Austin Todd Hamilton, 36
Director of Ag, Hamilton Growers/Southern Valley Fruit and Vegetable, Norman Park, GA
June 12, 2026 | 3 min to read
SHORT BIO
Hometown: Norman Park GA
Hobbies: Flying Airplanes, Playing Drums, Riding dirt bikes with his kids
Family/Community: Married, 4 children, Heritage Church leadership team
Motto in life: To work hard, love others and bring glory to my savior Jesus Christ!
Hamilton is a third-generation farmer, forward thinker, and advocate for agriculture’s future. As director of agriculture at Southern Valley Fruit and Vegetable, he oversees production in South Georgia, Tennessee and Yucatan, Mexico, with a focus on sustainability and innovation.
Before joining the family farm, he spent two years working at Southern Tractor and Outdoors, learning to sell tractors and manage the shop.
In 2012, he started working with Hamilton Growers/Southern Valley. Working with his father, Kent Hamilton, he began growing cotton and squash. In 2015, he took over growing all the produce in Georgia for the company. He was promoted to his current position in 2018 and given the responsibility to make Mexico, Tennessee, and Georgia productions successful. As part of his job, he creates the year-long planting schedules for each location based on sales needs, oversees research trials and various sustainable practices for over 6,000 acres of produce, and manages the H2A labor.
Under his leadership, the company has successfully stopped fumigating in all its locations and is using biology to control nematodes and diseases. He has also spearheaded Southern Valley’s expansion into South Florida.
In 2025, Hamilton assumed the role of president of the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, further demonstrating his leadership and commitment to the industry. He is known for his dedication to advancing safer, more efficient farming practices and having a vision for strengthening the food supply chain.
Q: How did you begin working in the produce industry and why?
I grew up in this business. I used to ride in the tractors with my dad when I was a little boy. I couldn’t help but enjoy it. As a boy, I couldn’t wait to grow up and help Daddy farm; my little dream turned into reality, thanks to God.
Q: What do you know now you wish you knew when you first started your career?
Failure is a part of making great things happen. My dad told me I would fail, but I didn’t realize how that would feel until I made some failures of my own, and so for that I’m thankful.
Q: How has the industry changed during your tenure?
We used to grow tons of acres of produce, and now we are growing less and focusing more on growing for a profit. We couldn’t stay in business without focusing on our costs and our sales prices. Also, there are more and more regulations, and that makes things harder for us.
Q: What challenges and opportunities do you see for the future of the industry?
Some challenges are to have enough farmers who are willing to farm. Farming isn’t easy, our whole industry isn’t easy, we have to make things more fun and exciting to attract new people.
As far as opportunities, the sky is the limit; this is such a challenging business that not everyone can do it the right way. We have to continue to stay relevant in the industry, and I see tons of opportunities to do that. If you work hard and do what you say you will do, you will be successful.
Q: What accomplishment are you most proud of in your career?
Farming and growing produce in two countries and three states. It takes a lot of planning in a lot of areas to make that happen — and we do it 365 days a year. To me, it’s extremely impressive that we are able to do that. I always say “we” because it’s not about me, it’s about our team, and without them I wouldn’t be successful.
NOMINEES
