Alberta Open Farm Days are coming up later this month.
The two-day celebration of agriculture is set for August 17th and 18th. The annual event gives Albertans an opportunity to see where their food comes from and meet the people who make it through unique on-farm experiences.
Tannis Baker is on the executive planning committee for Open Farm Days. She says “there is everything from adult-only events, which would be at breweries and distilleries that are talking about their grain stories to lots of different experiences that are targeted for children. We’ve got some farms that have actually put dirt and mud in their backyard with little diggers. So for kids to come out and play, see the animals, play in the dirt. Really there is something for all ages and all interests.”
According to Baker, they have a record number of farms this year with over 160 signing up for it. She says “it’s always a fun weekend for us. We get to talk to the farmers all year round about this project and then we get to go and see some of the exciting things that they’re doing. There’s a lot in the area. New this year there we have a bit of a mega event that’s happening just in Trochu at the Arboretum. There is a number of different properties that are working together to put on a show there. So that’ll be really interesting. That is where I plan to spend my Saturday.”
She encourages everyone to check out the AlbertaOpenFarmDays.ca website to find all of the places that are participating and see what they have to offer. Baker says “So there’s some purchasable things directly with the farms as well as the opportunity just pick a number of different farms that you want to visit and register for them and then the farms kind of have any idea of how many people are going to be coming out, which is great for them as they organize their volunteers. Some of them do have limits on them. Some of these are small operations, so they only have 20 people allowed per hour. So, you know, head over to the website and find something that interests you and sign up.”
Alberta Open Farm Days began in 2013. For 2024, the event is shining a spotlight on an important part of Alberta’s fibre industry – the alpaca.
96.5 CKFM spoke with Tannis Baker.