Beautiful scenery—grazing animals, contour crops, ripening hay—attracts people to rural areas in the Midwest. Rural appreciation has grown rapidly in recent years, and tourism development has become a popular vehicle for rural economic development. This kind of development has the potential to dramatically transform a stagnant rural community into a thriving community by attracting retirees, entrepreneurs, and young workers, diversifying the economy, and improving the quality of life with a broader array of goods and services.

Food comes from the land and reconnecting with food requires reconnection to the land and the people and communities that steward these resources.  Rich in tradition, rural communities give us a peak into our past and our futures.