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GAC WEEKLY LEGISLATIVE REPORTS BEGIN JANUARY 13
With the 2017 legislative session getting underway on Monday, January 9, we will begin our weekly “Inside Agriculture” reports each Friday beginning Jan. 13. Everything is not the same this year under the gold dome, of course, as the elections have ushered in over 30 new legislators in the Georgia House and Senate. There will be changes for some House & Senate Committee chairmanships as well as general makeup in the first few weeks of the session – we’ll report these updates, legislative initiatives, and Capitol conversations in our weekly reports. We look forward to serving as your eyes and ears again this year. Please contact us whenever we can be of service.
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GAC ANNUAL MEETING & LEGISLATIVE BREAKFAST ON FEB. 7 & 8
The GAC Membership Supper & Annual Meeting will be held the evening of Tuesday, February 7, 2017, at the Embassy Suites Atlanta - at Olympic Park. We are pleased to have GAC board member Wesley Langdale serve as keynote to discuss the Harley Langdale Jr. Foundation’s role in supporting the new Destination Ag program at the Georgia Museum of Agriculture. The reception and cash bar open at 6:00 p.m. followed by supper catered by Ruth’s Chris Steak House at 6:30 p.m. Admission is $100.00 per ticket. The host hotel for the event is the Embassy Suites Atlanta- at Olympic Park. To receive the GAC rate of $162 per night, you may book a hotel room online or call 404-223-2300 and ask for the Georgia Agribusiness Council rate.
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John "Wesley" Langdale
The Langdale Company
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GAC Membership Supper
and
Annual Meeting
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The GAC State Legislative Breakfast is set for Wednesday, February 8th at the Georgia Freight Depot in Atlanta. Food lines will open at 7:15 and we will conclude by 8:30. Governor Nathan Deal, Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle, House Speaker David Ralston, Commissioner Gary Black, House Ag Chairman Tom McCall and Senate Ag Chairman John Wilkinson have been invited to speak at this event. Table sponsorships are available for $400.00 (reserved table of eight) or individual tickets are available for $50.00 each. This is a great event to attend with your elected House and Senate members - please reach out to them and request that they attend.
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Rep. Tom McCall
H
ouse Agriculture Committee Chairman
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Sen. John Wilkinson
Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman
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GAC has much to celebrate after completing a very special 50th anniversary year. We captured some highlights with this brief video. Thanks so much for making 2016 the very best!
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2017 STAR SPONSORSHIPS NOW AVAILABLE
Many thanks to our 2016 Star Sponsors shown in the right-hand column. We appreciate the outstanding support last year!
The 2017 GAC Star Sponsor program registration is now underway. This program helps with events during the legislative session along with building support for a variety of projects and initiatives that cannot take place without the added participation.
Star Sponsors are reflected in each of our newsletters, as posted on this page, along with the weekly legislative reports throughout each session of the Georgia General Assembly, monthly newsletters and more. Click here for 2017 Star Sponsor registration information or call the GAC office at 706-336-6830. Thank you!
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2016 SETS RECORD MEMBERSHIP AS GROWTH CONTINUES
Since the Council began in 1966, our membership support and strength of our organization has never been stronger – THANK YOU! With your support, our membership continues to grow and we are proud to have reached yet another all-time high as we broke the 1,000 member mark and ended the year with 1059 member companies!
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HUNTER LOGGINS JOINS GAC STAFF
The Georgia Agribusiness Council is proud to announce the addition of Hunter Loggins as Public Affairs and Education Manager. As the Council’s legislative and regulatory presence has grown, along with advancements in our education initiatives since creating the GAC Foundation, this is an increasingly important position for the organization.
Hunter possesses the qualities and experience to help serve the Council’s membership. He served as a policy analyst for Georgia Senate Majority Leader Bill Cowsert, worked as a grassroots campaign associate for U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, and has been a lobbyist for the Georgia Beverage Association. Hunter is a good young man and is well liked among his peers. He attended Georgia Southern and is a University of Georgia graduate. Raised in Perry, he now lives in Atlanta. Hunter can be contacted at hloggins@ga-agribusiness.org.
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COUNCIL PROVIDES OPTIONS FOR AGRIBUSINESS HEALTH & WORKERS COMP INSURANCE
In response to the needs of the agribusiness industry, GAC provides insurance programs to help best manage business overhead coupled with great service. Our AgriHealth of Georgia health insurance programs are available for GAC member companies with 10 or more employees enrolling in the plan. These programs utilize the national Blue Cross Blue Shield network. GAC has partnered with the Snellings Walters Insurance Agency to provide these healthcare options that are ACA (Affordable Care Act) compliant. These programs are “group medical captives,” which are partially self-funded healthcare plans, providing transparency of costs and tools to help control expenses. Please contact the GAC office at 706-336-6830 for additional information on this program.
In addition, GAC provides our AgriTrust of Georgia workers compensation insurance program. It is a successful self-insured program that has returned over $5,525,000 in dividends to date. Created by the Georgia Agribusiness Council 24 years ago, AgriTrust of Georgia provides a stable, affordable source of workers’ compensation insurance to the agribusiness industry. We encourage you to consider this proven program for your workers’ compensation insurance needs. For more information about AgriTrust of Georgia, please visit www.agritrust.biz or call 678-753-0016.
