Gov. Terry McAuliffe said the commonwealth’s farmers and foresters will help him “take Georgia down,” establishing Virginia as the East Coast capital for agricultural and forestry exports.

“We just moved into second,” McAuliffe told several hundred farmers attending the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation Annual Convention in Norfolk on Dec. 3. “But I want us to be No. 1.”

McAuliffe thanked the farmers for the work they have done. “When you’re successful, Virginia’s successful.”

Agriculture and forestry have a combined $70 billion impact on the state’s economy, and McAuliffe noted that in the next six weeks, he will be announcing new, “exciting” Agricultural and Forestry Industries Development Fund grants that have the potential to help increase that number. The AFID grants help localities integrate agriculture- and forestry-based industries into their overall economic development efforts.

McAuliffe promised his proposed budget will be an aggressive one for agriculture. “I think everybody will be happy.”

Additionally, he vowed to continue promoting Virginia agricultural and forestry products around the globe, remarking that he is “probably the most-travelled governor in the U.S.”