February 13, 2006
Contact:
Marjory Walker
(901) 274-9030
TUCSON, AZ – Bruce Brumfield, a former National Cotton Council president and cotton producer from Inverness, MS, is the recipient of the 2005 Harry S. Baker Distinguished Service Award for Cotton. He was honored here today at the National Cotton Council's 2006 Annual Meeting.
The award, named for the late California industry leader and NCC President Harry S. Baker, is presented annually to a deserving individual who has provided extraordinary service, leadership and dedication to the U.S. cotton industry.
A partner in Brumfield Plantation and FTB Farms, Brumfield’s farming operation in Sunflower County, Mississippi, primarily is in cotton, soybeans, wheat and catfish. He also is vice president of Duncan Gin Inc. in Inverness.
Brumfield was honored for his uncommon leadership and his distinguished and invaluable service provided to the U.S. cotton industry. He became chairman of the NCC’s Board in 1995 after serving as NCC president in 1994. He is a past chairman of the NCC’s Producer Steering Committee and a past president of the Delta Council and the Mississippi Cattlemen’s Association.
He currently serves as a director for Staplcotn Cotton Cooperative, the Community Bank of Indianola, Delta Pride Catfish and Delta Western Inc.
Brumfield’s outstanding leadership qualities have been recognized by others, too.
In recognition of his leadership and extensive knowledge, Brumfield was selected a member to the Commission on 21st Century Production Agriculture. This highly influential 11- member commission met 14 times and conducted numerous field hearings and public listening sessions before presenting to President Bush and Congress a comprehensive report on the status of U.S. production agriculture following the enactment of the FAIR Act.
The Mississippi Agricultural and Home Economics Alumni Association presented its production agriculture award to him in 1981. In 1999, he was named Progressive Farmer’s Mississippi Man of the Year in Agriculture. In 2001, Mississippi State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences named him an Alumni Fellow.
Outgoing NCC Chairman Woods Eastland said Bruce’s response in accepting the prestigious honor from Mississippi State speaks volumes, when he said, “hard work is a vital ingredient in the success of any project, along with a willingness to recognize a need for change.”
Brumfield and his wife, the former Margaret Harris Swayze, have four sons.
Previous honorees of the Harry S. Baker Award include Duke Barr, Lloyd Cline, Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS), Robert Coker, Rep. Larry Combest, Charlie Cunningham, William B. Dunavant, Jr., Duke Kimbrell, Bill Lawson, Lon Mann, Frank Mitchener, Gaylon Booker, Albert Russell, Jimmy Sanford, Earl Sears, B. F. Smith, Jack Stone, Charlie Youngker, and last year’s recipient, Charles Stenholm.