Farmweek signs off after 49-year run

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- During its 49-year run, Farmweek has been produced by the Mississippi State University Extension Service, but Artis Ford always considered it to belong to the people of Mississippi.

“For the people who we featured on the show,” said Ford, who co-hosted the weekly agricultural television news show for 32 of those years, “we always felt that we wanted to do the best job we could because chances are this is going to be their one time to really be in the spotlight.” 

The June 24 taping marked the end of the road for the statewide program. The series finale airs June 27 and 29 on Mississippi Public Broadcasting, where each of its nearly 2,500 episodes has aired since the show’s debut in 1977, and June 30 on RFD-TV. 

Mike Russell, who joined the program in 2018 and has served as its managing editor for the last eight and a half years, observed the occasion during a reunion interview with Ford and Leighton Spann, who also co-hosted the program for 25 years, all but three of those alongside Ford. 

“Obviously, it’s sad,” Spann told Russell. “You pour in so many years to a production you would hope would be around even after we’re gone, but times change.”

For its first 14 years, Farmweek was taped in Jackson at the studios of MPB. Production moved to the University Television Center studios on the MSU campus in 1991. Regardless of its base of operations, the many videographers, producers and anchors who contributed to the program over its long lifespan logged countless miles on the road speaking with the state’s agricultural producers.

“The county Extension agents, a lot of them really stepped to the front as far as giving us story ideas,” Spann said. “We would call them up and say, ‘We’d like to do this subject. Who do you know in your area that might fit what we’re looking for?’ And that was invaluable help that we had all along the way.”

People who worked on the show also attended crop or timber production meetings hosted by MSU Extension and other stakeholder groups in the state.

“I think (the Extension agents) could see we were trying to get out there and be in the state. We couldn’t have done the show without them. We would have never found out all these stories,” Ford said. “One of the reasons we went to those meetings was to meet people, talk to landowners, see what they were doing and talk to other people from the university that were there.”

He added that one of the main objectives of Farmweek was to illustrate to viewers that farming is a business. 

“It’s not just going out, breaking up a few clods and sowing some seed, and you sit around until it comes back in,” Ford said. “Because it’s not that way now, especially with all the electronics involved, all the GPS, and all that sort of stuff that’s happening now.”

Tributes from longtime viewers poured in once Farmweek’s sign-off became public knowledge.

“As a longtime Farmweek fan, I am proud that it has been a valuable resource for Mississippi’s farmers, ranchers and rural communities for five decades,” said MSU President Mark E. Keenum. “I salute the many talented people who have contributed to its remarkable success.”

Andy Gipson, Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce, also applauded the longtime success of the program.

“Farmweek has given those unfamiliar with agriculture a glimpse into the lives of the dedicated individuals producing our food, fiber and shelter and the incredible pressures felt by producers and the industry,” Gipson said. “I want to thank the MSU Extension Service and all of those involved in the production of Farmweek over the years for their dedication to telling the story of Mississippi agriculture.”

Mississippi Forestry Association executive director Casey Anderson appreciated the program’s efforts to cover the state’s timber industry.

“The Mississippi Forestry Association is grateful for the partnership we’ve shared with Farmweek over the years,” she said. “Your dedication to telling the stories of Mississippi’s loggers, tree farmers and agricultural community has made a lasting impact across our state.”

Ford said one of the goals each time he filed a story featuring a landowner’s operation and best practices was to encourage other producers to contact their county Extension agent to learn about how they could implement those practices on their land.

“We were doing the show to hopefully help landowners, to inform the state about what was going on in agriculture or to inform farmers or landowners about what was happening in public policy,” Ford said. “And then, we’d just try to give examples of people improving their property and improving their forestry and wildlife on their property. To me, it was always a little bit about trying to do something that would help the viewers and that they would watch.”

Russell said deciding what he enjoyed most about leading Farmweek was a tall order. 

“If I had to narrow it down, I’d say it was the people who are the heart and soul of Mississippi agriculture,” Russell said. “They’re caretakers by nature, hardworking by necessity and ultimately the salt of the earth by heavenly design. I’m not exaggerating when I say I treasured every minute I was around these folks. I was absolutely astounded early on at how savvy they are and the way they willingly solve problems every day of their lives.”

View recent Farmweek episodes online at https://www.youtube.com/@MissStateExtension.