Economy

Mississippi entered the ranks of industrial states in the 1960's, when employment in manufacturing first exceeded that in agriculture. Large-scale manufacturing enterprises are mainly in and and around the cities of Pascagoula, Jackson, Biloxi, and Gulfport. Small-scale activities are widely scattered and many workers commute to factories from homes in the country; thus, the state has a predominantly rural character. Agriculture remains a significant part of the economy. Mississippi, for many decades a state of tenant farmers dependent on cotton as the only cash crop, now has diversified and modern farms.

Despite substantial gains in the past several decades, Mississippi continues to be the nation's poorest state—ranking lowest in median family income and highest in the percentage of residents living below the poverty level, as defined by the federal government.

Mississippi's first manufacturing industries were those based on farm and forest products. These industries continue to be important and include the making of textiles and garments; lumber, paper, and other wood-derived items; feed and fertilizer; and various processed foods. By the 1980's manufacturing industries had become more diversified, producing, in addition to the state's traditional products, transportation equipment, pesticides and other chemicals, machinery, and electric and electronic equipment. Petroleum refining is a chief industry along the Gulf coast. Pascagoula is a major shipbuilding center.

Soybeans and cotton are the leading sources of farm income. Mississippi ranks among the leading producers of cotton in the United States. Many other agricultural products contribute to the state's income, especially beef and dairy cattle and broilers. Milk, eggs, hogs, and sheep are also significant. Among the state's other major cash crops are rice, wheat, hay, corn, grain sorghum, and various vegetables. The state is also a producer of peaches, pecans, beans, sweet potatoes, cowpeas, watermelons, and muscadine grapes.

Mississippi is a fairly large producer of crude petroleum and natural gas, which account for almost all of the state's income, about 85 per cent, from mineral production. Other mineral products include sand and gravel, clays, crushed stone, and a kind of coal called lignite.

Mississippi is a leading forest industry state, with forests covering about 60 per cent of the state's land. Mississippi has the most tree farms in the United States.

Shrimp and menhaden are the most valuable catches landed at Mississippi's Gulf coast ports. Mississippi leads the nation in the production of farm-raised catfish. Large amounts of catfish are raised commercially in inland ponds in the Alluvial Plain, or Delta. Other valuable catches include oysters, crabs, finfishes, red snapper, shellfish, and seatrout. The fishing industry is a major source of income all along the coast.

Four Interstate highways and numerous other highways cross the state. Railways are mainly north-south lines. Of the several commercial airports that serve the state, Jackson's is the busiest. Gulfport and Pascagoula are major deepwater ports; Natchez, Vicksburg, and Greenville are the chief Mississippi River ports. The Tennessee-Tombigbee (Tenn-Tom) Waterway crosses the northeastern part of the state.