Farm, ranch tour highlights conservation efforts

Agriculture is big business in Teton Valley. A tour group of about 100 people got an inside look at different farming and ranching techniques. Everything from cover crops to no-till farming to cow movement.

“We also know that these farming families are protecting large amounts of working land and working open space in a way that is beneficial to our entire community,” said Amy Verbeten, executive director of Friends of the Teton River. “And so by figuring out how to work together, our entire community wins.”

Conservation is also very important to people in the valley. New conservation techniques are being used to help the soil and protect the water.

“It benefits the health of the soil on their farms, it benefits their agricultural operations by reducing input costs and then it benefits the health of the river and the fish by reducing the amount of soil erosion into our waterways and reducing the amount of nitrogen that ends up in our streams,” Verbeten said.

The tour was a chance for ranchers and farmers to show off what they do and also help the public better understand how important their work is.

“The biggest thing I hope they got out of the tour today was how important agriculture is to this valley, to the economy, to the valley, how important the Teton River is and the economy that the Teton River brings to the valley,” said Lynn Bagley, president of the Teton County Soil Conservation District and the Teton Water Users Association.

This was the first year for the tour which, put on by the Teton County Farm Bureau.