ATHENS — Building on the foundation set by his father in Effingham County, Shiloh Farms owner Bruce Redmond has expanded his operation through innovation and dedication, earning him the honor of 2024 Georgia Farmer of the Year, presented at the 2024 Georgia Ag Forecast in Tifton on Friday.
Nominated by Blake Carter, the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Agriculture and Natural Resources agent for Effingham County, Redmond assumed full ownership and operation of Shiloh Farms in 2018 after the passing of his father, Larry Redmond, combining his operations with his family’s holdings. Today, Bruce Redmond farms 2,800 acres of rented and owned farmland, including both dryland and irrigated acres of peanuts and cotton.
In the late 1990s, Shiloh Farms began producing certified Tifton 9 bahia grass seed, which was cooperatively bred by the UGA Coastal Plain Experiment Station and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Since then, Shiloh Farms has become the largest producer of certified bahia grass seed in the Southeast.