The Mountain View County agricultural service board (ASB) members have visited sites of the planned July 2017 provincial ASB summer tour, scheduled to take place across the county as well as in Red Deer County.
Members visited the sites prior to last week's regularly scheduled board meeting in council chambers.
"We went around to all the sites and talked about what's there," said Coun. Duncan Milne, the county's representative on the tour planning committee.
"There was probably 10 of us on the delegate tour and five went on the partner tour. It went well and everybody got a chance to see what we are going to be doing during the tour itself.
"We actually looked at the sites and figured out where we are going to be parking. We got to see how we are going to split everything up and rotate everyone through. It's got some challenges, but the tours all do."
The summer tour will take place in Mountain View and Red Deer counties July 11-14, with about 250 delegates from agricultural service boards across the province expected to attend.
Delegates will tour agriculture sites across both municipalities, including livestock operations, farming operations, research facilities (including at Olds College) and other places.
The youth delegate tour may include visits to Olds College facilities, team building activities, farm visits, and a farm safety session.
Dignitaries who have been invited to attend include the premier and area MLAs and MPs.
The theme of the 2017 tour is Growing Tomorrow's Agriculture.
Mountain View County councillors have already approved the spending of up to $50,000 for the county's 50 per cent portion of the 2017 tour cost.
In other board news, members will meet with provincial agricultural service board program team (ASBP) members on Aug. 21.
"The purpose of our visit is to strengthen our relationships with ASBs and to fulfill recommendations made by the office of the Auditor General," ASBP manager Doug Macaulay said in a letter to the local board.
"The primary focus of the field visit is to tour the municipality to see examples of programs implemented under the legislative and environmental funding streams of the ASB grant program.
"The field visit focuses on the outcomes and deliverables of your strategic plan and we may request to see outcomes of particular programs as part of the field visit."
The county's agricultural services board is made up of public and council members. It advises the municipality and the province on agricultural-related issues and concerns.
"It went well and everybody got a chance to see what we are going to be doing during the tour itself."Duncan MilneMVC councillor
