Jackson chamber's farm tour emphasizes importance of agriculture

Now in its 41st year, the Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce's annual Agri-Business Tour is said to be the longest-running farm tour in Missouri.

And if you ask chamber president Brian Gerau, he'll tell you it's been around longer than any other similar event in the entire nation.

"At least it is until somebody can prove me wrong," he said with a grin Wednesday morning as he watched nearly 100 people board a pair of air-conditioned Jackson School District buses for a daylong tour of several area agriculture-related concerns.

Even last year, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a "socially-distanced" version of the tour took place so the consecutive year streak would not be interrupted.

Sponsored annually since 1980 by the chamber's agriculture committee, the popular free event gives participants a glimpse of "life on the farm" as well as a look at various ag-related businesses.

Agriculture is among the leading industry sectors in Missouri and, more specifically, in Cape Girardeau County.

"Our area produces $830 million in ag sales every year," Gerau said and attributed approximately $57 million in tax revenue to the region's agriculture industry.

"It's our job to educate the community on the importance of this life-sustaining industry," the chamber president said in explaining the purpose of the Agri-Business Tour.

Todd Erwin, general manager at EPS Buildings, explains some of the processes used by the company to fabricate buildings for agricultural, commercial and residential use during the Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce's annual Agri-Business Tour on Wednesday near Biehle, Missouri.Jay Wolz

Economic impact

According to the Missouri Department of Agriculture, there are more than 1,100 farming operations in Cape Girardeau County, each averaging 222 acres. Roughly 157,000 acres in the county are devoted to crops while another 42,000 acres are used for livestock pastures.

Statewide, Missouri is home to 95,000 farms covering two-thirds of the state's total acreage. The state's leading agricultural commodities include soybeans, corn cattle and calves, hogs and poultry. Cotton, rice and even peanut farms can also be found in parts of the Missouri Bootheel region.

A portion of the participants in the annual Agri-Business Tour, sponsored by the Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce, are shown riding in one of the school buses provided for the tour by the Jackson School District on Wednesday.Jay Wolz

Missouri's top five agricultural commodities in 2016 — soybeans, corn, cattle/calves, hogs and broilers — brought in about $8.8 billion in revenue to Missouri farmers.

Approximately 3,700 jobs are supported by farming, forestry and related industries in Cape Girardeau County. Some of those jobs could be found at several of this year's Agri-Business Tour stops, which included EPS Buildings, manufacturer of agricultural, commercial and residential building components near Biehle; the dairy operation at Schoen Farms outside of Oak Ridge; and Spooler Farms near Jackson.

John Schoen of Schoen Farms Dairy holds one of the ear tags used on the dairy farm to track livestock on the farm property during the Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce's annual Agri-Business Tour on Wednesday near Oak Ridge.Jay Wolz

And although its operations are not directly related to agriculture, this year's tour also included a stop at Midwest Sterilization Corp. in Jackson, which sterilizes a significant percentage of surgical devices and other materials for the medical industry in the United States.

Sponsors for this year's Agri-Business Tour were Alliance Bank, American Industrial Transport, The Bank of Missouri, Commerce Bank, COOP Service Center, Farm Credit of Southeast Missouri, First State Community Bank, Montgomery Bank, Jackson Schools, Kcoe Isom, MFA Agri Services in Jackson, Peoples Bank, Southeast Missouri Cattlemen's Association, Southern Bank and Wood & Houston Bank.

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