Ag Boosters Mark National Ag Day, National Grange Month

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Local farmers and those who work in and support agriculture across Chester County are celebrating the industry with two events this spring – National Agriculture Day on March 25, and National Grange Month throughout the entire month of April.

Agriculture continues to be Pennsylvania’s number one industry and Chester County’s 1,735 farms, 99% of which are family owned,  $550 million in revenue rank the county third in the state behind Lancaster and Burks counties.

“Today and every day, we celebrate the extraordinary diversity and productivity of American agriculture,” Tom Vilsack, national agriculture secretary, said in a USDA news release.

“Farms and ranches of all forms and all sizes contribute to the safe, healthy, affordable food supply we enjoy in the United States,” he said. “On this National Agriculture Day, we thank the farmers, ranchers and others at the heart of American agriculture, an industry that provides for our food and fiber needs, supports one in twelve jobs, and drives our nation’s economy.”

Many people employed in agriculture belong to local granges, and the Pennsylvania State Grange lists 10 in Chester County. Not all have their own grange halls; some meet in homes, churches and fire halls.

For those interested, the Pennsylvania state grange has a grange finder listing contacts for: Brandywine Grange in Downingtown; Chester Valley Grange in Devault; East Lynn Grange in Kennett Square; Goshen Grange in Goshenville; Honey Brook Grange in Coatesville; Kennett Grange in Chadds Ford; Kimberton Grange in Kimberton; London Grove Grange in Kennett Square; Marshallton Grange in West Chester; and Russellville Grange in Oxford.

The National Grange was founded in 1867 as a nonprofit, nonpartisan fraternal organization advocating for agriculture through activism and community service. The theme for 2014 grange month is “I never pretended my treehouse was a fort, I always imagined it was a grange.”

While some regional grange chapters, such as Fulton Grange in Lancaster County, are closing, Russellville Grange near Oxford is one of Chester County’s most active granges, and even reports a busy Junior Grange group.

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