By Clint Thompson
Florida farmer Woody Larson was crowned Sunbelt Ag Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year during Tuesday’s Expo event in Moultrie, Georgia.
Larson, who owns dairy and beef cattle across multiple ranches in Florida, was both excited and humbled when accepting the award during the annual luncheon.
“Well, it’s pretty humbling actually. I mean first you’re nominated by some of your peers and then you go through the competition I guess but these guys are all at the top of their line,” Larson said. “They really are great farmers, so I’m happy to be one of those.”
Larson highlighted what the secret has been to his success over the years.
“You know I’ve just lived a long time, so you live a long time and you get to do a lot of things, and we just keep trying to do better all the time,” Larson said.
Larson is owner and serves as president of Larson Dairy Inc. (LDI) in Okeechobee, Florida. He operates multiple cattle ranches. LDI is a family-owned and operated business, consisting of two milking units totaling 6,400 cows; a calf bar with 1,200 calves; and dry cow and heifer pasture consisting of 4,200 animals. LDI is located on 3,500 acres.
Larson also owns more than 4,000 head of beef cows on multiple ranches in Florida. He was nominated for the Farmer of the Year award by Kyndall Bauer, District 7 field representative for the Florida Farm Bureau.
State Farmers of Year
Larson was one of seven state farmers of the year, along with Chuck Madaris from Alabama; Murry Henderson Jr. from Arkansas; Pete Gelber from Georgia; John Gross from North Carolina; Jeffrey Massey from South Carolina; and Glenn Dye from Virginia.
The Sunbelt Ag Expo will continue Wednesday and conclude on Thursday.