The growth of the Lowndes County economy is much like a reaction to a child you haven’t seen in a while: My, how you’ve grown!
During Tuesday’s Columbus Rotary Club luncheon, Mississippi State Agricultural Economics Professor Alan Barefield presented findings from The Mississippi State University Extension Office’s yearly economic profile for Lowndes County.
And my, how it’s grown.
Barefield specializes in agriculture and the Golden Triangle is something of an outlier in that field in comparison to other regions of the state. Mississippi is an agricultural state, with forestry and row crops – particularly cotton, corn and soybeans – representing the state’s biggest industries. While Lowndes does have an agricultural base, it has a thriving durable goods manufacturing sector, something that leapt off the pages of Barefield’s report.
What has happened between 2016 and 2020 would be akin to a growth spurt in a teenager.
Lowndes County total manufacturing produced $655 million of gross product in 2020, up from $543 million in 2016. Durable goods manufacturing alone made up $588 million of that $655 million.
That’s good news for our industries and the thousands of workers they employ. This isn’t your grandpa’s manufacturing. In those days, manufacturing jobs were largely manual, hands-on occupations. Today’s manufacturing involves a far more extensive skill set, often with specialized training and advanced tools, including robots.
The most impactful numbers were a couple of pages into Barefield’s presentation, though. As a result of Lowndes County’s economic growth, Barefield said the average per capita income for county residents rose to $45,000 in 2020 as compared to $35,000 in 2011, a robust 25.5 percent. That represents more dollars — on average — in each of our pockets.
Clearly, you don’t have to work at one of our manufacturing facilities to enjoy the benefits. The taxes paid by industries support our schools and local governments, so everyone benefits.
None of this happened by accident. The industries who made Lowndes County their home might never have come without cooperation from a variety of organizations, particularly the Golden Triangle Development LINK and affiliated industrial development boards, Lowndes County government and our educational institutions — Mississippi State, MUW and EMCC.
The benefits can be felt throughout the Golden Triangle region.
What we have seen is nothing short of amazing and the future is bright: Steel Dynamics’ $2.5 billion aluminum project is just over the horizon. Starkville’s industrial park has laid the infrastructure groundwork necessary to attract light industry as well.
In another five or so years, we may yet again see the data and marvel at how much we have grown.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 45 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
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