Kat Cammack makes swing through Central Florida agriculture facilities

Kat Cammack is taking a shot at the No. 3 Republican role.

U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack is venturing into Central Florida to earn a greater understanding of agriculture throughout the state.

The Gainesville Republican launched a three-day tour of area farm operations starting with stops in Umatilla and Mount Dora. She visited Wild Goose Farms and H&A Farms, both blueberry producers in Northeast Lake County.

The Congresswoman said she was touring Florida farms as a member of the House Agriculture Committee. Representing a heavily agrarian North Florida district, she has long held an interest in the state’s agriculture issues.

As the committee develops a new farm bill, Cammack’s office said she would be “speaking with farmers, ranchers and producers across the state this spring to learn more about the issues most important to them and how she can continue to be a voice for Florida Agriculture in the U.S. House of Representatives.”

Congress traditionally passes a farm bill every five years. The bill will touch on an array of topics including crop insurance and support for food programs for low-income families. Congress last passed a farm bill in 2018, and it expires at the end of this year.

With Republicans in control of the House after the Midterms, that elevates the role Cammack and party colleagues have on the new farm bill’s contents. She and U.S. Rep. Darren Soto, a Kissimmee Democrat, are the only members of the Florida congressional delegation serving on the House Agriculture Committee this Congress.

After her trip Tuesday, Cammack plans to visit AgriStarts, a blackberry farm in Apopka, and to visit more Lake County facilities including Jon’s Nursery in Eustis and Dewar Nurseries in Mount Dora.

On Thursday, she will head south to Wimauma and visit Gulf Coast Research and Education Center. It’s run by the University of Florida, which she represents in Congress.

There, Cammack expects to discuss the impacts of artificial intelligence, the Specialty Crop Research Initiative and specialty crop block grants on Florida agriculture.