What better way to get to know your county’s elected officials than over a nice meal? From the state level, to county and local officials…all were invited to the Rankin County Farm Bureau Legislative Dinner earlier this week.

“Events like this let us meet with farmers and found out issues they’re having. We want to know what we can do to help them each year,” said Rankin County State Senator Dean Kirby. “Having this in December is perfect for a simple reason – we go back to the Capitol the first week of January, and the issues are fresh on our minds.”

Dean Kirby has represented District 30 in the Mississippi Senate for 30 years. He said it’s vital to know the farmer’s point of view because they are extremely important to Mississippi’s economy.

 “We have some hard working people in this state that are willing to pay the price, whatever it may be, to feed the people, not just in Mississippi, but of this country,” Kirby said.

 In Rankin County, a county with a mixture of urban and rural area, it is important farm and agriculture policy is not lost. For cattle producer Steve Gaines, this event is important for official and farmer, alike.

“This dinner is important to those on the Farm Bureau board, those farmers just paying their premium, young farmers, everyone,” Gaines said. “All of our members are invited to the dinner to meet and interact with these officials.”

 It boils down to simple relationship building.

“This is about building relationships with your local and state officials,” said Bill Rivers, owner of Rivers Greenhouse and Gardens in Rankin County. “When issues arise, if you have a personal relationship with them, it really makes a difference.”

“They just need to know who we are, and this is the perfect way to do it,” said. Rankin County Farm Bureau President and poultry and cattle farmer Brian Rhodes. “Two percent of the country feed the other 98 percent, so I think it’s important for the people producing the food and fiber get to meet and have relationships with the people making policy decisions. Making sure our farmers know who to call when they have problems in the county or with an agriculture policy is important to me.”

Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation President Mike McCormick said December could not be a better time to talk policy with policy makers.

 “When we build relationships and have friendships with our elected officials, it makes it a lot easier for us to communicate at the Capitol,” McCormick said.