Submitted by Tina Simmons
Hart County Farm Bureau
Hart County Farm Bureau member Michael Howard won the 2026 Georgia Farm Bureau (GFB) Young Farmers & Ranchers (YF&R) Discussion Meet.
The Discussion Meet is a series of committee-style meetings in which contestants hash over issues and solutions related to a specific ag-related topic. The competition was held during the GFB YF&R Summer Leadership Conference, held July 15 through July 18 on Jekyll Island.
Howard emerged from a field of 30 contestants from across the state. He faced off with Allison Bridges of Haralson County, Dalton Green of Walker County and Katelin Benkowski of Morgan County in the final four round, during which they talked about the challenges in maintaining farmers’ accessibility to food animal veterinarians.
Howard received his bachelor’s degree in agribusiness at UGA this spring and starts classes at the UGA law school this fall.
The Discussion Meet simulates committee-style meetings in which participants hash over agriculture-related questions and take a collaborative approach to seeking solutions. The first two rounds were held July 16. The round of 16 and the final four round were held on July 17.
During the opening round, contestants addressed concerns over healthy diets and how Farm Bureau can advocate for science-based tools and research in pursuit of growing healthy, sustainable food. In the second round, the discussion centered on improving meat processing supply chains.
In the round of 16, the topic was how Farm Bureau can work to attract more young leaders to the YF&R program.
As the Discussion Meet winner, Howard receives, courtesy of Georgia Farm Bureau, a John Deere Gator and an expense-paid trip to the 2027 AFBF Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, to compete for national honors, as well as a $500 cash prize from Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance.
The Discussion meet finalists each receive $350 courtesy of Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance.
The GFB Young Farmers & Ranchers program is designed to provide leadership development, educational and social opportunities for farmers between the ages of 18 and 35.
Founded in 1937, Georgia Farm Bureau is the state’s largest general farm organization and has 158 county offices. Its volunteer members actively participate in local, state and national activities that promote agriculture awareness to their non-farming neighbors. GFB offers its members a wide variety of benefits, including insurance, but enrollment in any of the member benefits is optional and not a requirement for membership.