Ag News
GFB members deliver difficult messages to legislators
Posted on Feb 12, 2026 at 12:59 PM
Georgia Farm Bureau Day at the Capitol, held Feb. 10 in Atlanta, was lauded as a highlight of the Georgia General Assembly’s legislative calendar, and GFB’s leaders received warm welcomes all around. Proclamations were issued in both the Georgia House of Representatives and the Georgia Senate, and state constitutional officers praised GFB for its efforts to engage with elected officials. GFB took nearly 600 members from around the state to visit the Gold Dome, interacting with legislators outside the House and Senate chambers and at lunch in the Georgia Freight Depot.
“We’re the only group that comes here and fills the Depot from wall to wall,” GFB President McCall told the assembled GFB members and guest legislators at lunch, where the GFB group also heard messages from Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper, Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns and Lt. Gov. Burt Jones.
McCall, along with his wife, Jane, and GFB Vice Presidents Daniel Johnson and Ralph Caldwell, received the House and Senate proclamations. McCall, who served in the Georgia House for 26 years, was widely celebrated during visits to both chambers.
While meeting with their legislators, GFB’s farmer members delivered a somber message to legislators: The state’s farmers and ranchers are in dire straits, and they need help.
“The past few years in agriculture have put unprecedented pressure on all our producers,” GFB President Tom McCall said. “From the generational losses brought by Hurricane Helene coupled with the severe economic downturn, the past few years have brought challenges that most of today’s farmers have never faced in their lifetime.”
GFB’s priority issue, shared with members who were asked to pass it on to their legislators, is the financial sustainability of Georgia’s farms. In 2025, Georgia farmers sustained approximately $800 million in lost profits, and farm production costs have exceeded farm revenue in 11 of the past 14 years. The United States incurred a $50 million ag trade deficit in 2025. Stagnant prices and increasing costs suggest a negative outlook for most of Georgia’s major crops.
According to an agricultural lender survey conducted by the American Bankers Association and Farmer Mac, less than 45% of agricultural borrowers were profitable in 2025, with no expectation of improvement in 2026.
Georgia’s legislators were asked to support the state’s farmers by:
• Strengthening existing domestic markets using agricultural commodities and incentivizing new ones.
• Investing in research to create advanced and innovative products from ag commodities.
• Creating a healthy business climate where farmers have access to resources that are reliable and affordable to allowed continued farming.
Harper praised Georgia’s farmers for their resilience and emphasized the importance of cultivating relationships with legislators.
“It's just an honor to join you for a day that matters, because agriculture matters and the people that help make it happen matter,” Harper said. “Your [Farm Bureau] membership matters, your advocacy matters, your work matters.”
Burns discussed ag-related initiatives in the House, including more funding for Helene relief for farmers and forestland owners. He also talked about troubles in the forestry sector, where mill closures and global economic pressures have farmers and legislators alike searching for answers.
Burns said the state is asking the Trump Administration for tweaks to U.S. tariff policy to ease farmers’ export challenges. Specifically, the request is for a 90-day notice before a tariff action takes effect, which would allow agricultural and forest products to leave U.S. ports and arrive at their destinations without tariffs impacting their costs on either end.
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