TOPEKA – The Kansas Rural Center’s Farm and Food Conference registration is now open and offering an early bird registration rate for anyone who registers between now and Sept. 30.  The conference will be held Nov. 8 and 9, 2019, at the Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview in Wichita.  

Early bird registration to attend the two day conference is available at $70 per day or $135 for both days until Sept. 30.  After that registration will be $75 per day or $145 for both days. The price includes a Friday evening celebration of KRC’s 40th Anniversary with an extended hors d’oeuvres buffet, Kansas beer and wine, and music. The celebration will be held on Friday, November 8, from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. The receptions is open to non-conference goers for $40. Registration can be found here.  

This year’s theme “Planting Ideas, Growing Our Future: Carbon, Climate and Communities” lays the foundation for up to 12 breakout sessions each day and two dynamic keynote speakers. Workshops and keynote speakers will represent a focus on building resilience and diversity on our farms and in our communities; climate and agriculture; farm transitions; and policy and action.  

Keynote speakers joining the conference and 40th Anniversary celebration include Fred Iutzi, President of The Land Institute in Salina, and Becca Jablonski, Colorado State University’s Food Systems Extension Economist. On Friday, Nov. 8, Fred Iutzi will speak on “Agriculture’s Role in Ecological Sustainability and Economic Justice.” On the second day, Becca Jablonski will share a vision of “Leveraging Changing Food Markets to Support Regional Economic Development.” 

New this year will be a special Land/Farm Owner and Land Seeker Mixer held as one of the workshop sessions on Friday afternoon from 4 to 5:15 p.m. The Mixer is open to non-conference goers as well as those attending the conference. The mixer is an opportunity to network and connect those who have farms or land to those who are seeking a farm or land, or an opportunity to gain experience farming. Pre-registration for this one workshop will be required. If you are a land/farm owner, please register here -  . If you are seeking land to farm or looking to gain experience, please register here. 

A second special event at this year’s conference is KRC’s 40th Anniversary reception from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m., which will honor KRC’s past work and accomplishments with networking, music and food grown by Kansas farmers. The reception is open to non-conference goers, as well as those attending the conference. The celebration is included in the price of conference registration for those attending the conference, and is $40 for those who are not attending the conference. Registration is required and is available online at kansasruralcenter.org/2019-conference.

For more information visit kansasruralcenter.org/2019-conference.  Or call 866-579-5469 or email info@kansasruralcenter.org.