Scotty Raines Named Georgia Farmer Of The Year | National News

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ASHBURN -- Scotty Raines didn’t grow up on a farm, but his father kept a large garden at home. His mother had a beauty shop behind their house.

So Raines began his agrarian career by selling produce from the garden — tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, corn — to his mom's customers. He also participated in FFA at Turner County High School and, after graduation, became a farm technician with Agratech Seed Research. In 1991, he married Melanie, a girl he’d grown up with, and two years later began farming full-time in partnership with his father-in-law.

From that humble beginning, Raines has flourished on his south Georgia farmland. So much so, he has been selected as the Swisher/Sunbelt Ag Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year from the state of Georgia.

“I’m very proud of my family," Raines said. "My wife keeps her accounting skills sharp by maintaining the books for three area churches. We are active in First Baptist Church of Tifton. When our oldest daughter, Celie, was in school, she was in the marching band. It was quite a feat because she is hearing impaired. Our second daughter, Christian, is an EMT. She loves helping people, although she battles Lupus and is in pain most of the time. I think this helps her relate to her patients.

“(Christian's) husband, Justin Pate, works full-time on the farm and has a passion for volunteer fireman work. He was just awarded the Turner County Most Responses and Responder of the Year awards. He and Christian have been working on their certification to become foster parents.”

Raines said he slowly built his farming operation.

“My father-in-law and I originally farmed about 500 acres and eventually expanded to 1,200 acres," he said. "I ventured out on my own to purchase 30 beef cows in 1994. During our partnership we purchased two farms; the remainder of the acres we worked was rented. My wife and mother-in-law were very active in the operation.”

In the spring of 1996, Raines' father-in-law suffered major health problems, so Raines finished the crop alone that year. He began farming on his own a year later with 1,000 acres that grew over time to 2,300 acres, with 1,199 acres owned and 1,101 acres rented.

Crop yields on Raines' farming partnerships include 760 acres of cotton yielding 940 (conservatively) pounds/acre; 385 acres of irrigated peanuts yielding 5,880 pounds/acre; 800 acres of cotton yielding 860 pounds/acre; 200 acres of non-irrigated peanuts yielding 4,760 pounds/acre; 120 acres of corn yielding 219 bushels/acre, and 35 acres of watermelon yielding 100,000 pounds/acre. Raines also owns 27 beef cattle.

For marketing his crops, Raines uses a variety of techniques. In 2001, he purchased 25 percent of Hat Creek Peanut Co., a peanut-buying facility and a chemical and seed-selling point owned by four larger farmer groups. In 2022, Hat Creek will enter into the trucking business to further help the owners and other area farmers handle their commodities more efficiently.

“I was confident it would provide us with a more active way to market our peanuts," Raines said. "Hat Creek and I later bought shares in Tifton Quality Peanut, a shelling company that’s also grower-owned. They shell the nuts and sell directly to companies like Mars Candy. Doing business this way puts us closer to the consumer and retailer in terms of sales. And anytime you can get one step closer to the consumer, I believe you’ve made a step in the right direction.”

Raines’ cattle are marketed through one of the best stockyards in the South, located in Turner County. Watermelon sales are conducted by brokers who handle the boxing and shipping of the produce.

Meeting challenges faced by all farmers is a constant undertaking. For Raines, a major effort has gone into converting dryland production into irrigated production. He has used long-term leases with landowners, purchased irrigated land/irrigation systems, and updated outdated irrigation systems

Raines has also had to deal with rising input costs over the years.

“In 1993, we bought a tractor for $35,000," he said. "Now that same tractor costs $200,000. We buy fuel in bulk to save money, but now a 7,500–pound tank might cost $37,000 to fill up. And the prices we get for crops don’t always equal what we paid to plant and nurture them through to harvest. It’s a constant balancing act.”

In the area of environmentally helpful practices, Raines uses variable rate fertilization of lime, potash, and MAP to increase the nutrient efficiency and reduce the potential of oversaturation of unneeded nutrients and fuel wastage.

“My farm has collaborated with University of Georgia Extension on research efforts such as soil moisture sensor projects that monitor moisture status and manage water applications," he said. "This has greatly reduced the amount of irrigation water used to produce a crop. I also purchase bulk chemical containers to minimize plastic waste. When we do use plastic containers, they are recycled.

“We use conservation tillage methods and winter cover crops, like clover and rye, and now triticale, on the vast majority of acreage. It’s an important tool to help with weed control, improve soil moisture holding capacity, and support the long-term sustainability of our farm.”

On the local level, Raines is a current member and former chair and president of the Turner County Young Farmer Association and a former president and board member of the Turner County Farm Bureau. The Raineses were named Ashburn Turner County Farm Family of the Year in 2001. On the state level, he is the Georgia Farm Bureau district director, serves on the Suwannee-Satilla Water Council, and was formerly the Southern Region Director of Georgia Young Farmers. Raines was also named Middle/South Soil & Water Conservationist of the Year in 2003. On the national level, he has served as a member of the Farm Bureau World Congress of Young Farmers.

Melanie Raines currently serves as the chair of the Turner County Board of Elections.

After spending a long time in the risk-laden business of agriculture, the reward of seeing things grow to fruition is still quite real for Raines.

“We recently needed to plant 140 acres of peanuts on dryland on the north side of our property," he said. "The planter sat there for three weeks until the good Lord sent half an inch of rain so that we could go ahead and do what we needed to do. The same thing happened recently on the south side of our farm with cotton. We got one inch at almost the last possible moment. So that’s when we gladly give thanks for prayers answered.”

Raines was nominated for Georgia Farmer of the Year by Guy Hancock the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension ANR agent in Turner County.

“I nominated Scotty Raines for this honor because he is a true representative of Georgia agriculture," Hancock said. "He is a great collaborator on UGA Extension projects and is always willing to support our research and outreach efforts.

“Despite having to overcome numerous adversities in recent years such as tornadoes, hurricanes (Irma in 2017 and Michael in 2018), and other extreme weather events, Scotty has maintained a strong farming operation and a positive attitude through it all. The Raines family’s resilience and significant investments in agriculture have earned them the respect of those in their community and beyond.”

A panel of judges will visit Raines' farming operation, along with the farms of nine other state finalists, the week of Aug. 8–12. The judges include long-time University of Georgia agricultural economist John McKissick; David Wildy of Manila, Ark., the overall winner of the award in 2016; and Joe West, a retired Tifton dairy scientist and assistant dean of the University of Georgia Tifton Campus.

For information on all 10 state farmers of the year, visit www.sunbeltexpo.com/foty or www.sunbeltexpo.com/news-media.

Other state winners for 2022 include:

-- Wesley C. Parker, Kentucky;

-- Michael L. Wagner, Mississippi;

-- Kevin Matthews, North Carolina;

-- Keith Allen, South Carolina;

-- John M. Harrison, Tennessee;

-- Robert E. Saunders, Virginia.

Originally published on albanyherald.com, part of the TownNews Content Exchange.

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