“Agriculture is the greatest and fundamentally the most important of our industries. The cities are but the branches of the tree of national life, the roots of which go deeply into the land. We all flourish or decline with the farmer.”
—Bernard Baruch
American financier and philanthropist
In what ways do we manifest our appreciation for our food in our everyday lives? To whom do we give thanks? On which days do we give thanks for the food we have immediate access to? Thanksgiving is right around the corner. But we don’t need a Holiday to “thank God” for the farmers and ranchers for the bountiful food we have at our fingertips.
“There’s never a wrong time to appreciate the people working in agriculture,” says Ralph Mahalak Jr., the Low Payment King himself. Every season is a good season for the community to know the people and families that provide our abundant economy with a rich source of healthy and sustainably grown or produced food.
One way you can learn about local farmers and ranchers is to participate in grassroots events, such as farm tours. These tours provide a glimpse into the daily lives of working farmers and their families. Locals have the opportunity to engage at the ground level with the men and women working the Florida land to bring produce and food to our local grocers and tables.
In a farm tour, you participate in a guided bus tour that serves to inform you of the daily functions of select farms. In Polk County alone, there are 2,400 farms, with 86,000 workers serving Florida’s economy approximately $5.7 billion annually. With so many people working to contribute so much to our daily livelihood and local economy, one small thing we can do is learn more about their work and show them our appreciation.
Farms tours, like the Central Florida Farm Tour, are sponsored by companies like the Low Payments Kings and their certified RAM Agriculture dealerships in Polk County. They have a RAM Ag Pack valued at $12,000 that benefits farmers. The Ag Pack is a unique way RAM and the Low Payment Kings can acknowledge and support the invaluable work of local farmers.
The support and gratitude goes deeper than Ag Pack, emphasizes Clint Turnbull, general manager at Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM of Winter Haven.
“We want our RAM Ag salespeople to know farming, the farmer and the trucks that drive them.” Knowing the agricultural industry, the farmer, and their needs is part of the culture at all Low Payment King’s locations.
“We are proud that all three of our RAM dealerships in Central Florida are certified RAM Agriculture dealerships,” says Mike Mahalak, president of Mahalak Auto Group’s Low Payment Kings dealerships. Our salespeople have been trained by RAM Agriculture experts and partner organizations to better serve the agriculture community,”
Now is a good time to help RAM acknowledge and appreciate the continued flourishing of our Florida local farmers. Their hard work and deep roots drive our success as a community. To learn more, visit centralfloridafarmtour.com.
BIO: The Low Payment Kings are part of the Mahalak Auto Group. The group owns three locations in Central Florida—Dodge Chrysler Jeep RAM of Winter Haven, Lake Wales Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM, and Posner Park Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM Fiat in Davenport.
