It’s good news to hear that a group is forming to save one of the region’s longstanding traditions — the annual Butler County Farm Tour.

Earlier this year, the president of the Butler County Tourism & Convention Bureau hinted the future of the tour could be in jeopardy since the event has in recent years lost volunteers and participants who open their farms to the public.

It stands to reason that without participating farmers, there’s no tour.

So, we’re glad to hear that at a recent town hall, the county’s commissioners asked people to sign up to take part in a future committee to organize the tour.

Some good ideas were suggested during the town hall — for example, adding new elements to the tour such as a cookout or dinner — and valid concerns were raised — such as the loss of the event leading to a decrease in tourism and, as a result, bringing less business to the county.

Two particularly important topics achieved consensus among attendees — that the tour needed to incorporate more agricultural education and focus on technological advances to farming.

Others mentioned that agricultural education is mostly nonexistent in the public school system, and suggested the tour tie science and technology learned in school with the local agricultural industry.

Engaging young people in the region on these topics is especially important at this moment in time. Agriculture — which makes up an estimated 18 percent of the state’s economy and employs more than 500,00 people — is Pennsylvania’s top industry.

However, experts have noted the state’s agriculture industry is having difficulty replacing its aging workforce. A 2018 study estimated a workforce deficit of nearly 75,000 people over the next decade, and that the number of workers in their early 20s to mid-30s has dropped from more than 50 percent to 40 percent during the past 20 years.

Much like the crisis facing firefighters — the number of young people volunteering in the state has declined dramatically over time — this challenge for Pennsylvania’s agriculture industry is one that must be addressed.

Events like the farm tour help to draw young people’s interest to agriculture and educate them about a career path that is instrumental to the state’s economy.

We hope the committee being formed to organize the tour will find ways to help it to remain viable.

— NCD