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Georgia's traditional industries -- pulp and paper; food processing; and textiles/carpet -- are the state's industrial backbone. Virtually every county in Georgia is home to at least one of these industries; together, they employ almost half of the state's manufacturing work force and have an annual payroll of $7 billion. Historically, these three industries have been key to Georgia's economy, hence their name "traditional" industries. Nationwide, these three industries account for 22 percent of total manufacturing employment. However, in Georgia, they account for over 40 percent. Despite their size and historical importance, Georgia's traditional industries face serious international challenges from companies in low-wage regions of the world. To protect the jobs of the 240,000 Georgians employed in these industries, the Governor and State Legislature created the Traditional Industries Program in 1994 to address competitiveness issues that threaten the viability of companies working in these three arenas. |