The first general session of our 71st Officers & Leaders Conference opened with this video about the challenging 2019 season and the rain and flooding that have made it so difficult for farmers and ranchers across the state. See for yourself how they've been "facing the storm" and how they plan to keep doing what they love, no matter what Mother Nature may throw at them.

This year has been a roller coaster ride for many Arkansas producers. Jackson County's John “Bubba” Sink, who farms rice, corn and soybeans, shared the high points and the low points of the season in this interview.

Peach farmer Mark Morgan and his family run Peach Pickin' Paradise in Lamar just outside of Clarksville, where they grow almost two dozen varieties of peaches and nectarines. With peach season in full swing in Arkansas, Morgan took a few minutes to tell us how the crop looks this year and what "peach pickers" can expect when they head out to get this sweet summertime favorite.

Kenny Holt grows corn and soybeans in the Snow Lake community of southern Phillips County along the Mississippi River. The river has been near flood stage for several months and "seep water" coming up from underground has flooded thousands of acres of cropland and pasture throughout the region and has helped make this one of the most difficult seasons in Holt's memory.

Guard llamas? Really? You bet! Top AI Angus breeder Shirley Williams of Fair Oaks Farm near Van Buren, uses llamas to protect her registered seed-stock Angus. Llamas have an instinctive dislike for canids, like wild dogs and coyotes. Shirley loves her llamas and hasn't lost a single calf since they began guarding her herd 10 years ago.

Arkansas was a “Natural” location to host the 2019 National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference, which attracted more than 500 educators from across the nation and featured numerous workshops and nationally recognized speakers, such as animal welfare expert and author Temple Grandin. See highlights from the conference and hear from ArFB Ag in the Classroom Outstanding Teacher of the Year Celia Wortham.

Renisha Ward, coordinator the M*A*S*H camp at Jefferson Regional Medical Center in Pine Bluff, talks about how their “MASH Crash” simulated automobile accident involving local first responders demonstrates the dangers of distracted driving in a very real way.

Jay Lee's family has been farming in the Bismarck community of Hot Spring County since the 1800s. Now Jay and his wife Valorie are continuing the multi-generation family legacy with JV Farms Homestead, where they sell their pork, dairy, eggs and produce direct to customers on the farm and at farmers markets in central Arkansas.

Abraham Carpenter Jr. talks about how weather has made this perhaps the most difficult planting season he's faced during his decades of growing produce. Carpenter and his family run Carpenter Produce, multi-generational farm in Lincoln County that has been in operation for more than 50 years.

The Arkansas Farm Bureau announced Wednesday a donation of $50,000 to the American Red Cross-Greater Arkansas Chapter, to be used for flood relief efforts to be used in counties affect by the flood throughout Arkansas.