Mississippi’s Ag Tag — a specialty farm-themed license plate that depicts an iconic production soybean operation — has helped to raised more than $66,000 to date for the Farm Families Ag Image Campaign.
This plate was created in 2011 by Mississippi House Bill 104, sponsored by then-Rep. Rita Martinson, a Republican who retired from office in 2016.
The design has been the same since the plate’s creation, and the depiction of a soybean field is particularly appropriate, as soybeans are one of the state’s two largest commodities (broiler chickens is the other). Mississippi has 42,000 farms across 11.4 million acres, and other key farm products include cotton, rice (for which it ranks fourth nationally in production), and cattle, which are common in all parts of the state except for the Mississippi Delta.
The plate includes a large tractor, barn, and silo in the background, and the Farm Families of Mississippi leaf logo on the left.
“Because so many organizations donate to the campaign as well as small and large farms, the thought was to create a logo and design that represents all of agriculture,” said Jon Kalahar, communications director for the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation.
The specialty license plate costs $31 on top of regular registration fees, and it can be put on any vehicle. The Farm Families Ag Image Campaign receives $24 out of that $31 cost per tag.
The Farm Families of Mississippi initiative was launched by the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation and other Mississippi agriculture industry stakeholders to promote the importance of agriculture to the general public. The campaign uses multiple forms of advertising each year to educate those who are not actively engaged in farming.
“Any donation raised from the tag or elsewhere is spent for the ag image campaign each spring,” Kalahar said. “We produce four TV commercials, four radio commercials, and multiple billboards.”
The 2024 TV spots are focused on wheat, sweet corn, work ethic, and beef.
Kalahar said that having the Mississippi Ag Tag on your vehicle shows an interest in agriculture, a respect for where food and fiber come from, and, in many cases, that the motorists are from a farm family themselves.
“Mississippi farmers and ranchers work so hard and sacrifice so much to raise and grow the food we need. Having this tag on their vehicles identifies them as a farm family, but also is a way for those who don’t work in agriculture to show those around them that we stand strong with our farmers and ranchers because they do so much for this state,” he said.
Thousands of people in Mississippi sport Ag Tags to help support the state’s ag industry, which has had a production value of around 9 billion to 10 billion in recent years.
“The Farm Families of Mississippi ag tag is simply a way for farmers, ranchers and just anyone who understands where their food, clothing and, shelter come from to show their pride in Mississippi agriculture,” Kalahar said.
