By Clint Thompson
Bart Davis never sought recognition as a farmer. But praise and accolades found him on Friday.
He was recognized as Georgia’s Farmer of the Year during the University of Georgia Ag Forecast event at the UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center in Tifton, Georgia. The Colquitt County row crop producer, who farms cotton, peanuts, corn and cattle was humbled with the honor.
“It’s a great honor to be nominated as Georgia’s farmer of the year. I’m not one that’s ever been real big on recognition. I’m sure there’s farmers out there that deserve it more than I do,” Davis said. “But me and my family are honored about it.
“Farming’s been my life. As a child, that’s all I ever wanted to do is farm and farm for my father. Of course, I lost him about the time I was graduating. I have got to farm, got married early in life. Me and my wife together have built a farm; a row crop farm and cattle operation. We’ve got three kids that are really involved. It’s just an honor to do every day what you love to do.”
Davis is chairman of the Georgia Cotton Commission and produces crops on more than 5,000 acres in Dougherty, Mitchell, Colquitt and Worth counties. He discussed what has made him successful over four decades on the farm.
“Just hard work, and the Good Lord has blessed us. This will be my 42nd crop this year. We’ve had a few bumps in the road along the way. We’ve managed to overcome them and keep growing,” Davis said.
Outlook for Upcoming Season
He and other farmers attended the annual Ag Forecast event just ahead of planting season. He provided an outlook on what he and his farming brethren can expect this year.
“We hope for prices to get better and inputs to come down. We all experienced something last year we’ve never experienced, we had more in the 2022 crop than any crop we ever had. Everything the farmer uses right now from labor to seed, chemicals and fertilizer, parts and repairs, interest; everything is up,” Davis said. “We’ve got to hope for the best going into this crop and try to figure out which crops will fit you better for your cash flow and your budget this year.”
Davis will be recognized at the Sunbelt Ag Expo on Oct. 17, where he will compete against other southeastern farmers for the Swisher/Sunbelt Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year award.