.
Talking about what our farmers are seeingat the local level and what we can do in
terms of policy as a state in Mississippito help, we can only do what we can do.
(08:12):
But we first had to figure outwhat needs to be done today
for the future of agriculture tomorrow.
So we're focused on that.
And, you know, I'm proud of the workthat that we've already done.
We've already highlighted some big issues.
Yeah, one of the big ones
is we're going to have to bring backmore domestic production.
Sure.
For example, cotton.
(08:35):
Okay. Cotton.
Most of our cotton Cotton'sMississippi is number one export.
The number one thingthat we ship out of this state is cotton.
And we ship it to other countries
who were sewing and didn't do a t shirtor whatever that we need.
And then they ship it back to
and a profit to them.
And the president has been very vocalabout this and I support him.
(08:56):
Like,why are we cutting our own throat sugar?
We could be doing thatright here in America.
We could be making that same product.
It would help the farmerto have that market here.
We wouldn't have to wonder who'sgoing to buy our products overseas.
Do it here.
American made, American grown,kind of like our genuine Mississippi
program, but,American and genuine American products.
(09:19):
I think we're going to bring backmore domestic production.
But this is a long term solution.
It's going to happen overnight. It'skind of things we're looking at right now.
I love that you just mentioned, anothergreat initiative you're working on.
One of the others that we talked about
just a bit ago,the Make Mississippi Healthy Again.
Love that.Tell us about that. Well, thank you.
I went to Washington, DC back in February,right when the Trump administration
(09:41):
was taking the reins, of the federal government
and met with the Foodand Drug Administration folks.
And they said that to myself and otherother ag commissioners that were there.
They told us three different times,find a way to plug in
to make America healthy again.
Now, make America Healthy Againis the president's executive order
to try to help restore, a healthierpopulation here in our country.
(10:04):
We have
we spend so much on health care, butwe're some of the sickest people on earth
seem so. It all begins on the family farm.
So one of his initiativeswas to make sure we have abundant,
affordable and available food supplyand so I came back,
started turning my wheels, and we launchedMake Mississippi Healthy Again.
Make mass Healthy again.com.
(10:25):
You can find it on the website.
And when you go there,what you're going to find are resources
about food raised on a farm in Mississippiwhere you can go buy locally.
We we love to promote local purchasesof of of, farm raised food
for the obvious reason that it supportsour farmers and it supports the economy.
The local economy.
(10:47):
But this health aspectis a whole new wrinkle of that.
Because the truth is,when you eat healthy,
when you eat locally, raise food, it'sgenerally going to be less processed,
it's going to be a fresher andit's going to have more nutrients in it.
So that makes perfect sense to me.
As we launched to make MississippiHealthy again, we are connecting
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consumers who are health consciouswith farm raised products in Mississippi.
I, we traveled hitting all the the springcrops, blueberries, blackberries.
The official state fruit is blueberries,by the way, thanks to the legislature.
Thank you.
All. The, we hit, the produce watermelonsand all the great produce.
Tomatoes, peas, butter beansthat we raise across the state during the
(11:30):
the growing season.And the farmers markets.
And now we're headed into the fall.
Now, will, when it gets fall,I start thinking about hunting season.
I start thinkingabout specific types of food.
What do you start thinking about?
Maybe a good sweet potato and pumpkins.
You can't go without pumpkins, for sure.That's good.
That's good for mine.
I like all that.
But I think about pecan pie.
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I don't eat them all year long,but I love to eat them in the fall
with a cup of coffee.
So we're going to hit our fall cropspecans, sweet potatoes.
We're going to hit peanuts.
You know, when I think about bowl peanutsin the fall
and in rice and some othersthat we're hitting to to highlight
the fact that Mississippi alreadyhas the healthiest farm raised food
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here, locally available.
And we roll back a lot of regulations
to make it easier for peoplejust to buy direct from the farm.
And I like to remind folksthat when you buy direct from a farmer
are at a farmersmarket, your sales tax is not 7%
0%. There's
no state sales tax on your purchaseof local farm raised food.
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So you're getting an economic benefit.
You're getting a, a health conscious benefit, and you're
still supporting our local farmersand our local communities.
So as we have launched this, we'realso in discussions with the Department
of Education about our farmto school program, ways to expand that.
Absolutely.
Ways to that farmers can actually benefitthrough this program by planning,
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more peas and butter beansand have a direct market into our schools.
That's what the presidentand the Health Administration
is really focused on, on children,young people, especially eating healthier
and being healthier becausewhen you eat healthy food, guess what?
You're going to be healthier.
The old saying we all learnyou are what you eat.
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So when you eat, eat, eat, eat healthy,you're going to be healthier.
You eat junk,you're going to have junky health.
We're trying to make Mississippihealthy again.
