Republican congressional candidate Nathan Willett announced the formation of his Agriculture Steering Committee on Wednesday, assembling a group of agricultural leaders, producers, and advocates from across North Missouri as part of his campaign for Missouri’s 6th Congressional District.

The committee includes representatives from multiple sectors of Missouri agriculture, including cattle, pork, row crop production, ag policy, waterways, and soil science, spanning counties throughout the district.

In a statement accompanying the announcement, Willett emphasized both his family’s agricultural background and his work on local policy issues impacting rural communities.

“Agriculture is the heartbeat of North Missouri,” Willett said. “I am humbled to be supported and advised by many generational leaders across North Missouri’s 33 counties. These individuals are leaders not only in their respective specialties, but also in their communities.”

Willett, who is running for Missouri’s 6th Congressional District, also highlighted his opposition to certain climate-related regulations and solar development projects on farmland.

“While I am not a farmer myself, my family has farmed North Missouri for seven generations,” Willett said. “On the council, I fought to roll back burdensome climate regulations, cast the lone vote against the solar panel project on our fertile farmland, and worked with agricultural leaders to improve critical infrastructure serving processing plants.”

The committee will be chaired by Renee Fordyce, a farmer and rancher from Harrison County; Todd Hays, a pork producer from Marion County; Blake Hurst, an agriculture writer from Atchison County; and Brian Klippenstein, a cattleman from Platte County.

Fordyce described Willett as a candidate willing to advocate for rural Missouri interests.

“Missouri agriculture is in a period where we need a proven, dedicated fighter to be our voice when decisions are being made that impact our way of life,” Fordyce said.

Hays pointed to Willett’s North Missouri roots and family farming history in explaining his support for the campaign.

“Nathan has a proven track record of fighting and delivering for what he believes in,” Hays said. “As a 7th generation North Missourian, Nathan has seen the importance of agriculture firsthand from his family members that farm in Atchison, Clay, Platte, and Ray counties.”

Additional committee members include Livingston County cattlewoman Melinda Bothwell, KC Ag Business Council founder Gina Bowman of Clay County, Marion County corn producer Brent Hoer, Adair County ag advocate Andy Jackson, Carroll County soil scientist Meagan Kaiser, and former Missouri agriculture policy figure Brian Munzlinger, among others.

The announcement comes as candidates in the 6th District continue working to consolidate support across the largely rural northern Missouri district, where agriculture remains one of the region’s dominant economic and political forces.