About us
History of KAC
The KAC was established in the late 1970s by the Kentucky Farm Bureau's E. W. Kessler and other Kentucky agricultural leaders. Originally it operated as an informal group that met once or twice each year for the purpose of sharing information about common goals, projects and activities of the members.
During the mid-1990s, the KAC incorporated as a 501(c)3 organization and its activities became more formalized with the adoption of Bylaws, a statement of purpose, and creation of an Executive Committee. Its focus was to promote communication among the State's institutions of agricultural education, State and Federal agricultural agencies, and the main commodity groups, working toward common goals.
In partnership with the Kentucky Department of Agriculture, the KAC helped coordinate activities and served as a forum for the exchange among its members by sponsoring events such as a Governor's Ag Tour, Agriculture Summits, and award programs to recognize outstanding producers and innovative ideas in agriculture.
The KAC also supported and served as a sounding board for major initiatives designed to strengthen the competitiveness of Kentucky agriculture. This focus continued during the 1998–2004 period, when Master Settlement Agreement and the National Tobacco Buyout forever changed the economic and production landscape for Kentucky farmers, and Kentucky's HB 611 establish a new framework via the Agricultural Development Board for funding and supporting innovative initiatives in agricultural production and marketing statewide.
Since 2006, at the request of the Governor of Kentucky, the KAC has taken on a stronger leadership role in strategic planning to help increase net farm income and to improve the quality of life in rural Kentucky, leading to publication of A Pathway for Kentucky's Agriculture and its Rural Communities: 2007 to 2012 Strategic Plan. Continued encouragement by Kentucky's most recent Governor for the KAC to play a facilitator role in implementing this plan led to the adoption of new ByLaws and strengthening the representation of KAC members on its Board of Directors in early 2009.
Along with its quarterly meetings (open to all KAC members), the Board has established six committees centered on the key goals of the strategic plan, that continue to drive forward the implementation of its recommended Actions, provide accountability toward meeting the plan's Benchmarks, and that will help update the plan on a periodic basis. The KAC's strategic planning committees are designed to encourage broad participation by individuals and representatives from all sectors of Kentucky agriculture.
Board of Directors
Board Members
- Dr. Tony Brannon, Murray State University
- Dr. Nancy Cox, University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food & Environment
- Debbie Ellis, Kentucky Soybean Association
- Tod Griffin, Kentucky Retail Federation
- Laura Knoth, Kentucky Corn Growers Association
- Bonnie Jolly - Kentucky Pork Producers Association
- Nikki Whitaker, Kentucky Cattlemen’s Association
KAC Officers
- Mark Barker, Chair – Farm Credit Mid-America
- Drew Graham, Vice Chair – Kentucky Farm Bureau
- Jennifer Elwell, Secretary/Treasurer – Kentucky Agriculture & Environment in the Classroom
Organizational Documents
Member Organizations
- Agribusiness Association of Kentucky
- Agribusiness Industry Network, Inc.
- Agriculture Workforce Management Association, Inc.
- AgSafe
- American Farmland Trust
- Berea College Department of Agriculture
- Center for Rural Development
- Christian County Agribusiness Association
- CoBank
- Community Farm Alliance
- Council for Burley Tobacco
- Eastern Kentucky University Department of Agriculture
- Farm Credit Services
- Feeding Kentucky
- Governor’s Office of Agriculture Policy
- Hopkinsville Community College
- Jackson Purchase Agricultural Credit Association
- Kentucky Agriculture and Environment in the Classroom
- Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS)
- Kentucky 4-H Foundation, Inc.
- Kentucky Agricultural Development Board
- Kentucky Agricultural Finance Corporation
- Kentucky Agricultural Resource Development Authority
- Kentucky Alternative Livestock Association
- Kentucky Association of Conservation District Employees
- Kentucky Association of Conservation Districts
- Kentucky Association of Equine Practitioners
- Kentucky Association of Food Banks
- Kentucky Bankers Association
- Kentucky Board of Veterinary Examiners
- Kentucky Cattlemen’s Association
- Kentucky Center for Agriculture and Rural Development
- Kentucky Chamber of Commerce
- Kentucky Corn and Small Grain Growers Association
- Kentucky Corn Growers Association
- Kentucky Council of Area Development Districts
- Kentucky Council on Post Secondary Education
- Kentucky Dairy Development Council
- Kentucky Department for Energy Development & Independence
- Kentucky Department of Agriculture
- Kentucky Division of Conservation
- Kentucky Equine Education Project
- Kentucky Farm Bureau Federation
- Kentucky Farm Service Agency – USDA
- Kentucky Feed and Grain Association
- Kentucky FFA Association
- Kentucky FFA Foundation, Inc.
- Kentucky Forest Industries Association
- Kentucky Goat Producers Association
- Kentucky Grocers Association
- Kentucky Horse Council
- Kentucky Horse Park
- Kentucky Horticulture Council
- Kentucky Nursery and Landscape Association
- Kentucky Pork Producers Association
- Kentucky Poultry Federation
- Kentucky Sheep and Goat Development Office
- Kentucky Sheep and Wool Producers Association
- Kentucky Soybean Association
- Kentucky State Beekeepers Association
- Kentucky State University
- Kentucky Thoroughbred Association
- Kentucky Vegetable Growers Association
- Kentucky Veterinary Medical Association
- Kentucky Vocational Agriculture Teachers Association
- Kentucky Women in Agriculture
- Kentucky Woodland Owners Association
- Legislative Research Commission
- Louisville Agricultural Club
- Morehead State University Department of Agriculture
- Murray State University Breathitt Veterinary Center
- Murray State University College of Agriculture
- PACE
- University of Kentucky College of Agriculture
- USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) Kentucky Field Office
- USDA National Resources Conservation Services (NRCS)
- USDA Rural Development
- Western Kentucky University Department of Agriculture