In January 2020, the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation launched a federal Political Action Committee, or PAC, after 93% of MFBF delegates voted in favor of its establishment at the 2019 Annual Convention Business Session. The MFBF Furthering Agriculture for Rural Mississippians Fund Political Action Committee, also referred to as the F.A.R.M. fund, is comprised of Farm Bureau members from across Mississippi who voluntarily contribute to efforts supporting agriculture and rural Mississippi’s friends in Congress.

In Congress, various committees control the agenda of the majority of issues impacting our industry, including Agriculture, Appropriations, Ways & Means, and Commerce. These committees are chaired by congressional members from across the country who are not always familiar with our perspectives on certain issues. That is why Farm Bureau invests resources and time into building relationships with public officials and impressing upon them how federal policy impacts our farms on a daily basis.

Thorough our strong relationships with the Mississippi Congressional Delegation and the F.A.R.M. fund, our newest advocacy tool, MFBF has become more effective in building relationships with these members of Congress. Although the F.A.R.M fund has not changed the trajectory of every single issue we work on, it has opened doors for conversations with policy leaders we have never had before.

A perfect example of this is the relationship MFBF has built with U.S. House Agriculture Committee ranking member Congressman Glenn “G.T.” Thompson. Thompson serves the 15th District of Pennsylvania, an area known for its dairy operations. If the Republican Party gains control of the House after the 2022 general election cycle, Thompson will likely serve as the chairman of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee. This means he would lead the development of the 2023 Farm Bill.

In September 2021, MFBF and the F.A.R.M. fund hosted Thompson for a two-day educational farm tour. During the tour, Thompson visited rice, catfish and broiler farms to learn more about the commodities not grown in his congressional district. Thompson’s visit to Mississippi gave Farm Bureau leaders the opportunity to educate him on our commodities and the unique challenges we face in the mid-South. More importantly, it provided us with the time to develop a relationship with Thompson and his House Agriculture Committee staff. These relationships will be critical as we move forward in advocating for our issues during the development of the 2023 Farm Bill.

Another example of the positive impact the F.A.R.M. fund has made occurred in March 2022 when the PAC Governing Committee traveled to Washington, D.C. for the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The committee spent two days meeting with key policy makers on Capitol Hill about the upcoming farm bill, cattle markets, and the challenges our farmers are dealing with due to rising input costs. By utilizing the F.A.R.M. fund, the committee had the opportunity to meet with U.S. Congressman Sanford Bishop (D-GA) and U.S. Congressman Don Bacon (R-NE), who both serve in key positions on the House Agriculture Committee, and more than 30 other members of Congress who are considered friends of our industry.

In a very short time, the F.A.R.M. fund has proven to be an effective advocacy tool for MFBF. If you have questions about the PAC, please reach out to me, at (601) 720-4238 or jferguson@msfb.org, or MFBF General Counsel Kent Bloodworth at (601) 977-4104 or kbloodworth@msfb.org.

Justin Ferguson is the Federal Affairs Coordinator at the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation.