DARLA MOORE OPENING REMARKS

 AGRICULTURAL SUMMIT

Charleston, South Carolina

October 26, 2006

 Welcome to the Palmetto Institute Inaugural Agricultural Summit.  I am Darla Moore, a farmer from Lake City and Chairman of the Palmetto Institute Board.  I am excited about today’s events and I appreciate your attendance.  I know many of you are in the middle of harvest season, but I believe we will all benefit as a result of the Summit.  Before we begin our program, I want you to watch a brief except from a television program that stars Steven Colbert, who, by the way, grew up in Mt. Pleasant. 

 VIDEO

By the time we finish today, I promise you we are going to kick more than just Georgia’s butt.  The time has come to stop other states from out-marketing us and to take our agricultural economic engine to another level with the products we can grow and develop.  Because, not only is our sugar level superb, so is our commitment to making this state a better place for all of you to live.

We have three excellent speakers today who will provide three really different perspectives on the role agriculture can play in our economy.  Lester Brown will provide a global view, Hugh Weathers will speak to us about a statewide view, and Richard will talk to us about how a capitalist uses such information to successfully invest. 

I want you to listen to our speakers today first from the standpoint of the powerful messages they will deliver, but also I want you to listen to them from a standpoint of how we can use such information to better support our agricultural industry.  I want us to leave here not only with a better understanding both globally and from our state’s perspective of the role of agriculture, but I want us to leave here with a vision of what the future can be for agriculture in South Carolina and the goals needed to adapt to a changing world and achieve such a vision.

Finally, I have ten points to go over with you…ten points that we will want to work on with you to make sure they are addressed…ten points that will help improve the quality of life and per capita income of every South Carolina citizen.  But first, I have to turn it over to Jim Fields for announcements.