Agriculture is in the spotlight during Princeville Farm and Ranch Days.
As generations pass and fewer people are directly involved in agriculture, raising awareness is important. This is a goal that the Princeville Farm and Ranch Days, put on by German Bliss, hopes to achieve. Princeville Farm and Ranch Days is a local event located in Princeville, Ill., designed to bring in agriculture businesses and farmers from the area to showcase how strong agriculture is in this small rural town.
Joddie Bauman, a resident and event attendee, believes it’s important that residents see all of the businesses and farms that come together to allow a rural community like Princeville to thrive. “It’s a way for our community to come together and see all the businesses that make a rural community go,” she says.
Leo Johnson, a vegetation management expert at Herman Brothers Fishery and Princeville Farm and Ranch Days vendor, has a mission to educate people about the importance of aquaculture. He also wants to showcase how it can affect the ecosystem, both in the water and on land, and wants to stress to the community the importance of preservation not only on land, but in the water. “I want to show them it’s a big deal in a pond to have a good ecosystem for your fish,” he says.
Greg German, the CEO at German Bliss, is one of event’s facilitators. He stressed the importance of educating people about agriculture since they are learning less and less about it. “People are getting further and further away from agriculture, even though it’s becoming more and more important to our society,” he says.
German also believes it’s vital for young people to get involved in agriculture now because it’s necessary for our society to function. “Everybody has to eat,” he says. “Everybody has to have sustainability, and agriculture is a core of that sustainability.”
Princeville Farm and Ranch Days shows agriculture is not just about farming — it’s about community, education and preserving a way of life. These events ensure next generations will understand where their food comes from and what agriculture is.