And we do believe the potentialis there to help,
our population be healthierand also help our farmers simultaneously.
And I have talked with, CorrectionsCommissioner Burl Cain about this issue
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and the interest that they have
and having more access to local farmraised Mississippi food products.
So we're, you know,the possibilities are there.
And we're we're working lockstepwith the Trump
administrationon making America healthy again.
We want to do itright here in Mississippi.
I love thatI had no idea about the sales tax.
(13:59):
Yeah, part of that. Most peopleI tell that to don't I.
But when you buy the key is buying
farm raised product from a farmer.
And that can be on farmor at the farmers market.
And the sales tax is 0%.
So you get out and shop.
We have 72 farmersmarkets across the state.
Well, almost one in every county.We used to have.
(14:19):
I think 25. But that has really grown.
The demand, the consumer demandfor more local, available food
products has grown and the farmersmarkets have grown with it.
So, we're fired up about it.
And, and I do believe it has potentialto be a very,
important aspect to the farmersfuture in Mississippi.
I love that, I love every bit of that.
(14:40):
I mean, I am not a farmer.I'm not a scientist.
I couldn't give you any datathat supports closure.
More local food is better for you.
But in my head, I would completely agree.
It seems correct,you know, food and exercise.
And speaking of that, if I could jump inon behalf of my friends at Mississippi
State University, certainly they'relaunching during the state fair this year.
(15:03):
They're launching a similar program,but but unwra but, similar,
but not exactly related.
But it's a walking program.
I'm trying to get Mississippians to walk180 miles over six week period of time,
and they actually launched it, a soft launch.
Its online now.
You can sign up and getting peopleenrolled in this to walk on a daily basis.
(15:27):
The full length of Mississippi,the state of Mississippi are the
that is so that's exciting toto think about.
You know, I think it's 180 miles.
It might be some other distance,but I can't remember
except to say it's a long distance oversix weeks.
And, I think they said 180.
They're going to launch itduring the state fair.
And we'll give you all the details then.
But it's a walking,eating healthier and healthier lifestyle.
(15:50):
So in a healthier population to help usbattle some of the chronic disease
that we face in this statethat's dragging this down, and
and we can do better than that,and we can be healthier. Absolutely.
What's the old saying?
You know, a well, man has lots of wishes,but a sick man only has one.
That's right,that's right. You be healthy. Exactly.
We take our health for granted.
Sometimes you are what you eat.
(16:11):
Well, I like that very much.
Well, look again.You guys are killing it.
I mean, just out there, doing doing the Lord's work.
Love the local aspect of all that.
And, obviously I like to eat,a couple things are one thing.
You did mention
that we were looking very much forwardto getting to talking about, State Fair.
Coming up, man, we're ready for thethe Mississippi State Fair.
(16:33):
It's the 166th Mississippi State Fair,the largest event in the state
will have half a millionpeople come through here or more.
We hope to have more this year.
I was at my desk in the month of June
and, got an e-mail fromthe white House and it said,
you were
invited to participatein the Great American State Fair.
(16:55):
So. Well, that sounded arresting.
I clicked on it and read it and turns outPresident Trump had mentioned
this idea of a great American fairwhen he was running for reelection.
And, you know, we all heard itand didn't think a lot more about it.
But it's a true thing.
He's challenging as part of America's250th birthday,
every stateto have the most patriotic fair.
(17:17):
We're having a competition.
Who can havethe most patriotic state fair?
I didn't evenI did not even have to pray about that.
I actually wrote him rightback, said Mississippi's.
And we're going to do this. No problem.We can do this.
And so we're wrapping our state fair andred, white and blue as part of America.
250 the birthday of America.
July the 4th will be 250 years old nextJuly 4th, 2026.
(17:40):
And the presidentsaid, we're starting the celebration now,
a year long,and we'll continue through 26.
But as we put on the most patriotic fair,some of the things that we've done,
we're going to have a ribbon cuttingwith the National Guard and a flyover.
We've got Chief Cyrus, Band
of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indianscoming to help us cut the ribbon.
And, the new mayor Jackson, Mayor Horn
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and, we've got, some great activities
of patriotic performancesthroughout the duration of the fair.
Some local churches are performing,doing patriotic programing.
A day of prayer, October the 8th.
And then right after I wrotethe white House Banks in Mississippi.
Then I picked up the phone and I said,y'all call Lee Greenwood's agent,
(18:23):
call him today, and book himfor the Mississippi State Fair.
And I'm proud to reportLee Greenwood will be
at the StateFair on stage for a live performance.
October 13th is Columbus Daywith a great American concert.
Free with your fair admission,and I'm going to get on stage and sing.
I'm Proud to Be an Americanwith Lee Greenwood.
(18:44):
If I don't do anything else, I'm goingto be up there singing that with him.
