Georgia agriculture experiencing exciting times, commissioner says

The Peach State is producing far more blueberries than peaches, said Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black.

Black spoke Thursday in Gainesville at the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce board of directors meeting. The commissioner gave an overview on the agriculture in the state and said this was an exciting time in the industry and for Georgia. He also said Gainesville was an important part of poultry exports to other countries from the Savannah port.

Blueberries are a $250 million industry in the state, and Georgia is close to leading the nation in production, Black said. Georgia needs packing plants so growers don’t have to send the fruit to other states, such as Michigan. That will create and keep jobs in the state, he said.

“I think the real selling point on that part of the story is we wouldn’t have been able to do that without research from the University of Georgia,” Black said. “We had to develop and breed our own plant varieties that would work well in Georgia.”

The investment taxpayers made in the development of that crop about 25 years ago is bearing fruit today and will benefit the next generation. Black said it had “catapulted” over peach production.

“We’ve coined the phrase ‘Peach State,’” he said. “Those types of competitions between commodities and state recognition, I try to stay out of.”

Gainesville still lays claim to the title of “Poultry Capital of the World” and contributes to the amount of chickens sailing out of Savannah. Black said 40 percent of the poultry exported from the U.S. leaves from the South Georgia port, and half of those exports are Georgia chickens.

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