Virginia Agriculture Summit to explore agritourism

ABINGDON—The fifth annual Virginia Agriculture Summit will be held Dec. 11 and 12 at The Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center in Abingdon. Its theme will be “Rural Prosperity Through Agriculture: Agritourism & Value-Added Marketing.”

The keynote speakers are Jane Eckert, CEO Eckert AgriMarketing, and Diana Endicott, farm to market coordinator for Good Natured Family Farms.

Eckert AgriMarketing is a full-service marketing and consulting firm that serves farms, orchards, and ranch operators engaged in agritourism or direct marketing to the public. Good Natured Family Farms, a farmers’ cooperative started by Endicott and her husband, is the only line of local foods available in Kansas City.

In addition to their opening remarks, both Eckert and Endicott will give presentations during the summit.

The event is open to all interested members of the agriculture community. Registration for agricultural producers is $35 by Dec. 1 and $50 afterward; registration for all other participants is $75 by Dec. 1 and $100 afterward.

Agenda and lodging information will be posted to www.agsummit.com as it becomes available. Interested persons also can contact Brenda Fleming at 804-290-1155.

The summit’s sponsors are the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development agency; Virginia Cooperative Extension; the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; Virginia Farm Bureau Federation; the Virginia Foundation for Agriculture, Innovation and Rural Sustainability; Virginia State University; and Virginia Tech.

Contact: Spencer Neale, VFBF senior assistant director of commodities and marketing, 804-290-1153, or Chris Cook, VFBF agriculture enterprise development coordinator, at 804-290-1111.