The recent Tobacco Settlement Agreement Fund Oversight Committee meeting in Frankfort included a presentation from a well-known Hopkinsville business owner.
Comittee Co-Chair Myron Dossett told Your News Edge that Wayne Hunt spoke during the meeting last week. Hunt serves as a board member of the Kentucky Agricultural Development Board and Kentucky Agricultural Finance Corporation.
In 1993, following the merger of H&R Implement Co., Inc. and his company Agri-Power Inc., Hunt established H&R Agri-Power. The company has grown to operate 21 stores across six states.
Dossett, the 9th District Representative, added Hunt’s presentation was important, as many committee members do not fully understand the impact the funding has had over the last 24 years.
Hunt’s presentation showed how much agriculture has grown in Kentucky when in the ’90s, cash receipts averaged around $3.4 billion annually. As of 2023, the state had $8.1 billion in cash receipts. In the ’90s, tobacco made up around 24 percent of the cash receipts, currently, they are more spread out and tobacco makes up less than three percent.
Since its inception, the Kentucky Agricultural Finance Corporation has approved over 1,450 ag loans totaling more than $217 million. Meanwhile, the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund has approved over $747 million in investments.
The Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund has nine incentives, including:
- County Ag Investment Program
- Youth Ag Investment Program
- Next Generation Farmer Program
- Deceased Farm Animal Removal Program
- Shared-Use Equipment Program
- On-Farm Energy Incentives Program
- Large & Food Animal Veterinary Incentives Program
- Food Safety & Efficiency Incentives Program
- KADF project grants/loans
The full meeting from Thursday, June 13, can be found here.