Small Business Person of the Year winners from 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Guam will converge on Washington, D.C. in mid May when one of them will be selected as National Small Business Person of the Year.

Will Harris III, Georgia’s 2011 Small Business Person of the Year, is among the nation’s top entrepreneurs who will be honored at the U.S. Small Business Administration’s National Small Business Week events May 18-20 in Washington, D.C. Under the theme, “Empowering Entrepreneurs,” a series of events and educational forums will mark the 58th anniversary of the agency and the 48th annual proclamation of National Small Business Week.

Harris is owner and president of White Oak Pastures, one of the largest producers of organic, grass-fed beef in the country. Harris has taken his family farm in Early County, Georgia, passed down over five generations, and coupled it with modern technology to meet the growing demand for grass-fed beef.

Today, White Oak Pastures has 40 non-family employees and is the largest certified organic farm in Georgia. Its grass-fed beef is available in Whole Food Market stores as well as Publix Supermarkets in five states.

“The state small business winners who will be honored reflect a broad range of business products, services and innovations offered by our nation’s entrepreneurs,” said SBA Georgia District Director Terri Denison in announcing Harris’ award. “Will Harris and White Oak Pastures serve as a prime example of how innovation coupled with opportunity can transform a business or entire industry.”

During the week’s events in Washington, awards will also be presented to SBA partners in financial and entrepreneurial development, including the year’s top SCORE Chapter, Small Business Development Center and Women’s Business Center.

Other highlights will include notable speakers and business industry leaders from trade associations and local and federal governments speaking on issues of vital interest to the small business community.

As one of only two, on-farm USDA inspected grass-fed plants in the country, White Oak Pastures was already distinctive. But it became even more so with the installation last year of the largest solar barn in the Southeast. This facility has 50,000 watts of capacity and turns sunlight directly into energy for the beef processing plant.

A few months ago, Harris broke ground for a new USDA-inspected poultry plant to process his other free-range chickens and turkeys. This facility, also housed on his farm, is expected to be operational in August of this year and initially employ about 25 people.

In 2008, then Gov. Sonny Purdue presented the state’s “Flavor of Georgia” Grand Prize to Harris whose 1,000 acre farm is just outside of Bluffton. Harris’ meat products were also selected by the University of Georgia, his alma mater, to receive its Award of Excellence. The web site for Harris’ farm iswww.whiteoakpastures.com. He was nominated for the statewide award by the University of Georgia Small Business Development Center in Albany.