Annual Agricultural Festivals Nurture Public Awareness and Appreciation for Farming

KNOXVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 10, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- For those who don't live a rural-centered life, it's easy to forget -- or maybe never to have really learned -- that despite modern society's conveniences and comforts, life's sustenance still comes from working the earth.

The processes of bringing forth the produce, grains and protein to feed communities and nourish nations requires unyielding dedication and a steady cultivation of knowledge to grow not just crops and livestock, but new generations of farmers.

A profitable, stable and sustainable agriculture base that can be depended upon to yield bountiful, affordable harvests is a building block of civilization. And a civilization that fails to appreciate the fundamental importance of farming, ranching and fiber production risks losing much more than just its roots.

"Today, one of agriculture's biggest challenges is helping people make the connection between farming and the food they enjoy," North Carolina State Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler said recently.

One of the most effective means of meeting that challenge is through direct interaction between farmers and the nonfarming public. "Farm families tell that story the best because they are out there every day working hard to grow the food, fiber and fuel we need," Troxler said.

The enterprise of educating the public about agriculture is -- like farming itself -- a job that doesn't end, says Ben Lastly, executive secretary for the Georgia Future Farmers of America Association.

"Good things are happening, but the goal is always becoming more challenging -- there are more and more people every day who are removed from agriculture," Lastly told ExploreTRV. "So if two steps are taken forward, the finish line gets two steps further away."

State, regional and local agriculture-oriented fairs and festivals are a time-tested, dependable and all-around enjoyable means of bridging the urban-rural divide, said Lastly, who also serves on the national FFA governing board.

"Fairs offer a great opportunity to folks to come in and see agriculture in a practical nature, up close," he said. "Fairgoers from the community come out for the carnival rides and the cotton candy -- but they also see the young people working in agriculture, and see the animals being worked with and cared for humanely. They learn a little more about where their food comes from, and that is an obvious benefit."
'Taproot of the Economy'

People who organize, advertise and execute fairs across Southern Appalachia recognize agriculture is essential to local and regional heritage, and fairs are a principle means of celebrating that history.

The importance of farming is a "fact of nature," said William Lowery, board of directors president for the Tennessee Association of Fairs.

"For Tennessee, agriculture is what we do," he said. "The taproot of the Tennessee economy is agriculture -- and it will be for the foreseeable future, I believe."
Last year, at least 90 percent of Tennessee fairs were shut down as a result of the coronavirus -- including in Lowery's own home county, Gibson, which prior to 2020 had run a fair continuously since the days of post-Civil War Reconstruction. So far, this year is a different story. As of mid-August, no fairs in Tennessee had been canceled due to COVID-19 worries, he said.

It's difficult to grasp or calculate how important fairs are to local communities, especially in farm country -- and nothing makes that more clear than having to cancel a fair, Lowery said.

For many kids that grow up on farms, the fair is an exciting opportunity to shine for their community. It's not unlike popular sporting events for local athletes, except it only happens once a year, said Lowery.

At one time or another, Carrie Cavender has attended virtually every local fair in the state. As vice president of the Association of Alabama Fairs and a board member for 12 years, she has an abiding passion for fairs and sincerely appreciates their diversity and innovation.

Cavender says she's always encouraging local organizers to communicate with one another to share unique perspectives, fresh approaches and imaginative experiments.
"Some of the smallest fairs have the best ideas, because they don't have big budgets or a lot of money to spend. So they improvise on marketing to bring people in, and they do really neat things on a shoestring," she said. "We at the bigger fairs are learning from the smaller fairs all the time."

Cavender was "raised at the fairgrounds" and has been involved with organizing fairs for more than 30 years -- and she can't think of much she'd rather be doing than her current job.

"I get to do the fun stuff," she said. "I get to go to all these different fairs and visit with the folks and trade ideas with them. We like to do it up big in Alabama -- we have a lot of livestock, people quilting, all kinds of arts and crafts. We do it right."

To Cavender, who also serves in a leadership role for the National Peanut Festival in Dothan, Ala., the delight and fulfillment of attending fairs is further accentuated by the fact that they play such an invaluable role in educating people about agriculture and promoting rural life.

"To be a legitimate fair in Alabama, your main priority has to be agriculture," she said. "You can't just put up a carnival and call it a county fair."

Tending Perennial Crops of Talent
Lowery, Cavender and Lastly all say they can't overstate the importance of getting young people interested in fairs -- both for the future of agriculture and to ensure that new blood replenishes the leadership positions in local fair administration.

"In some places, the older board members have pretty much given out -- and they don't have any young people to replace them," Lowery said. "That kind of thing is a real threat to fairs -- when a community doesn't have a new generation stepping up."

Cavender relishes observing interactions between younger folks and older generations in organizing fairs. Obviously, the young people are learning from the veterans -- but the kids bring a tech-focused marketing savvy to the table that's often much more sophisticated than that of their mentors.

"The young people are so good with social media and getting the word out that way," she said. "They can be out there taking pictures for Instagram or whatever and send that out, and then it just blows up."

Additionally, younger folks "know what they like," Cavender said, "and they know what other young people want to see."

When youth participate in fair planning and organizing and promotion, their enthusiasm can be infectious. Without it the future wouldn't bode well, said Cavender. "We are kind of a dying breed if we don't bring our youth into it and keep them excited and involved," she said.

Celebrating youth in agriculture at fairs extends beyond just encouraging farm kids to carry on the traditions, Lowery said. The goal is not just to maintain a status quo, but to inspire youth with nonfarm backgrounds to consider working and living around agriculture.

"One of things you always hope happens is that a kid who knows really nothing about agriculture and has no prior interest in agriculture comes to the county fair for the rides and the food, and then ends up seeing something they've never seen before and you get a spark of interest," he said. "If we can do something to spark some curiosity in a kid, it could change their life -- and in the process help feed the rest of us."

Media Contact

Mark Engler, TRV Stewardship Council, 8655850811, [email protected]

SOURCE TRV Stewardship Council

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