Mississippi has reached a record high of 79 farmers markets – nearly one for each of its 82 counties. But Agriculture Commissioner Andy Gipson says while that milestone is worth celebrating, the state must take bigger steps to protect and strengthen its food supply.
Before delivering his annual stump speech at the Neshoba County Fair on Thursday, Gipson appeared on Mornings with Richard Cross to discuss Mississippi’s largest industry. He said the state is producing plenty of crops, but argued that too much of what Mississippi grows leaves the state and country for processing and distribution, increasing reliance on foreign countries throughout the food supply chain.
“We have a record number of farmers’ markets in Mississippi this year in the history of this state,” he said. “But what we don’t have is what we’ve allowed to go to foreign countries or [resources] to process our own food and distribute our own local food.
“We have come to depend too much on foreign food – Mexican, Brazilian, Vietnamese seafood and all this cheap stuff. We’ve got to bring our food supply back to this country.”
Gipson referenced a 2024 meeting in Wyoming with fellow state agriculture commissioners, where he said experts predicted Mississippi could eventually play a leading role in the nation’s food supply.
“At that conference, the experts – not me and not the politicians, or other agriculture commissioners – said that California is drying up, the west is drying up, the Midwest is drying up, and the only place that can be the food supply of our nation is the southeastern United States,” Gipson recounted.
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He said Mississippi is “blessed” with abundant water sources, including rainfall, underground aquifers, and reservoirs. While the state does experience periods of drought, Gipson argued water availability is not what’s holding Mississippi agriculture back. Instead, he blamed a lack of action from lawmakers and other state leaders.
“We’re letting it slip away,” Gipson said. “I’ve been talking about this to the legislature. I’ve talked about this to our other leaders, and they have ignored it. In some cases, they have actively opposed my efforts.”
Gipson, who is running for governor in 2027, has spent the past year meeting with stakeholders and creating a strategic plan on how to improve Mississippi’s agriculture industry and keep more of the state’s food production and processing domestic. A key part of that plan, he said, is building three regional agricultural hubs with food processing, storage, and distribution capabilities.
“When I’m governor, they won’t be able to [say no] anymore, because we’re going to build three food supply hubs across this state in north Mississippi, central Mississippi, and south Mississippi,” he said. “We’re going to bring our food supply back to this country.”
Whether he is elected governor or not, Gipson argued that Mississippi must prioritize agriculture and food security before other states gain an advantage – or the nation faces broader food supply challenges.
“If we don’t take action – not according to me but according to the experts – in 20 years’ time, America’s food supply is going to be in jeopardy. And I want Mississippi to lead on making sure that doesn’t happen,” he said.
