Governor Noem Seeks to Keep South Dakota Ag Vibrant

South Dakota has officially welcomed former Congresswoman Kristi Noem as the state’s 33^rd governor.

During Governor Noem’s State of the State Address, she focused on keeping South Dakota’s agriculture industry viable, despite the depressed commodity prices and lingering trade issues.

A lifelong farmer and rancher, Governor Noem says she wants to see the state’s number one industry stay strong by creating value-added opportunities and additional markets closer to home.

Boosting Economic Development

Governor Noem also seeks to increase economic development across South Dakota. These efforts will have positive results for our state’s corn farmers. A low-tax, low-regulation environment will allow small businesses to flourish, offering more choices for South Dakota farmers to spend their discretionary income or to purchase supplies for their agricultural operations.

The newly inaugurated governor looks to bring more value-added agricultural processing to South Dakota while simultaneously leveraging innovation in crop technologies to put our state on the map.

“We still send far too much of our corn, soybeans and livestock out of state for consumption and processing,” Noem says. “It leaves our farmers vulnerable to the effects of tariffs and basis.”

Growing the state’s number one industry will not be easy, but Governor Noem says she’s up for the challenge.

“I’ll utilize my experience as a lifelong producer to advance agriculture,” she says. “From protecting property rights to expanding markets, my administration is being built to develop the state’s agricultural economy and give more young people the opportunity to thrive as farmers and ranchers in South Dakota.”

Noem also intends to transition the entire state vehicle fleet to E30, meaning even more ethanol demand in our state—and more need for corn.

Extending Pheasant Habitat

Another goal for Governor Noem is to help bring back statewide pheasant habitat. The self-proclaimed “Sportsman in Chief” seeks to leverage relationships to continue expanding land that’s part of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP).

There are many programs and resources available for South Dakota corn farmers who want to use their land to support pheasant habitat, where it makes sense to do so. South Dakota Corn encourages farmers to familiarize themselves with these programs and resources to determine if utilizing these opportunities would be beneficial for their operations.

Expanding Rural Broadband

One of Governor Noem’s focuses for the next four years will be expanding rural broadband access. She recognizes that rural families and farmers have a need for easy digital access.

“Half of South Dakota counties have areas where one in four people don’t have broadband access,” she says. “Some counties have rural areas where half of the residents don’t have broadband access. They’re not even our most remote counties.”

Making broadband access available across South Dakota will enable farm families to have their kids return to the farm—with access to information they need to run the agricultural operation, run businesses online and sell products in our global economy.

The next four years in South Dakota are looking even more promising for corn farmers.