ALBANY, Ga. -
“It’s a critical piece of legislation to make sure that we have the economic support for peanut growers,” Zimmer said. Georgia produces 50% of all U.S. peanuts. It’s not just the peanuts the industry is concerned about. Peanuts rely on rotations of cotton, soybean and corn to keep yields high in the long run. Zimmer says if farming becomes profitable, it will remedy farmer shortages.The good news for peanut growers is that almost nothing was going for them last year, but farmers made it out.
Lewis says labor laws have made it a challenge to find skilled labor, but he manages it by making sure the workers are from South Georgia and have a good work ethic. This is so they are at least comfortable in their environment. “Sometimes the goal in farming is to not lose money or to minimize the money you lose,” Boddiford said.