Skagitonians To Preserve Farmland

Programs: Land protection - the organization uses a wide array of land protection tools to secure our ultimate goal, conservation easements which permanently preserve farmland as farmland. We are directly involved in land use planning at the local, county and state level, using our voice, fund-raising efforts, and knowledge to keep this irreplaceable resource strong and vital. Working with skagit county's farmland legacy program, we are striving to complete our goal of permanently preserving 20,000 acres of farmland by 2032.

outreach and education - this program is a multi-faceted education and information forum that offers the public-at-large and spf members timely data on the agricultural industry in the skagit valley. We host extremely popular farm tours, post crop id signs and "talking fields" billboards for self-directed tours through the valley, and even give interstate 5 motorists the monthly updates on the "magic skagit" through our infarmation radio program. Spf presents an annual "our valley, our future" breakfast, targeted to the greater business community, that highlights the state of skagit valley agriculture and honors three individuals for their contributions to the past, present, and future success of the industry.

youth infarmation - this program exposes students, grades 5 - 12, to the rich diversity of stem-related agriculture evident throughout the skagit valley. With special farm tours, we give 50 to 90 students per tour a chance to visit farms, participate in hands-on demonstrations, and learn, directly from the farmers themselves, about all the exciting innovations and time-proven skills that keep skagit valley agriculture thriving and evolving. Our goal is to spark an interest in a future in agriculture and help students grasp how truly exciting such a future can be.