BELLEVIEW, MO – On August 2, 2017, Congressman Jason Smith stopped at Campbell Farm as part of his 5th annual focus on farms and talked with owner Josh Campbell about issues he faces on a daily basis.
Josh Campbell and his wife Holly live on 142 acres and farm another 200 acres where they raise soybeans, corn, wheat and registered Hereford hogs. They are planning to expand and add Hereford cattle to their operation in the fall.
Campbell shared that the best thing Congressman Smith could do to help agriculture in Missouri is to stop bureaucratic government regulations.
“Preventing something from being done (to restrict farmers) is probably best thing you can do - just let farmers farm,” said Campbell.
Campbell also talked about how “awful” the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule would have been and how happy he is the Congressman worked to remove it saying, “keep fighting the EPA.”
One of the biggest concerns Smith heard about during last August’s focus on farms was the WOTUS regulation, which sought to federally regulate every drop of water on Missouri farmers’ land. In the last year, Smith worked directly with the Trump Administration to stop this rule and relieve Missouri farmers from the burden of WOTUS.
This is the fifth year in a row that Congressman Jason Smith has dedicated the month of August to focus on farms in southeast and south central Missouri. Throughout this month, Congressman Smith will visit Missouri’s agricultural operations to hear directly from farmers, ranchers and agriculture industry professionals to get a better understanding of what challenges they are facing and how he can help as they work to feed and supply America.
Congressman Smith has plans to stop at farms in each of the 30 counties in Missouri's Eighth Congressional District as he has done every August since he was elected. This year’s focus on farms will highlight the people in our area who run these operations and the tremendous impact that agriculture has on the economy and rural way of life in southeast and south central Missouri.
Campbell was elected to the Iron County Commission in 2016 and is exploring new ways to bring business and visitors there. He is a member of the Iron County Extension Council and wants to make agriculture a more enticing choice for young people.
