WEYERS CAVE—The 2016 Virginia Farm to Table Conference will be held Dec. 6-8 at Blue Ridge Community College’s Plecker Workforce Development Center. The event will focus on local and regional food and agriculture, practical applications for soil health and farm profitability, and other food system topics.

Early-bird registration pricing is available until Nov. 30. Conference details and registration are available at conference.virginiafarmtotable.org.

Speakers will include Chef Michael Twitty of Afroculinaria; Ricardo Salvador of the Union of Concerned Scientists’ Food and Environment Program; Ellen Kahler of Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund and Vermont Farm to Plate; and Rev. Nancy Yarnell of Food Security for America.

Additionally, participants can participate in a pre-conference tour focusing on agriculture and agribusiness opportunities within the Shenandoah Valley.

Sponsors and organizers include Virginia Cooperative Extension; the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service; the Virginia Food System Council; the Virginia Foundation for Agriculture Innovation and Rural Sustainability; Virginia Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education; Virginia Farm Bureau Federation; the Virginia Beginning Farmer and Rancher Coalition; and Virginia Grown.