Agriculture
For 100 years, the Mississippi State University Extension Service has provided practical, research-based education to farmers and agri-business owners.
MSU Extension’s Agriculture and Natural Resources program supports the largest sector of Mississippi’s economy. Agriculture and forestry account for up to one-third of the state’s gross economic product, with a farm-gate value of more than $7 billion.
Our experts are scientists and educators who take university research and turn it into real-world education you can trust. Extension programs help the state’s food and fiber producers provide quality farm and forest commodities, safer food supplies, and new value-added products. In turn, Mississippians benefit from Extension education offered in all 82 counties.
Publications
News
Some fields benefited from timely rains, while others either received not enough or too much.
Mississippi State University’s state-of-the-art meat processing facilities drew Mississippi Agriculture and Commerce Commissioner Andy Gipson and a small group of influential lawmakers to campus for a personal tour Sept. 16, 2020.
Every year, lawns and pastures become targets for late-summer grass-eating caterpillars, making it important to watch for the usual suspects and some culprits that are less common.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture will accept applications for assistance from agricultural producers who continue to face market disruptions and associated costs because of COVID-19.Sign-up for the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program 2 -- CFAP 2 -- begins Sept. 21 and runs through Dec. 11, 2020. The program is open to producers of row crops, livestock, aquaculture, dairy and specialty crop commodities.
The Mississippi State University Extension Service is offering weekly training on disaster preparation for the food and agricultural sectors.
Success Stories
See what is new in Extension... Extension partners to promote beef quality assurance program, Extension recognized in Gulf Guardian Award Project, First Ag leadership class graduates, and Extension supports residents participating in U.S. Census 2020.
Neal Smith grew up in Picayune in Pearl River County and has lived in Ohio for 27 years. As the chief executive officer and executive secretary for the American Jersey Cattle Association, Smith has been able to stay connected to the reason he joined 4-H as a child—his love of dairy cattle. He first joined 4-H because he wanted to show his Jersey calf at the Pearl River County Fair.
Rice is one of Mississippi’s only commodities to be grown, milled, packaged, sold, and eaten right here in the state. And, for decades, the annual Rice Tasting Luncheon in Cleveland, Mississippi, has allowed local residents to show off their best rice-based dishes at Delta State University in Bolivar County, which produces more than 1.5 million hundredweight of rice annually.
He joined the US Marine Corps to serve and protect the country, and, as a Marine in Iraq, Lance McElhenney felt 10 feet tall and bulletproof.
For the first 15 years of their marriage, Ted and Janet Parker lived off of one income. She made the living, and nearly every penny he made as a beef cattle farmer went right back into growing their farm.
