The Sodfather A Friend of Agriculture by Jim Graham Three Decades as Commissioner of Agriculture The Incredible Story of Farm Economy Growth In North Carolina Published by The James A. Graham Scholarship Endowment N. C. State University Raleigh, NC 1998 Index Jim Graham, Friend of Agriculture Chapter 1 I Love My Job 1 The story of my journey from Rowan County to the best job in North Carolina. Thoughts about the future of farming. Chapter 2 Profile of the North Carolina Farmer 25 The story of the farmers’ struggle to transform a vast wilderness into the great State of North Carolina. Chapter 3 A Brief History of North Carolina Agriculture 37 A tribute to the builders of North Carolina. Chapter 4 The North Carolina Dept. of Agriculture 60 The important role that the North Carolina Department of Agriculture has played in the progress of farming. Chapter 5 Marketing 87 Getting the crops and livestock from the farmers’ fields to the consumers’ tables is a vital task. Chapter 6 The Role of the Government in Farming 127 Government and the farmer. Chapter 7 Major North Carolina Crops 137 Tobacco, the controversial crop--economic, and political implications and its uncertain future. Cotton comes back. Chapter 8 Protecting the Environment 149 The good farmer is a steward of the land and knows the value of protecting the land. That was the first lesson my father taught me, growing up in Rowan County. Chapter 9 Thirty-Two Years on the Campaign Trail 165 Nine successful campaigns for Commissioner of Agriculture and the “bray” heard around the world. ii Acknowledgments We express our deep appreciation to Walter R. Davis for a generous gift to publish this book. Proceeds from the sale of this book will go to the James A. Graham Scholarship Endowment at NC State University which provides scholarships for future agricultural leaders. I am eternally indebted to hundreds of people whose friendship, hard work and support made my story possible. I am especially appreciative to my personal staff whose dedication and loyalty have given my life added meaning: Donna Creech, Weldon Denny, Peter Daniel and Harry Daniel; and to Charles Heatherly for his persistent effort and patience in helping me tell this story. Copyright © 1998 by James Allen Graham All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior approval. Printed in the United States of America ISBN 0-9634559-2-3 Published by The James A. Graham Scholarship Endowment N.C. State University Raleigh, NC 1998 v Dedicated to my wife, and faithful companion for more than a half century, Helen, and our daughters Alice G. Underhill and Laura Connie Brooks vi Foreword This book is about a favorite son of North Carolinians. It is truly his story of the years he moved across North Carolina, ever the advocate of the farmers, their farms, and the food and fiber they produce for all of us. Jim Graham has always interpreted and advocated the critical role agriculture plays in our lives. He has made us understand why keeping the land green, the water pure and the farms profitable has so much to do with the quality of life we all enjoy. His years as our Commissioner have been volatile, sometimes controversial, but always years of important growth and lasting achievement. I first met the Commissioner when he entered NC State as a new student. From then until now, and for more than a half century, I have watched him grow and gather strength and power as a leader in our state. Having been privileged to be his friend and colleague, I know that his energies and dedications have been spent building a greater state and for that uncommon spirit and commitment, we owe him our profound gratitude. These pages, then, are a visit with this good and gentle man in the broad rimmed hat, who like the great State Fair he has built, has become a legend in his own time. William Friday Chapel Hill, NC Summer 1997 vii Chapter 1 I Love My Job “Those who labor in the earth are the chosen people of God.” Thomas Jefferson In looking back over my long life, a brief speck in the history of time, I am amazed at the change that has occurred on the North Carolina farm in the span of just one generation. It would be an understatement to say I love my job. The 34 years I’ve spent as North Carolina’s Commissioner of Agriculture have been filled with happy and rewarding experiences. I have enjoyed the work. I have stomped grapes at the Celebrity Grape Stomping and Scuppernong Tasting Festival. I have thrown bales of hay at the Old Threshers’ Reunion in Denton. I’ve gnawed corn at the State Fair. I’ve traded laughs with four Presidents and shared cigars with every North Carolina Governor since 1960. And, best of all, I’ve had my picture taken with lots of pretty girls. However, I’ve never forgotten who I work for and that is the people of North Carolina, especially the farmers. I take great pride, along with thousands of other citizens of this great state who have tilled the soil, sown the seed and cultivated the bountiful harvest, year after year, in our accomplishments. Among the major accomplishments is a thriving, diversified agriculture economy in North Carolina that feeds our people and is the envy of much of the rest of the nation. Cash farm income has increased during my tenure as Commissioner from just over $1 billion a year to just under $8 billion now. As result of their industry and thrift, North Carolina farmers earn the third highest net farm income in the nation. In addition, agri-business ventures account for some $42 billion worth of economic activity. The past three decades have been the most exciting and productive period in the history of North Carolina agriculture. I am proud to have been a part of this era. 8 To get this job and to keep it, I have run in and won nine statewide campaigns. Each has been a wonderful and memorable experience. I am deeply appreciative to the people of North Carolina for their confidence and faith in me. Those campaigns have provided me with many rich and enduring memories which I treasure today. It was during my first campaign with Dan Moore, before he became Governor, that I yelled my first “donkey bray,” a story I shall tell later. With Jimmy Carter watching, in Winston-Salem, I cut loose with a bray that was heard around the world. Meeting with Democrats in Sampson County, near the little Town of Turkey, I got so excited during a speech, gesturing and carrying on that I kicked a door completely off its hinges. All that I have done in the past three decades and some four years, has been done to advance the cause of agriculture. I have spent my every waken hour striving to improve the lot of the farmer, to improve his livelihood, to guarantee a stable supply of food and fiber at a reasonable cost for the consumer and to improve the quality of life for all of our citizens. My Story If I sound as if I know the North Carolina farmer, I do. I know him well. I was born on a North Carolina farm and the earliest sound I remember, next to the gentle voice of my mother was the familiar farm sounds -- the crow of the rooster announcing a new day, the cow's moo at milking time and the bray of a stubborn mule unwilling to put his shoulder to the load. I come from a long line of farmers. My father was a farmer, as was his father. For seven generations, my forebears were all farmers. They were also Presbyterians and all belonged to the Third Creek Presbyterian Church in Rowan County. They also all bore the given name, "James." And after the Democratic Party was formed, they were all Democrats. There was never a time in my life when I considered any other choice for my life's work than to be a farmer or to pursue an avocation where I could serve the farmer. The great joy of my life, other than my wonderful family, is that I have been able to do what I set out to do as a young man. 9 As a teenager, still in high school, I resolved that one day I would be Commissioner of Agriculture of North Carolina and that I would devote my life's work to the important task of helping solve the great problems that perpetually plagued the farmer. I count among my many blessings the good fortune I have had in being able to achieve that goal. This advice I would offer a young man or woman today about to embark upon life's journey: Decide early what you want to do with your life. Make a plan and stick to it. You will achieve so much more if you know what you want to do and devote your life to fulfilling that goal. Roots in Rowan County I was born April 7, 1921, in the town of Cleveland in Rowan County, formed in 1753 from Anson. My home county was named in honor of Matthew Rowan, a leader of our state before the American Revolution. Mr. Rowan served briefly as acting governor after the death in office of Governor Gabriel Johnston. My first thought about becoming Commissioner of Agriculture occurred, or rather was suggested to me, on the farm where I grew up.