Taste the Land of Living Skies Farm Tours Connect Farmers and Ranchers with Customers

By Bruce Cochrane

The CEO of Farm and Food Care Saskatchewan says the Taste the Land of Living Skies Farm Tours have proved to be highly successful in connecting farmers and ranchers with their customers.

Well over 100 national and international food experts, including food writers, culinary academics and chefs, as well as farmers, ranchers and others explored farms and food processing facilities in the Saskatoon area earlier this month and in the Regina area last month.

Adele Buettner, the CEO of Farm and Food Care Saskatchewan, says, more than ever, people want to know where their food comes from and the Taste the Land of Living Skies Farm Tours program is all about getting to know farmers which means getting to know food.

Adele Buettner-Farm and Food Care Saskatchewan:
We've seen a change in the interest from consumers in food production especially over the last decade.

When you think back a number of years ago there was really 1 or 2 food shows on TV.

There were a handful of magazines that featured food but, now when you look at the food industry and the profile the food industry has, we have food networks, we have ample TV programs and TV personalities that showcase food, we have a variety of magazines and culinary books that are on the store shelves for consumers to view.

So clearly that tells us the increase in consumers' interest in food, in food production and food preparing so it's very important and timely that the farm industry and agriculture has opened up their farm gates and wanting to engage our consumers with sharing with them information on how food is grown here in Saskatchewan.

Buettner says participants left Saskatchewan having a better understanding of food production.

She says Saskatchewan exports a huge amount of what it produces so it's important to engage our Saskatchewan non-farming public as well as those influencers across the country and internationally that use our product.

Source: Farmscape