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GAC CLASSROOM GRANTS AWARDED
We are very pleased to have hand delivered grant checks to the Dr. Joe B. Crane Classroom Grant Program winners in December. It rewards applicants who provide thought provoking lesson plans that promote agricultural learning in the classroom. Teachers from all schools in Georgia (kindergarten through 12th grade), both public and private, are eligible to receive these grants.
This year’s Dr. Joe B. Crane Classroom Grant winners were: (School and project area of interest)
Central High School - Carrollton Ag Education
R.B. Wright Elementary School - Moultrie Animal Education
Sallie Zetterower Elementary - Statesboro Horticulture
Since 2000, a total of 59 projects have been funded through this classroom grant program. The quality and value of this program is outstanding, and with your support of the GAC Foundation, we will continue to assist educators in their efforts to teach young people the importance and benefits of agriculture in our state.
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Central High School - Carrollton
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R.B. Wright Elementary School - Moultrie
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Sallie Zetterower Elementary - Statesboro
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WILD HOG FOR A GOOD CAUSE
The
Wild Hog Supper signals the start of lawmaking. This
55-year tradition that kicks-off Georgia’s legislative session will be held at the Georgia Railroad Depot in Atlanta on
Sunday, January 8th
from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and GAC is proud to be a sponsor of this initiative.
The Honorary Host Committee includes Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture Gary Black, Georgia Senate Ag Chairman John Wilkinson, and Georgia House Ag Chairman Tom McCall
, and all are welcome to attend. The event raises funds for the Georgia Food Bank Association and helps support the Farm to Food Bank.
Click here for tickets and details about the 2017 Wild Hog Supper
.
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Agri-Business Supply Inc.
Brooksco Diary,LLC
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Boston Gin Co.
Clay Co. and Associates
Coley Gin & Fertilizer Co. Inc.
C.M Tanner Grocery Co. Inc
Doug Hopkins
Georgia 4-H Foundation
GA Agricultural Commodity for Tabacco
Georgia/Florida Soybean Assoc.
H.T. McClendon Co.
Hardy Farms
Mobley Greenhouse Inc.
Quality Feedstuff, Inc.
Russell Landscape Contractors, LLC
Sylvania Peanut Co. Inc.
Swainsboro Stockyard
The J.L. Morgan Co, Inc.
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Special thanks to all of our Star Sponsors. Please call our office at 706-336-6830 or
click here for details
. Thank you!
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2017 AG FORECAST SEMINARS
Georgia Ag Forecast is organized by the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and supported by Georgia Farm Bureau, Georgia Department of Agriculture, and the Georgia Agribusiness Council. This annual seminar series helps predict markets with a variety of topics and information for growers and agribusiness. Participants will get to network with UGA faculty and UGA Cooperative Extension agents, local producers and other stakeholders, and will leave the meeting with a copy of the latest Georgia Ag Forecast book, which is designed to provide a detailed analysis of major commodities produced in the state. Tickets are available at www.georgiaagforecast.com. The 2017 seminar dates include:
- Wednesday, January 18: Macon (GA Farm Bureau Building)
- Thursday, January 19: Marietta (Cobb County Civic Center)
- Friday, January 20: Carrollton (Carroll County Ag Center)
- Monday, January 23: Tifton (UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center)
- Tuesday, January 24: Bainbridge (Decatur County Ag Center)
- Wednesday, January 25: Lyons (Toombs County Ag Center)
- Thursday, January 26: Waynesboro (Burke County Office Park)
- Friday, January 27: Athens (Georgia Center for Continuing Education)
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* The
Georgia Plant Food Educational Society
will have their 66th annual Winter Meeting and Trade Show January 10-11, 2017 at the UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center. The 2017 program will include both updated agronomic information and updates on fertilizer markets both domestic and international. Go to
www.GPFES.org
for more information.
* The
2017 Georgia Dairy Conference
will be held January 16-18, 2017 at the Savannah Riverfront Marriott.
Click here for more details
.
* The 41st annual
Georgia Peanut Farm Show and Conference
will be held at the UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center January 19, 2017.
For more information, click here
.
* The 2017 Georgia Agritourism Association’s Annual Conference will be held February 27 – March 1. This is a great opportunity for people to tour Georgia Agritourism operations, network, and learn about the latest in effective marketing strategies, on-farm activities that work, and hear first-hand testimonials from agritourism operators about their success. Call 706-845-9085 for more info.
* The
Georgia FFA Foundation Blue & Gold Gala
is slated for Friday, March 10 at the St. Regis Buckhead hotel in Atlanta.
Click here for details
.
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This information is intended for members of the Georgia Agribusiness Council, Inc. No part of this document shall be copied, edited, or redistributed in any form without express written consent from the Georgia Agribusiness Council, Inc. Georgia Agribusiness Council | 706-336-6830 |
WWW.GA-AGRIBUSINESS.ORG
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CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF LEADERSHIP TO GEORGIA'S STRONGEST INDUSTRY
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