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On Ag Day, Loudoun farmers are celebrated
Horse breeders sat next to grape growers who sat next to hay producers at a media event in Leesburg March 20 to celebrate Loudoun's ever-changing agriculture industry.“The agriculture sector doesn't look a heck of a whole lot like it used to,” said Warren Howell, with Loudoun's Department of Economic Development. “But we still have chickens and we still have cows.”
Held on the first day of spring, the event, the first of its kind in Loudoun, was organized by the Department of Economic Development. The timing of the event at Ida Lee Park coincided with National Ag Day, which is organized each year by the Agriculture Council of America to celebrate the country's vast agriculture industry.
As pointed out at the local Ag Day celebration, Loudoun's $68 million farming industry has morphed from one dominated by large cattle and dairy farms to one surviving today on smaller niche products sold on-site or at local farmers markets and stores.
For instance, in the late 1970s, Loudoun was home to more than 120 dairy producers. Today, only one remains. However, the county's tourism-driven wine industry has grown from nine establishments in 2003 to 24 in 2009.
Also, according to new data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that was highlighted at the event, Loudoun is Virginia's largest producer of sod and is home to the most berry growers in the state. It also contains the state's second-largest inventories of horses and ponies.
In addition, Loudoun has Virginia's highest concentration of women-run farms at 468 and Latino-run farms at 44. The average age of a Loudoun farmer is 57.
Among the speakers at Friday's event were representatives from Loudoun's sheep producers, extension office, farmers markets association and grape growers.
“It's a changing tide,” said Doug Fabbioli, owner of Fabbioli Cellars, on Loudoun's agriculture industry. “But it's pretty cool.”
Also during the event, organizers announced that a new Web site to promote farming throughout the region will be launched in mid-April. Created by the Regional Agriculture Workgroup, the site, when live, will be at www.nationalcapitalfarms.org.
Contact the reporter at jjacks@timespapers.com
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