WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. (WVDN) – On March 2, West Virginia Commissioner of Agriculture Kent Leonhardt spent the afternoon and evening in Greenbrier County at the invitation of the Greenbrier County Republican Club.
The afternoon was spent visiting the meat market and processing plant of the Mountain Steer Company in White Sulphur Springs, where Jamie Tuckwiller gave Leonhardt a guided tour of the facility. They discussed how the Agriculture Department could continue to aid in the development and expansion of Mountain Steer.
After an excellent dinner of Mountaineer Steer T-bone steak at the Big Draft Brewery, Leonhardt addressed about 40 members of the club at Morgan and Morgan Funeral Home’s dining room.
Leonhardt has used the leadership and management skills acquired in a 21-year career in the U.S. Marine Corps to expand the services of his department by better management of 283 employees who have received three pay raises during his tenure while working with a budget which has had virtually no increase since 2008.
He has also had the experience of starting and running a 380-acre farm with cattle, sheep, goats and hay in West Virginia.
He said that among his proudest accomplishments is the Veterans and Heroes to Agriculture program, helping veterans and first responders find farming opportunities, and the increase of 200 more farms in West Virgina.
While the cattle business has decreased nationally, it increased by 5,000 head in West Virgina in 2022, he said.
There has been a marked upswing in both farm markets and farm-to-school food products. Mountain Steer now furnishes ground meat to five county school lunch programs.
In addition, Leonhardt has developed emergency action plans to ward off disease in animals which may threaten livestock, swine and poultry.
Leonhardt looks forward to the State Fair of West Virginia and continuing to increase the presence of the fair’s Country Store and its array of Mountain State products.
