With her husband, Dan, Tange James, the 2022 Farm Woman of the Year, grows produce, on their land halfway between Calhoun City and Grenada. It’s been in the family for nearly 60 years. To say Tange pictured herself here growing up would be an understatement.

Tange: “As a child I grew up having to work in a garden. I hated it. I hated it, and I always thought if I ever get old enough to never step in a field again, I would never,” she said. “And I didn’t for a long time. And then Dan and I got married in ’97, and he was a row crop farmer.”

But one thing you’ll find out about Tange, she doesn’t like being told she can’t do something. She admits her competitive nature gets the best of her sometimes. So she jumped in to the farm life with both feet.

“I’ve always been a hands on person in charge, work, my mamaw taught me how to work when I was a kid and I’ve worked hard all my life,” Tange said. “So I would literally get up and pick 3 or 4 bushels of peas before I would go to work in the morning, go in, take a shower, work all day, come home and pick more peas.

“I will say that we are a team,” Dan said. “But I’m going to have to give her probably 90% of the credit for the success of this operation. She is a people‑oriented person. She makes sure that our product gets out the door. She markets our product. Just good things to say about her.  She’s a hard worker. She’s very involved in the Farm Bureau with all aspects.”

Tange is the Grenada County Women’s Committee Chair. She’s worked to increase the county’s outreach to local schools and students.

“Dan kind of kids and thinks it’s funny because he calls Farm Bureau my second home because if I’m not home on Friday, you can pretty much find me there,” Tange said. “And we’re always looking for different things to make us above the other counties. We are trying hard to be the winner this year. If we don’t, we’re already making plans for next year.”

Tange is proud to represent Grenada County and for all that the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation does representing its members, agriculture in the state and the rural way of life from the state capital to our nation’s capital.

“We are definitely a family based farm. Dan has farmed his whole life,” Tange said. “My two boys – they’ve grown up on the farm. Their lives and what they’ve become is because they’ve grown up on the farm. They know where their food comes from… it’s a great way of life. Living in the country is so much better than being in town, and they experience and see so much more.”