The educational resource will be in different Alberta communities this summer and fall
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
An Alberta ag industry organization is rolling out a new mobile resource to help educate Albertans about local agriculture.
Ag for Life officially launched its ‘Know Your Food’ educational trailer at K-Days in Edmonton over the weekend.
But bringing the project to fruition took years, said Luree Williamson, CEO of Ag for Life.
“It’s been a work in progress for about three years,” she told Farms.com. “Our mandate is agriculture education and delivering programs throughout the province, and we were looking for a way to encompass a lot of the story of agriculture. That’s when we came up with the idea of the education trailer.”
The 34 ft. trailer includes multiple interactive stations to deliver science-based and factual information from industry experts.
The trailer is also divided into different topics, Williamson said.
“There’s tech and innovation, production and markets,” she said. “There’s also a food for thought section where you’ll see the intersection between consumers and food, food waste and ways to reduce the amount of food waste.”
Ag for Life staff is also on hand to support the visitor experience.
Local food has been in the spotlight recently.
With the pandemic and with the conflict in Ukraine contributing to higher prices and general food insecurity, consumers seem to be more interested in agriculture, Williamson said.
“We had supply chain issues with COVID where people didn’t know where they could get bread or meat,” she said. “And there’s also net-zero climate sustainability. I think people want to know what agriculture is doing in that area. The trailer gives us an opportunity to celebrate agriculture and touch on those important points.”
The ‘Know Your Food’ trailer will be at multiple fairs and festivals in the summer and fall.
Williamson encourages any producers who are interested in sharing their stories to contact Ag for Life.
Sharing more of agriculture’s story helps the industry and consumers, she said.
“We invite farmers and ranchers to work the trailer with us and share what they’re doing on their own farms,” she said. “The more information we can provide, the better equipped consumers will be knowing Alberta food comes from hardworking Alberta farmers.”
To book the trailer or find out where it’s going to be next, visit the Know Your Food website.