Delta F.A.R.M.

Delta F.A.R.M. 1 Million Acre Celebration

"Delta Moon" by Matthew Hasty was commissioned by Syngenta to celebrate the enrollment of 1,000,000 acres into the Delta F.A.R.M. Program in only 10-years of service. The theme of the work is an environmental aesthetic landscape from the agricultural region known as the Mississippi Delta. The original 30" x 40" oil on canvas hangs at the Syngenta headquarters in Greensboro, NC. To see more Matthew Hasty works, visit his website at www.matthewhasty.com.

* Click here to view a larger version of the painting

Brian, George, and Marcia Vanlandingham enrolled their family farm into the Delta F.A.R.M. Program, putting the organization over the 1,000,000 acre mark.”

Delta F.A.R.M. (Farmers Advocating Resource Management) was founded in October of 1998 to help farmers become better environmental stewards and address regional natural resource concerns. Today, Delta F.A.R.M. has become the region's leading natural resource conservation organization, celebrating 10-years of service and the enrollment of one million acres. The formal announcement was made at Vanlandingham Farms north of Leland on November 6th, the site of the one millionth acre.

The celebration began with breakfast at 8:00 a.m. for Delta F.A.R.M. sponsors and cooperating agencies. Proclamations written and signed by Governor Haley Barbour were presented to Syngenta, Monsanto, FMC and Farmers Grain Terminal for their 10-year commitment in support of Delta F.A.R.M. Mike Sturdivant, Jr., Chairman of Delta F.A.R.M., also recognized the state and federal agency partners who were present before adjourning breakfast and directing guests to Vanlandingham Farms.

At 9:00 a.m., Delta F.A.R.M. Founding Chairman, Billy Percy, formally announced the enrollment of one million acres into the Delta F.A.R.M. Program. Afterwards, Mr. Percy introduced the first guest speaker, Lieutenant Governor Phil Bryant.

The Lieutenant Governor commented, "The organization has raised the bar in terms of setting goals for economic and environmental sustainability in Delta farming." He continued by praising the visionary approach of Delta F.A.R.M.'s leadership and the proactive nature of its membership in addressing environmental challenges in the Delta region.

Jimmy Palmer, Regional Administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 4, took the podium immediately following Lieutenant Governor Bryant.

Mr. Palmer made note of the significant achievements accrued by Delta F.A.R.M. in only 10-years of operation. Among those accomplishments, Palmer commented he was quite proud that "Delta F.A.R.M. is working side-by-side with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality to help develop a Nutrient Reduction Strategy for the Yazoo-Mississippi Delta." Palmer continued by saying, "Delta F.A.R.M. has rapidly grown to become the preeminent, farmer-led, agricultural conservation organization in Mississippi, and quite possibly one of the strongest in the country."