We look forward to seeing you at the second  Driftless Food and Farm Convention. Remarkably, more than 80 people have indicated they will join us! Remember, we meet this Thursday, March 18 at Huckleberry’s Restaurant, 1916 S. Marquette Rd., Prairie du Chien, WI. Please allow plenty of time for travel as we will start promptly at 10:00 am. (If you hope to carpool, please visit our blog and post your availability in the comments section.)

We’ll spend the morning learning about the uniqueness of the Driftless Region. We’ll also hear updates from our first Driftless Convention that took place last January at the Local Food Summit in Eau Claire and hear from regional groups regarding the status of their food systems projects.

After lunch small groups will strategize opportunities for various sectors in the region.  These include production sectors (i.e., wine grapes, aronia, grass-fed beef, artisanal cheese, apples, wildcrafting, etc.), processing and others initiatives as chosen by you. Our goal is to identify the best strategies for creating an economically robust, sustainable Driftless Region food system.

Before Thursday, we invite you to think about the following questions:

1. What are the top three weaknesses and threats in your area of expertise (for example, specialty fruit production or processing) that hinder your work to create a sustainable, regional food system?

2. What are your top three strengths in your area of expertise that will help in the creation of a sustainable region food system?

3.  Who is not yet involved in our work, but should be?

Your participation and feedback will help us continue to build fertile ground for sifting, planting and growing a Driftless Region food system.

For more information and background on the Driftless Region Food and Farm Project, please visit: www.driftless.wisc.edu

Safe travels, and we look forward to seeing you Thursday.

Driftless Region Food and Farm Project Team

UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems