GFB News Magazine
GFB Leadership Programs visit D.C.
by Heather King & Jay Stone
GFB Staff
Posted on May 27, 2026 3:37 PM
Two key groups in Georgia Farm Bureau’s leadership development programs visited Washington, D.C., April 14-17 for training and advocacy activities.
A group of 25 GFB members from 20 different counties went as part of the GFB Young Farmers & Ranchers (YF&R) program, and the 12 members of the inaugural Leadership GFB class visited concurrently.
The YF&R group received briefings from American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) staff about the farm bill and international trade, as well as advocacy training.
“It’s a great time to be able to sit down in front of a congressperson or a staffer, to let them know that [agriculture] exists,” said GFB YF&R Committee Chairman Garrett Hurley. “Basically, [we] just took our seat at the table, because ultimately if we don't take that seat, someone that’s sitting in front of us will tell a story that is possibly not true. And we want to be sure that we've got the true Georgia agriculture story in front of these legislators.”
On April 15, the YF&R group visited 10 members of Georgia’s congressional delegation, with whom they shared the dire situation Georgia farmers find themselves in. Key messaging centered on getting a new farm bill passed. The YF&R members told elected officials and their staff about the overwhelming challenges presented by spiking fertilizer and fuel costs.
“I don't think there's ever been a time that it's been more important to come up here to D.C., to talk to these legislators and let them know how bad it really is back home and hopefully get some support from them, to help the Georgia farmer, also the American farmer, be sustainable,” Hurley said.
The YF&R group also visited the French Embassy and the Pentagon. At the French Embassy, Counselor for Agriculture Christian Ligeard presented information about farming and ranching in France, which farms a total of 66 million acres and accounts for 18% of agricultural production in the European Union.
The French are tops among EU nations in wine production in value and second in volume. In 2024, France exported $6.8 billion worth of agricultural goods to the United States, of which 70% was wine. France is the EU’s fourth-largest producer of fruits and vegetables.
Like their counterparts in the U.S., French farmers are being squeezed with respect to input costs and product prices, Ligeard said. He referenced policy “mirroring,” referring to the concept of having producers of goods that are imported to France subject to the same production standards and regulations as French farmers. Like U.S. farmers, French producers would like fewer regulations.
For the 42nd year, GFB Young Farmers & Ranchers traveled to Washington, D.C. /Photo by Logan Thomas
Leadership GFB members visited the Netherlands Embassy April 14. Agriculture Counselor Ton van Arnhem, Agricultural Attaché Mark Zonnenberg and Agricultural Advisor Caroline Feitel discussed the Netherlands’ use of controlled-environment agriculture, greenhouse exports, and trade between the U.S. and the Netherlands. Cost of land, high input costs and barriers for young people entering farming are problems Dutch agriculture is facing.
“They're able to do a lot with a little bit of space. For me, it was a little bit eye-opening,” said Leadership GFB participant Toni Gaines. “If they can grow tomatoes there year-round, why can’t we do that in America and supply enough tomatoes from greenhouses in this country where you don’t have to go to the grocery store and see Mexico tomatoes in December?”
AFBF Senior Director for Advocacy & Media Training Johnna Miller taught the Leadership GFB group how to interact with media outlets. Miller encouraged them to focus on shared values, steer clear of agriculture jargon and acronyms, and use positive words when speaking with the media. She trained members to: think about sound bites that can be used from interviews, don't wait for the question, and to prevent being caught off guard, ask reporters what they plan to ask you.
“My big takeaway from media training is to be careful with your words and not use terms that are so familiar to us in the industry,” Gaines said. “If you say, ‘Oh, I’m a cattle producer,’ they don't know. Just say you're a farmer and keep it simple.”
During a visit to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Senior Advisor for Agricultural & Rural Affairs Turner Bridgforth discussed ways the agency is working with farmers to expand tools to fight crop disease and pests.
Bridgforth said he is using his ag background to help lawmakers, staffers and EPA officials understand how decisions affect farmers. He said it is important to get people from the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement onto local farms to bridge the disconnect between MAHA and conventional agriculture.
On April 16, Leadership GFB visited four farms in Northern Virginia.
At Great Country Farms near Bluemont, Virginia, the group met with farm operator Kate Zurschmeide. The 400-acre farm offers produce and the farm experience.
The group met Pamela Jones and Sarah Obuchowicz at Gathering Springs Farm in Middleburg, a small farm that grows more than 60 varieties of fruits and vegetables and cut flowers. The farm also pastures 200 laying hens on two acres and operates primarily through community-supported agriculture (CSA), farmers markets and a direct-to-consumer stand on the farm.
Loudoun County Farm Bureau President Avis Renshaw hosted Leadership GFB at her bakery, Mom’s Apple Pie. She discussed issues Loudoun County, which she called the richest county in the nation, is facing: data centers, developers, land prices and water usage - the same issues Georgia farmers face. She and her husband grow all the fruit used in her pies at the bakery.
Leadership GFB met with Hana Newcomb at Potomac Vegetable Farm, which has been in operation for over 50 years in Washington, D.C., suburbs in Vienna/Purcellville. They sell all of their produce through CSA boxes, roadside stands and farmers markets.
The inaugural Leadership GFB class received advocacy training, visited the Netherlands Embassy and toured Virginia farms during an April trip to D.C. /Photo by Logan Thomas