After he performs,we're going to have a massive
fireworks show and, it's going to be a fantastic day.
We planned a great American parade,and I love
the patriotic spirit that this is goingto bring as we bring people together.
(19:04):
And we were thinking about what elsecould we do to kind of give back.
And we decided we'dmake it a great benefit for our veterans.
The Friends of Mississippi Veterans,an organization, nonprofit organization
that simply invest in the careand the well-being of the veterans
who fought and defended our freedomsfor all their lives, building them
(19:24):
homes, nursing homes, and vans so they canget to the health care that they need.
And so we're going to have stationsthroughout the entire complex
where people can give directlyto the Friends of Mississippi Veterans.
Just click on the QR code, send it,and they're going to support the veterans
of this great state.
We're honored to do that.
And so if Mississippi doesn't winthe most patriotic state fair,
(19:47):
I don't know who else is going to win it.
You know, we got to win us allwe need to do
if you're coming to the fair.
Well, I'm telling you,I'm telling you and myself.
Let's all wear red, white and blue.
Let's get a sea of red, whiteand blue folks out there on that, Fairway
fair midway.
And we're going to have a fantastic statefair, All American patriotic State Fair.
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The National Guard will be there.
We're going to honor our law enforcement.
We have special days for law enforcement,first responders, and active military
and veterans to get in absolutely freebecause we love America.
And I think in the days that we're livingin, when we see the tragedy of the
the Charlie Kirk assassinationand the the gut punch that we all took
(20:29):
to see that tragedy, it's a good timeto remember that we are one
nation under God, and we can come togetherand stand for what we believe in.
And, I think everybody can agree.
We're thankful to be Americans,to be celebrating 250 years.
Thanks be to the good Lordand the great people of this country.
So let's let's celebrate America.
(20:50):
That's right.
It's just 20, 25great American Mississippi State Fair.
And that is October 2nd. Right.
Start October the 2nd at 11:00.
We'll cut the ribbon.
It'll run all the waythrough the 13th and Columbus Day.
And that'swhen Lee Greenwood will be here.
And you come on out.
I'll be at the biscuit booth.
And by the way, next question.
One more, one more, one more big. Well,
(21:13):
ask me your question and I'll tell youone more big surprise.
Well, that you answered.
I was going to askwhen you're going to be at the biscuit,
I'm going to be at the biscuit booth.
So the the great American Fairthat President Trump invasion
is going to happen in Washington, DC
on the week of 4th of July 2026.
And he's invited us to come
to the National Mall for a 50 stategreat American fair.
(21:37):
Oh, wow.
So I'll be representing our state there.
Oh, maybe y'all can come too.
But I'm going to bring the biscuit boothto Washington, DC.
I love that we give 100,000
fresh, hot, homemade buttermilkbiscuits out every year,
and we'll give a
few of them out in Washington, DCto see what they think about them.
Yeah, I take some catfish every time I go,so you can't find these catfish,
(22:00):
we're thinkingmaybe we should start a contest.
What do we need to bring to representMississippi at the Great American Fair
during the 250th birthdaycelebration of America?
The biscuit booth is going to be there.
All right,what else? They all think about it.
You drive in and tell us what you think.
I that I think we'll launch that wayduring the state fair.
Let people give us their ideas.Catfish is a great idea.
(22:22):
We like to eat, I'm telling you.
And I'm not kidding.
Every time I go to Washington, I feel likethere's just no where to eat catfish.
I don't know why it is.
I get up thereand start looking for catfish, I guess.
Well, they don't know whatthey're missing out on now.
You convinced me. Well, let'sbring the catfish to D.C..
We got to.
Maybe we call it a taste of Mississippi.
There we go. All of our best food.
We've all talked about a lot of it,and we're going to do it.
(22:44):
So get ready.
Let's celebrate Americaduring this state fair.
And then the weekend, 4th of July.
I'll see y'all in Washington, D.C.
on the National Mallwith a taste of Mississippi.
And I will have some biscuits to hand.
I love a lot to look forward to.
And look, I just own the state fair.
I mean, a staple of of my entire,you know, childhood and existence.
(23:05):
I mean, that was somethingwe looked forward to and and still do.
And now I've got two little kidsand, two girls.
Can't wait to bring them outand and restart that.
You know, it's about family memories.
Absolutely.
And the people who come to the state fair,many of them are multiple
generations coming, bringing their family.
Had a couple here last yearthat was celebrating
(23:26):
75 years of marriagewhile they were engaged.
I get the he popped the questionat the state fair 75 years ago.
And they brought,
I think, four generations of their familythere just to celebrate there.
And wheelchairs rolling around.
And I'm thinking, well,that's what it's about, family memories
and, making those traditions.
And when you come by the biscuit booth,that's keeping the tradition alive.
(23:49):
I love that very much.
