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On this Memorial Day as we celebrate with family and friend it’s important to always remember those men and women that paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms.







Lee Maddox: The Sacrifice for Freedom: Welcome and Hello again everyone for Tennessee Home and Farm Radio. I’m Lee Maddox

Joe Alexander: The fallen soldiers reside in American flag

Lee Maddox: On this Memorial Day, as we celebrate with family and friends, it’s important to always remember those men and women that paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms. And for Loudon County’s Joe Alexander Memorial Day and every day will always be time for reflection for his brothers he lost in Vietnam in 1968

Joe Alexander: I went into the battle with about 40 paratroopers, and of the 40, 8 were killed in action. 13 were wounded in the ones who weren’t wounded, and including those who were, who did survive all survivors were scarred for life.

Lee Maddox: Joe Alexander was a platoon leader in the third battalion of the 506 Airborne Infantry Regiment, and he himself was wounded five times. And he’s thankful that he grew up on the farm in Loudoun County and credits the values he learned there for helping him through his time in Vietnam.

Joe Alexander: And those kinds of things. Were so critical in not just my life but particularly in the military service as a as a patriot in our country,

Lee Maddox: Alexander says Memorial Day should always be remembered by all Americans,

Joe Alexander: Beginning of the Revolutionary War that has died on our behalf so we can have a free country. We can be a sovereign country, we can govern ourselves because so many people have sacrificed their lives but I encourage everyone to take just a moment and it wouldn’t take long during Memorial Day to remember those people who gave their lives in sacrifice in service to our country.

Lee Maddox: And for Tennessee Home and Farm Radio. I’m Lee Maddox

Memorial Day is often referred to as the unofficial start to summer, and grilling season. Valerie Bass with the Tennessee Beef Industry Council explains why beef is always a great option for grilling, and where you can resources to get the best results.

The new Tennessee Farm Bureau Centennial Pavilion is officially open at the Tennessee FFA's Camp Clements. Thomas Capps has more on the impact the building will have on campers.

Parts of Tennessee are seeing large numbers of cicadas. This type of cicada only comes out every 13 years and let's their presence be known by swarming tree trunks and their loud chatter. As Dr. Midula Gireesh explains though they're harmless.

It was 2018 when congress approved the last farm bill.  The legislation that guides our nation’s farm policy is expected to be approved every five years, but currently because of mainly politics, we’re operating off of an extension that congress approved last year.

Lawmakers in both the House and Senate focused on the Biden administration’s trade agenda for 2024. Micheal Clements says farmers and ranchers would like to see a more aggressive approach to opening up markets to American agriculture.

Clements: The Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee held annual hearings this week regarding the president’s trade agenda. Dave Salmonsen, American Farm Bureau Federation Senior Government Affairs Director, says its an opportunity for the administration and Congress to collaborate.
Salmonsen: This is a required report in which the administration lays out what their accomplishments have been and what they plan on doing in the upcoming year. And this year you had the U.S. Trade Representative, Ambassador Katherine Tai came before the committee's and laid out their ideas on trade for the year. So, it provides an opportunity for some real interaction between the administration and the Congress on trade and the trade agenda going forward.
Clements: Salmonsen says there was bipartisan concern that the administration isn’t doing enough to improve trade.
Salmonsen: A lot of the discussion was about the fact that this administration does not pursue the traditional trade agreements. There was a lot of discussion about the fact that ag exports aren't keeping up with the volume and dollar value of ag imports. And also, the lack of enforcement, especially in bringing trade cases with China. So, there was an awful lot of, let us say, suggestions for improvement.
Clements: Salmonson says AFBF seeks more effort from the administration on trade.
Salmonsen: We’re not having the growth that we were used to having, going backwards some. We’re not expanding our markets in a way that we want to. We need to diversify. More than half of our ag exports only go to five regions. We would like to sell more to a greater variety of countries, but unless we have an administration that’s really willing to get in there and negotiate trade agreements, and lower barriers that other countries have, we just really can't use that approach to grow our exports.
Clements: Learn more at fb.org. Michael Clements, Washington.