County Farm Bureaus boost membership in 2018
(CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas)—County Farm Bureaus across Texas were recognized for membership achievements during Texas Farm Bureau’s (TFB) 85th Annual Meeting Dec. 2 in Corpus Christi.
“Members are the foundation of Texas Farm Bureau. They fuel our organization and contribute to policy development that influences our interactions in Austin and Washington, D.C.,” TFB President Russell Boening said. “We have had 18 consecutive years of membership growth, attracting rural and urban folks, thanks to the efforts of our county Farm Bureaus.”
Farm Bureau membership rose 7,028 for a total of 526,877 member families. Of the 206 organized county Farm Bureaus, 162 counties gained members during the year. Farm Bureau recorded a statewide retention average of 88.6 percent.
County Farm Bureaus signing the most new members include the following: Brazoria-Galveston County, 2,009; Collin County, 1,847; Fort Bend County, 1,646; Harris County, 1,370; McLennan County, 1,358; Bell County, 1,181; Jefferson County, 1,172; Ellis County, 1,167; Grayson County, 1,046; and Bexar County, 984.
County Farm Bureaus reporting the largest total membership gain include the following: Grayson County, 320; Bell County, 286; Smith County, 257; McLennan County, 254; Wilson County, 245; Anderson County, 230; Comal County, 220; Collin County, 217; Austin County, 208; and Brazoria-Galveston County, 208.
The highest membership renewal percentages were achieved by the following: Cochran County, 94.44 percent; Fisher County, 94.13 percent; Anderson County, 93.29 percent; Crosby County, 93.27 percent; Cottle-King County, 93.21 percent; Gillespie County, 93.10 percent; Knox County, 93.07 percent; Foard County, 92.99 percent; Wilson County, 92.96 percent; and Dickens County, 92.92 percent.
County Farm Bureaus with the largest membership include the following: Collin County, 13,328; Brazoria-Galveston County, 12,729; Fort Bend County, 11,012; Jefferson County, 9,802; Ellis County, 8,749; McLennan County, 8,567; Harris County, 8,428; Bell County, 7,563; Bexar County, 7,333 and Kaufman County, 6,665.
County Farm Bureaus with the longest continuous gain in membership include: DeWitt County, 69 years; Franklin County, 38 years; Erath County, 32 years; Henderson County, 29 years; and the following were recognized for 27 years: Atascosa County, Bell County, Comal County, Gillespie County, Hill County, Medina County, Navarro County and Tyler County.
“Our grassroots organization has attracted many new member-families across the state, bringing more voices together to support agriculture and the rural lifestyle,” Boening said.