Well, Commissioner, look, with that,I appreciate you very much
taking your time, my dayto come over here.
Anything else you wanted to to get outbefore we leave?
I don't think so.
I just want to encourage everybodyto put on their patriotic spirit.
Come on out to the Mississippi State Fair,
support our farmers,thank our farmers when you see them.
And, And buy local.
(24:10):
That's what I love to see peopledo when we invest in our own people
and our own products,
we're making the best investmentbecause we have the best folks
and the the best farmers,the best products anywhere in this world.
And I'm honored to be here today.
Thank you
all for what you do as a vote to keepthe products rolling, commerce flowing.
And, we'll just keep on keeping onand see what tomorrow brings.
(24:31):
Thank you.
Yes, sir.
We appreciate you. With that.We'll wrap up here.
Special thanks to all of our listenersout there for letting us do this.
Drew Hall
holding things down behind the camera,making sure everything goes smoothly.
Shout out to our transcomm partners up there.
Maggie.
Thanks for always taking care of usand looking out for us.
Find us wherever you download podcasts,go get it and, let us know.
(24:53):
Thank you all so much. Forever.
Drive safe out there on Mississippi Road.
MDOT presents the Extra Mile podcast.
Welcome into another edition
of the Extra Mile podcast here at Mdot.
I am wILLcraft.
And I am not joined,this time by my co-host, Paul Katool.
I'm going to do my best,to hold it down in his stead.
And he'll be back with usnext episode, for sure.
(00:30):
But today we got a great guest,on tap for us.
No stranger to the showor to Mississippians for sure.
Department of Agriculture Commissioner
Andy Gipson,thank you so much for joining us.
Well, it's great to be with you.
My hat's off to you.
Thank you all for doing thisgreat podcast.
Every time I'm a I'm a faithful listener.
When I get a chance. That's right.
We're going to
institute the gold jackets at some pointfor for numerous appearances.
(00:53):
Got his first inductee.Yeah, that's a great idea.
Well, Commissioner, as we were discussingon the way up, you are hard
and heavy out there running the roads,talking to folks, getting to the people.
Lots going on, lots to cover.
But how are thingsthat Department of Agriculture.
Things are going very well. Thank you.
The Department AG is a great, great agency.
We're really proud of our 200plus employees, most of whom work
(01:15):
in their vehicle all day, working out and doing the work
that has to be done out in the fieldor and testing the gas pumps.
The fuel pumpsmake sure folks are getting quality
fuel and test and everythingin the grocery stores make sure
everything scans up right on the scannersand just, really, it's
not an exaggerationto say that our agency touches
the lives of every single Mississippianin a positive way, every day.
(01:38):
We're proud of the work that our folks doand proud of the Department AG,
and I'm proud to be the commissioner, sir.
And, all marksdoing a great job out there.
And again, lots to cover.We've got a bunch of great stuff.
Dixie Nationaland some new initiatives rolling out.
But, one thing you just hit ona little bit there, the seasons.
Seasons coming and going and changeand we're in the fall.
Oh man, it's harvest season. That's right.
(01:59):
There we go.
I've just recentlygot a radio spot, in connection with the
transportationsafety initiative in the Delta.
So, reminding people
as you travel this fall,I know we're all thinking about
where we're headed and where we're goingand where we got to be.
But remember,you're going to see a lot more tractors.
You're going to see a lot more combine.
You're going to see more trucks hauling, product.
(02:21):
Mississippi's number oneindustries, agriculture.
You will see more of that on the road.
And they're not moving is they're notmoving 60 miles an hour and 65.
So so take a little extra caution,I remind folks, and be a little careful
because, you don't want to run into the back
of that load of soybeans and, not only for your for their safety,
but for yours as well,and for everybody's safety.
(02:44):
I encourage people to slow down,
pay a little more attention,especially when you're traveling in
rural areas, and just be on the lookoutfor for slow moving vehicles.
This is a critical time of the yearfor our farmers.
They're getting the crops in.
And, whether it's soybeans or cottonor whether it's corn or,
even, the harvest is going on and other products
(03:05):
pay attention to what's in front of youand look out and, y'all be safe out there.
Absolutely. That's right.
Whether you go into the gameor just go in to see family,
whatever it is, it only takes a fractionof a second, you know?
And sometimes those brakes just don't stopquick enough and try to get them.
Pay attentionand look at everybody be all right.
But it's a it'sa critical time of the year.
(03:26):
And I'll tell you if it's all rightto, to talk about farming right now.
Sure.
The farmers are facingsome difficult days.
Now, when I say agriculture or farming,that is a lot of very broad products.
Our poultry is our number one industry.
And then we, of course, got beef cattleand a lot of other great products.
But I'm talking about our crop producersright now, soybeans.
(03:47):
I'm talking about corn producers.
