Danny Murphy of Canton, Mississippi has been named as the Mississippi state winner of the 2014 Swisher Sweets/Sunbelt Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year Award.
Mr. Murphy has long been an important voice for the U.S. soy family, serving as president of the Mississippi Soybean Association from 1990-1992 and the chairman of the Mississippi Soybean Production board from 2001-2002.  He became active on the national level with the American Soybean Association (ASA) when he became a director in 2005, serving on the organization’s Farm Bill Task Force from 2010-2014.  He served as ASA’s Public Affairs Committee chairman in 2012 and has represented the group in dealings with trade policy and international affairs.  He served as treasurer of ASA, vice president in 2010, first vice president in 2012, president in 2013, and chairman in 2014.  Mr. Murphy also was a USSEC director from 2008-2012, and served as treasurer from 2009-2011.  In addition, he worked on the USDA’s Agricultural Trade Advisory Committee from 2012 until 2014.
Mr. Murphy, a longtime no-till planter, was inspired by his grandfather who bought the family’s home farm in 1944 and was told that a 60-acre field was only fit to “hold the world together.”  He says, “My grandfather didn’t accept that.  Through cover crops, fertilization and conservation, that field is now one of our most productive.”  Mr. Murphy was inspired to use no-till from his work with USSEC and ASA.  This effort helped develop sustainability guidelines for U.S. soybeans.