Farm and ranch leaders from across the state will come together Dec. 1 - 3 for Arkansas Farm Bureau’s 87^th annual convention, set for the Marriott Hotel and the Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock.

Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, ArFB President Rich Hillman and Kris “Tanto” Paronto, former Army Ranger, will serve as keynote speakers for the event. The convention - including a trade show featuring vendors or farm services, equipment and supplies - is expected to attract more than 1,000 farmers and ranchers following a virtual convention in 2020.

The convention’s theme, “Past, Present, Future,” will be reinforced with workshops that include topics such as broadband connectivity, succession planning, tax planning, marketing to consumers, new technology in timber production and brand development.

Farm Bureau’s annual business session, where voting delegates define the organization’s policy positions on items of importance to its members, will conclude the event. The delegate body also elects the organization’s president, vice president and members of its state board of directors.

“We are bringing those who drive the state’s top industry back together after nearly two years of meeting virtually, and the energy around convention is already growing” said Rich Hillman, ArFB president, a sixth-generation rice farmer from Carlisle (Lonoke County). “Among many important topics, we’ll be discussing the continued importance of advocating for rural issues in the face of a shrinking rural population.”

Awards will be presented to county Farm Bureaus for their work in support of the organization’s agricultural advocacy and membership efforts, along with recognition of ArFB’s winners in its Young Farmers & Ranchers competition winners and recipients of its statewide Ag Education awards. The organization will also present the Women’s Leadership Award along with the Stanley E. Reed Leadership Award, given annually to an active Farm Bureau member, 36 to 45 years old, for outstanding leadership within their county Farm Bureau and community.

Arkansas Farm Bureau is the state’s largest agricultural advocacy group, working to improve farm and rural life. With nearly 190,000 member families, ArFB represents roughly 1 in 4 Arkansans.

For more information, contact: 

Steve Eddington
(501) 228-1383
steve.eddington@arfb.com 

or 

Rob Anderson
(501) 228-1640
rob.anderson@arfb.com