I'm talking about cotton.
Those three, big row crop commoditiesand others, are facing
some really stiff headwinds right nowdue to global trade, imbalance.
That's the best way I can put it.
China has been the purchaserof about 52% of American
soybeans, just taking them, for example,over the years, historically.
(04:11):
But over the last five years,we've had a trade imbalance
that has really been driven by China'sgoing out and buying product elsewhere.
So just taking soybeans, just one example.
China, this year has not placedone single order for American soybeans.
Wow. So this is a a game
(04:33):
changer in terms of, the
what what our farmers have come to expectin terms of trade and what's reality
now, what's happening is China'sbuying all their product from Brazil.
So they have outsourced their productsto their purchases from Brazil,
which is cutting down their rainforest
every day, triple crop and soybeansand wow, all of these factors,
(04:54):
it's just one example, but,we have so much production.
All right.
So we're blessed.
We're highly productive,the most productive soil.
And in America's in the Mississippi Delta.
But we have been so successfulin producing abundant
soybeans, corn, cottonthat we have so much of it.
Right.
And the demand is not there.
So President Trump is working.
(05:16):
I know, AG SecretaryBrooke Rowlands is working.
A lot of smart people are workingto, to to,
crack open new markets,
but also trying to renegotiatea deal with China
that'll get them back to the table.
That's happening right nowas we're recording this podcast.
President Trump is in Englandnegotiating a new deal for our farmers.
(05:37):
So we're we're in a really tight time.
The cost of production have been sky high.
The demand has not been there.
So the prices are low.
And for many farmers,this is a make or break situation.
Sure.
So we've been in talkswith everybody in DC.
I've been to DC several times,and we actually had
Secretary Brooke Rollinshere in Mississippi this last week and,
(06:00):
talk with her about these times.
She gets it, the president gets it.
Everybody understandsthat our farmers are facing tough times.
And, the first thing on the agendais to pass a farm bill.
So we've been in talkswith our congressional delegation.
Everybody is so good to work with,but it can't happen soon enough.
And then that, this past week, 260
(06:22):
farm organizationsnationwide wrote Congress and,
I, you know, begged them toto pass a bipartisan farm bill.
So that's that's somethingthat's got to happen in the near term
before the end of this year.
Any markets we can open up,
getting China back to the table,trying to get a deal done with India
and that which is the a larger marketthan China, as a matter of fact.
(06:44):
So, just everybody be aware out there
we are in 2025,America is in the midst of a farm crisis.
And it's not an exaggerationto call it a crisis, but
I know our farmers well enough to knowthey're going to persevere.
We're going to get through this.
I believe DC, I believe Washington,the Congress will come through,
(07:05):
and I know President Trump and his teamare ready and able and willing to help.
And we're going to get through this.
And, in the meanwhile,
well, we gotta do what we can do herein Mississippi to help.
Exactly. Right.
So what we started last week,
was a private sectorled group of, agriculture leaders,
private sector farmers,aid groups, organizations
(07:28):
who understand these issuesbetter than any politician ever will.
And, meeting around a table at our office,
we kicked off this initiativewith a presentation by a professor Keith
Coble,director of the Agriculture Department
at a Mississippi State University,kind of painting a broad picture
of the issues and what our intentis to travel the state.
(07:48):
I'm already traveling the state myself,
but we're going to take this groupof ag experts and farmers around the state
listening to local producersand in the Delta, in northeast Mississippi
and central Mississippi, southwestand in the southeast and the Gulf Coast.
Talking about what our farmers are seeingat the local level and what we can do in
terms of policy as a state in Mississippito help, we can only do what we can do.
(08:12):
But we first had to figure outwhat needs to be done today
for the future of agriculture tomorrow.
So we're focused on that.
And, you know, I'm proud of the workthat that we've already done.
We've already highlighted some big issues.
Yeah, one of the big ones
is we're going to have to bring backmore domestic production.
Sure.
For example, cotton.
(08:35):
Okay. Cotton.
Most of our cotton Cotton'sMississippi is number one export.
The number one thingthat we ship out of this state is cotton.
And we ship it to other countries
who were sewing and didn't do a t shirtor whatever that we need.
And then they ship it back to
and a profit to them.
And the president has been very vocalabout this and I support him.
(08:56):
Like,why are we cutting our own throat sugar?
We could be doing thatright here in America.
We could be making that same product.
It would help the farmerto have that market here.
We wouldn't have to wonder who'sgoing to buy our products overseas.
Do it here.
American made, American grown,kind of like our genuine Mississippi
program, but,American and genuine American products.
(09:19):
I think we're going to bring backmore domestic production.
But this is a long term solution.
It's going to happen overnight. It'skind of things we're looking at right now.
I love that you just mentioned, anothergreat initiative you're working on.
One of the others that we talked about
just a bit ago,the Make Mississippi Healthy Again.
Love that.Tell us about that. Well, thank you.
I went to Washington, DC back in February,right when the Trump administration
(09:41):
was taking the reins, of the federal government
and met with the Foodand Drug Administration folks.
And they said that to myself and otherother ag commissioners that were there.
They told us three different times,find a way to plug in
to make America healthy again.
Now, make America Healthy Againis the president's executive order
to try to help restore, a healthierpopulation here in our country.
(10:04):
We have
we spend so much on health care, butwe're some of the sickest people on earth
seem so. It all begins on the family farm.
So one of his initiativeswas to make sure we have abundant,
affordable and available food supplyand so I came back,
started turning my wheels, and we launchedMake Mississippi Healthy Again.
Make mass Healthy again.com.
(10:25):
You can find it on the website.
And when you go there,what you're going to find are resources
about food raised on a farm in Mississippiwhere you can go buy locally.
We we love to promote local purchasesof of of, farm raised food
for the obvious reason that it supportsour farmers and it supports the economy.
The local economy.
(10:47):
But this health aspectis a whole new wrinkle of that.
Because the truth is,when you eat healthy,
when you eat locally, raise food, it'sgenerally going to be less processed,
it's going to be a fresher andit's going to have more nutrients in it.
So that makes perfect sense to me.
As we launched to make MississippiHealthy again, we are connecting
(11:07):
consumers who are health consciouswith farm raised products in Mississippi.
I, we traveled hitting all the the springcrops, blueberries, blackberries.
The official state fruit is blueberries,by the way, thanks to the legislature.
Thank you.
All. The, we hit, the produce watermelonsand all the great produce.
Tomatoes, peas, butter beansthat we raise across the state during the
(11:30):
the growing season.And the farmers markets.
And now we're headed into the fall.
Now, will, when it gets fall,I start thinking about hunting season.
I start thinkingabout specific types of food.
What do you start thinking about?
Maybe a good sweet potato and pumpkins.
You can't go without pumpkins, for sure.That's good.
That's good for mine.
I like all that.
But I think about pecan pie.
(11:53):
I don't eat them all year long,but I love to eat them in the fall
with a cup of coffee.
So we're going to hit our fall cropspecans, sweet potatoes.
We're going to hit peanuts.
You know, when I think about bowl peanutsin the fall
and in rice and some othersthat we're hitting to to highlight
the fact that Mississippi alreadyhas the healthiest farm raised food
(12:13):
here, locally available.
And we roll back a lot of regulations
to make it easier for peoplejust to buy direct from the farm.
And I like to remind folksthat when you buy direct from a farmer
are at a farmersmarket, your sales tax is not 7%
0%. There's
no state sales tax on your purchaseof local farm raised food.
(12:34):
So you're getting an economic benefit.
You're getting a, a health conscious benefit, and you're
still supporting our local farmersand our local communities.
So as we have launched this, we'realso in discussions with the Department
of Education about our farmto school program, ways to expand that.
Absolutely.
Ways to that farmers can actually benefitthrough this program by planning,
(12:57):
more peas and butter beansand have a direct market into our schools.
That's what the presidentand the Health Administration
is really focused on, on children,young people, especially eating healthier
and being healthier becausewhen you eat healthy food, guess what?
You're going to be healthier.
The old saying we all learnyou are what you eat.
(13:17):
So when you eat, eat, eat, eat healthy,you're going to be healthier.
You eat junk,you're going to have junky health.
We're trying to make Mississippihealthy again.
And we do believe the potentialis there to help,
our population be healthierand also help our farmers simultaneously.
And I have talked with, CorrectionsCommissioner Burl Cain about this issue
(13:39):
and the interest that they have
and having more access to local farmraised Mississippi food products.
So we're, you know,the possibilities are there.
And we're we're working lockstepwith the Trump
administrationon making America healthy again.
We want to do itright here in Mississippi.
I love thatI had no idea about the sales tax.
(13:59):
Yeah, part of that. Most peopleI tell that to don't I.
But when you buy the key is buying
farm raised product from a farmer.
And that can be on farmor at the farmers market.
And the sales tax is 0%.
So you get out and shop.
We have 72 farmersmarkets across the state.
Well, almost one in every county.We used to have.
(14:19):
I think 25. But that has really grown.
The demand, the consumer demandfor more local, available food
products has grown and the farmersmarkets have grown with it.
So, we're fired up about it.
And, and I do believe it has potentialto be a very,
important aspect to the farmersfuture in Mississippi.
I love that, I love every bit of that.
(14:40):
I mean, I am not a farmer.I'm not a scientist.
I couldn't give you any datathat supports closure.
More local food is better for you.
But in my head, I would completely agree.
