SIKESTON, Mo. -- Eighth District U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson will meet with area agricultural producers on her annual Farm Tour visits to farms, ranches, specialty producers and value-added agriculture operations. The tour kicks off Thursday in Farmington, Mo., and will conclude Aug. 21 at Sikeston.
"This year is pivotal for producers in Southern Missouri. We need a new farm bill that provides a safety net and protects the safest, most abundant and most affordable food supply in the world," Emerson said. "We need to shore up disaster assistance programs to save family farms and ranches after the worst drought in memory for nearly every producer in Missouri. We need to provide a pro-agriculture climate for small and family-owned businesses to give them certainty over taxes, health care and environmental regulations that directly affect how they hire and conduct their operations. A lot is hanging in the balance for our rural communities right now."
Local stops on Emerson's tour will include addressing the Mississippi River Commission meeting from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Monday on the Motor Vessel Mississippi at Caruthersville, Mo., followed by a fish fry at 11:30 a.m. at Milus and Wanda Wallace's at East Prairie, Mo. From 2 to 3 p.m. Emerson will meet with Trent Haggard, the new director of the University of Missouri Delta Center at Portageville, Mo.
On Aug. 21, Emerson will begin her day at 9:30 a.m. at Close Enough Farms Peanut Farm at Naylor, Mo., then she will visit from 11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. the Joe Humphrey Deer Farm in Poplar Bluff, Mo. Emerson will then travel to the Elvin and Jane Kingree Farm near Dudley, Mo., in Stoddard County, staying from 2 to 3 p.m. and will end her tour from 4 to 5 p.m. at Steve and Michelle Hamra's Hydroponics Farm in Sikeston.
Pertinent address:
Caruthersville, Mo.
East Prairie, Mo.
Portageville, Mo.
Sikeston, Mo.
Naylor, Mo.
Poplar Bluff, Mo.
Dudley, Mo.
Connect with the Southeast Missourian Newsroom:
For corrections to this story or other insights for the editor, click here. To submit a letter to the editor, click here. To learn about the Southeast Missourian’s AI Policy, click here.