TIFTON, Georgia— It’s a new day and Georgia peanut growers are facing new challenges. Challenges like ensuring peanuts are included in more food aid programs, improving producer loan deficiency payments and enacting real crop insurance reform. While these challenges change through the years, the Georgia Peanut Commission is focused on being a strong, effective advocate for all peanut producers in peanut promotion, consumer education, research and legislation.

Even though the challenges may adapt or change through the years, the Georgia Peanut Commission will hold its referendum every three years according to state law. The commission mailed ballots to all peanut producers the week of April 15 for farmers to vote on reaffirming the commission. The most previous referendum in 2003 passed with a 75 percent reaffirmation.

This year is no different than past years in the fact that the commission is continually working for Georgia peanut producers every day. Georgia peanut producers invest $2 per ton each year to the commission that is used in the program areas of research, education, promotion and communication.

“Research, education, and promotion continue to be the core focus of the commission,” says Armond Morris, peanut farmer in Irwin County, Ga. and GPC’s chairman of the board. “This next couple of years we will have to put added emphasis on legislation in Washington, the farm bill, and the impacts of world trade talks.”

Don Koehler, GPC’s executive director, strongly urges producers to vote and to contact him by email at don@gapeanuts.com or toll free at 1-800-346-4993 if they have any questions about the commission’s activities or the referendum.

If producers did not receive a ballot through the mail, they have the opportunity to obtain a ballot by calling the toll free number. Additionally, the commission is requesting that if a person receives a ballot that is no longer farming, to write “no longer producing” on the certification envelope and return to the commission to assist in updating the mailing list. The commission’s address is P.O. Box 967, Tifton, Georgia 31793.

Balloting concludes on May 15 with the votes to be counted by the Certified Public Accounting Firm of Allen, Pritchett, and Bassett.