It seems correct,you know, food and exercise.
And speaking of that, if I could jump inon behalf of my friends at Mississippi
State University, certainly they'relaunching during the state fair this year.
(15:03):
They're launching a similar program,but but unwra but, similar,
but not exactly related.
But it's a walking program.
I'm trying to get Mississippians to walk180 miles over six week period of time,
and they actually launched it, a soft launch.
Its online now.
You can sign up and getting peopleenrolled in this to walk on a daily basis.
(15:27):
The full length of Mississippi,the state of Mississippi are the
that is so that's exciting toto think about.
You know, I think it's 180 miles.
It might be some other distance,but I can't remember
except to say it's a long distance oversix weeks.
And, I think they said 180.
They're going to launch itduring the state fair.
And we'll give you all the details then.
But it's a walking,eating healthier and healthier lifestyle.
(15:50):
So in a healthier population to help usbattle some of the chronic disease
that we face in this statethat's dragging this down, and
and we can do better than that,and we can be healthier. Absolutely.
What's the old saying?
You know, a well, man has lots of wishes,but a sick man only has one.
That's right,that's right. You be healthy. Exactly.
We take our health for granted.
Sometimes you are what you eat.
(16:11):
Well, I like that very much.
Well, look again.You guys are killing it.
I mean, just out there, doing doing the Lord's work.
Love the local aspect of all that.
And, obviously I like to eat,a couple things are one thing.
You did mention
that we were looking very much forwardto getting to talking about, State Fair.
Coming up, man, we're ready for thethe Mississippi State Fair.
(16:33):
It's the 166th Mississippi State Fair,the largest event in the state
will have half a millionpeople come through here or more.
We hope to have more this year.
I was at my desk in the month of June
and, got an e-mail fromthe white House and it said,
you were
invited to participatein the Great American State Fair.
(16:55):
So. Well, that sounded arresting.
I clicked on it and read it and turns outPresident Trump had mentioned
this idea of a great American fairwhen he was running for reelection.
And, you know, we all heard itand didn't think a lot more about it.
But it's a true thing.
He's challenging as part of America's250th birthday,
every stateto have the most patriotic fair.
(17:17):
We're having a competition.
Who can havethe most patriotic state fair?
I didn't evenI did not even have to pray about that.
I actually wrote him rightback, said Mississippi's.
And we're going to do this. No problem.We can do this.
And so we're wrapping our state fair andred, white and blue as part of America.
250 the birthday of America.
July the 4th will be 250 years old nextJuly 4th, 2026.
(17:40):
And the presidentsaid, we're starting the celebration now,
a year long,and we'll continue through 26.
But as we put on the most patriotic fair,some of the things that we've done,
we're going to have a ribbon cuttingwith the National Guard and a flyover.
We've got Chief Cyrus, Band
of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indianscoming to help us cut the ribbon.
And, the new mayor Jackson, Mayor Horn
(18:02):
and, we've got, some great activities
of patriotic performancesthroughout the duration of the fair.
Some local churches are performing,doing patriotic programing.
A day of prayer, October the 8th.
And then right after I wrotethe white House Banks in Mississippi.
Then I picked up the phone and I said,y'all call Lee Greenwood's agent,
(18:23):
call him today, and book himfor the Mississippi State Fair.
And I'm proud to reportLee Greenwood will be
at the StateFair on stage for a live performance.
October 13th is Columbus Daywith a great American concert.
Free with your fair admission,and I'm going to get on stage and sing.
I'm Proud to Be an Americanwith Lee Greenwood.
(18:44):
If I don't do anything else, I'm goingto be up there singing that with him.
After he performs,we're going to have a massive
fireworks show and, it's going to be a fantastic day.
We planned a great American parade,and I love
the patriotic spirit that this is goingto bring as we bring people together.
(19:04):
And we were thinking about what elsecould we do to kind of give back.
And we decided we'dmake it a great benefit for our veterans.
The Friends of Mississippi Veterans,an organization, nonprofit organization
that simply invest in the careand the well-being of the veterans
who fought and defended our freedomsfor all their lives, building them
(19:24):
homes, nursing homes, and vans so they canget to the health care that they need.
And so we're going to have stationsthroughout the entire complex
where people can give directlyto the Friends of Mississippi Veterans.
Just click on the QR code, send it,and they're going to support the veterans
of this great state.
We're honored to do that.
And so if Mississippi doesn't winthe most patriotic state fair,
(19:47):
I don't know who else is going to win it.
You know, we got to win us allwe need to do
if you're coming to the fair.
Well, I'm telling you,I'm telling you and myself.
Let's all wear red, white and blue.
Let's get a sea of red, whiteand blue folks out there on that, Fairway
fair midway.
And we're going to have a fantastic statefair, All American patriotic State Fair.
(20:08):
The National Guard will be there.
