The Most Important Lessons are Learned on the Farm
Tuesday, June 2, 2026
The most important lessons I have ever learned did not come from a classroom, a boardroom, or a government office. They came from the fields of Clarendon County.
As a fifth-generation South Carolina farmer, I was raised on our family’s Century Farm, where I learned from my father and grandfather the values that define agriculture: faith, hard work, stewardship, personal responsibility, and perseverance. Those lessons shaped who I am and have uniquely prepared me to serve South Carolina as its next Commissioner of Agriculture.
Farming teaches you that success is never guaranteed. Weather changes, markets fluctuate, and challenges arise when you least expect them. Yet farmers get up every day and go back to work because they understand that people are counting on them. That mindset of service and resilience has guided me throughout my life.
Growing up on the farm, I learned that leadership is not about titles. It is about responsibility. When a fence is broken, you fix it. When a neighbor needs help, you show up. When times get tough, you do not complain; you work harder. Those are values that have served generations of South Carolina farmers well, and they are values our state needs in leadership today.
When President Donald Trump entrusted me to serve as South Carolina State Executive Director of the USDA Farm Service Agency, I carried those same values with me. Working directly with farmers across our state, I helped administer programs that supported producers through disasters, enhanced conservation efforts, and addressed economic challenges. I listened to farmers struggling through hurricanes, droughts, rising costs, and uncertainty because I understood those challenges personally. I had lived them.
My experience on the farm also taught me the importance of stewardship. Farmers understand that we are not simply working for today. We are preparing the land, the business, and the opportunities we have inherited for the next generation. That perspective shaped the way I approached public service. My commitment has been and always will be leaving things better than you found them.
I am honored to have been encouraged by President Trump to run for this office and humbled to have earned his endorsement in the race. Serving in President Trump’s administration, I saw firsthand his commitment to American agriculture and rural communities. He understood that farmers are the backbone of our economy and that strong agriculture means a stronger America. His endorsement reflects a shared belief that agriculture deserves strong, conservative leadership rooted in real-world experience.
Today, South Carolina agriculture faces serious challenges. Rising input costs, labor shortages, burdensome regulations, increasing pressure on farmland, and foreign adversaries purchasing American farmland are threatening the future of family farms. At the same time, we must ensure the next generation sees agriculture not just as our history, but as a promising future.
Meeting those challenges requires a Commissioner who understands agriculture not just from behind a desk, but from the cab of a tractor and the fields of our state. It requires someone who has worked the land, balanced farm budgets, navigated government programs, and fought for farmers from the farm house to the State House to the White House.
As Commissioner of Agriculture, I will lead by the lessons I learned on the farm. I will work hard, stay humble, keep my word, and always put service before self. I humbly ask for your vote to protect South Carolina’s farms, families, and future for generations to come.
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Cody Simpson is a fifth-generation South Carolina farmer, former South Carolina State Executive Director of the USDA Farm Service Agency in the Trump Administration, former Agriculture Advisor of Governor Henry McMaster, and a Trump-endorsed candidate for South Carolina Commissioner of Agriculture.