Dougherty Co. Commissioner Clinton Johnson, agriculture leaders discuss challenges facing farmers and federal funding to combat climate change
ALBANY, Ga. – Local farmers and Dougherty county leaders spoke up Wednesday morning about the impacts of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) on the always important agricultural industry.
Dougherty County Commissioner, Clinton Johnson, alongside farmers like Flint River Fresh’s Fredando Jackson, and White Oak Pasture’s Will Harris spoke about some of the challenges they’ve faced in keeping up with production since 2020.
Especially when it comes to food insecurity.
“Food deserts in our area became larger, they became bigger. And, so, the work the farmers are doing is more important now, post-pandemic, that we don’t return to the pandemic type of environment we had where there was a lack of food, a lack of supplies that they couldn’t supply,” Commissioner Clinton Johnson, District 3 Commission, Dougherty County.
In fact, Commissioner Harris told us about the overall need for his farm in Clay county to stay up and running, given the last few years.
“We’re the largest employer in Clay county, Ga. And, Clay county in 2020 was the poorest county in the United States of America. Not just Georgia, the United States,” said Will Harris, Owner, White Oak Pastures.
And, in a time where problems such as supply issues may still arise and even climate change presents a problem, farmers like Jackson are trying to encourage the next generation.
“We have a working partnership to teach beginning farmers about the importance of soil health. The importance of using cover crop in order to feed the soil back as well as bringing in different types of irrigation systems that help with water conservation. And we’ve also been looking into expanding into new technologies, on how we can utilize drones in terms of scouting and pest management…” said Fredando “Farmer Fredo” Jackson, Flint River Fresh.
Given the ever growing population, the need to merge conservation and improving technologies with farming will play a critical role.
“Conservation is what we’re here to talk about, and how to blend that technology with today’s markets to create more food for more people, because we are growing. Georgia has been growing, Georgia has been the number one state to do business. And, that ag is very important to southwest Georgia,” said Commissioner Johnson.
As farmers like Harris and Jackson focus on keeping costs down, they’re also going to need to work on making sure that their work stays sustainable with an ever changing climate.
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has allocated more than $19 billion dollars to focus on means of conservation and an extra $14 billion dollars to encourage rural communities to invest in cleaner energy sources.
Brian Roche reporting.
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