We're going to honor our law enforcement.
We have special days for law enforcement,first responders, and active military
and veterans to get in absolutely freebecause we love America.
And I think in the days that we're livingin, when we see the tragedy of the
the Charlie Kirk assassinationand the the gut punch that we all took
(20:29):
to see that tragedy, it's a good timeto remember that we are one
nation under God, and we can come togetherand stand for what we believe in.
And, I think everybody can agree.
We're thankful to be Americans,to be celebrating 250 years.
Thanks be to the good Lordand the great people of this country.
So let's let's celebrate America.
(20:50):
That's right.
It's just 20, 25great American Mississippi State Fair.
And that is October 2nd. Right.
Start October the 2nd at 11:00.
We'll cut the ribbon.
It'll run all the waythrough the 13th and Columbus Day.
And that'swhen Lee Greenwood will be here.
And you come on out.
I'll be at the biscuit booth.
And by the way, next question.
One more, one more, one more big. Well,
(21:13):
ask me your question and I'll tell youone more big surprise.
Well, that you answered.
I was going to askwhen you're going to be at the biscuit,
I'm going to be at the biscuit booth.
So the the great American Fairthat President Trump invasion
is going to happen in Washington, DC
on the week of 4th of July 2026.
And he's invited us to come
to the National Mall for a 50 stategreat American fair.
(21:37):
Oh, wow.
So I'll be representing our state there.
Oh, maybe y'all can come too.
But I'm going to bring the biscuit boothto Washington, DC.
I love that we give 100,000
fresh, hot, homemade buttermilkbiscuits out every year,
and we'll give a
few of them out in Washington, DCto see what they think about them.
Yeah, I take some catfish every time I go,so you can't find these catfish,
(22:00):
we're thinkingmaybe we should start a contest.
What do we need to bring to representMississippi at the Great American Fair
during the 250th birthdaycelebration of America?
The biscuit booth is going to be there.
All right,what else? They all think about it.
You drive in and tell us what you think.
I that I think we'll launch that wayduring the state fair.
Let people give us their ideas.Catfish is a great idea.
(22:22):
We like to eat, I'm telling you.
And I'm not kidding.
Every time I go to Washington, I feel likethere's just no where to eat catfish.
I don't know why it is.
I get up thereand start looking for catfish, I guess.
Well, they don't know whatthey're missing out on now.
You convinced me. Well, let'sbring the catfish to D.C..
We got to.
Maybe we call it a taste of Mississippi.
There we go. All of our best food.
We've all talked about a lot of it,and we're going to do it.
(22:44):
So get ready.
Let's celebrate Americaduring this state fair.
And then the weekend, 4th of July.
I'll see y'all in Washington, D.C.
on the National Mallwith a taste of Mississippi.
And I will have some biscuits to hand.
I love a lot to look forward to.
And look, I just own the state fair.
I mean, a staple of of my entire,you know, childhood and existence.
(23:05):
I mean, that was somethingwe looked forward to and and still do.
And now I've got two little kidsand, two girls.
Can't wait to bring them outand and restart that.
You know, it's about family memories.
Absolutely.
And the people who come to the state fair,many of them are multiple
generations coming, bringing their family.
Had a couple here last yearthat was celebrating
(23:26):
75 years of marriagewhile they were engaged.
I get the he popped the questionat the state fair 75 years ago.
And they brought,
I think, four generations of their familythere just to celebrate there.
And wheelchairs rolling around.
And I'm thinking, well,that's what it's about, family memories
and, making those traditions.
And when you come by the biscuit booth,that's keeping the tradition alive.
(23:49):
I love that very much.
Well, Commissioner, look, with that,I appreciate you very much
taking your time, my dayto come over here.
Anything else you wanted to to get outbefore we leave?
I don't think so.
I just want to encourage everybodyto put on their patriotic spirit.
Come on out to the Mississippi State Fair,
support our farmers,thank our farmers when you see them.
And, And buy local.
(24:10):
That's what I love to see peopledo when we invest in our own people
and our own products,
we're making the best investmentbecause we have the best folks
and the the best farmers,the best products anywhere in this world.
And I'm honored to be here today.
Thank you
all for what you do as a vote to keepthe products rolling, commerce flowing.
And, we'll just keep on keeping onand see what tomorrow brings.
(24:31):
Thank you.
Yes, sir.
We appreciate you. With that.We'll wrap up here.
Special thanks to all of our listenersout there for letting us do this.
Drew Hall
holding things down behind the camera,making sure everything goes smoothly.
Shout out to our transcomm partners up there.
Maggie.
Thanks for always taking care of usand looking out for us.
Find us wherever you download podcasts,go get it and, let us know.
(24:53):
Thank you all so much. Forever.
Drive safe out there on Mississippi Road.
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