CONNOQUENESSING TWP — Butler County has 64 farms covering 6,734 acres in the county's agricultural land preservation program, and eight more farms are going through the enrollment process.

County Commissioner Kim Geyer on Thursday provided an update on the program to about 90 members of the Butler County Farm Bureau during its annual spring meeting that was held at the Butler Farm Show.

The average price of the farmland in the program is $3,229 per acre, making all the property in the program worth $21.7 million, she said.

The past 12 months have been difficult for farmers due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Geyer commended farmers for donating some of the 500,000 pounds of food that was distributed to needy people in the county.

She said more than 20,000 families in the county received food and the food distribution program was expanded into Washington Township, Chicora and other areas.

In other business, James Thiele, codirector of government relations for the bureau, encouraged members to sign up for action alert texts from the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau.

The PFB sends alerts about major developments in agriculture, state and federal policy and Farm Bureau advocacy. Alerts can be about limited time opportunities, grants, major news that affects agriculture, changes in laws or regulations that affect farm operations, updates on PFB advocacy efforts and opportunities to engage with PFB.

Thiele said members will be asked to respond to some of the alerts by texting or e-mail.

Jim Boldy, of the membership committee, said the county bureau has 711 voting members, well above the goal of 595 members. He said 95 new memebrs were recruited since last summer.

The number of nonvoting associate members, or Friends of the Farm Bureau, is 373, he added.

Evelyn Minteer, chairwoman of the women's leadership committee, said the bureau will have a booth at the Butler County Farm Show this year, after last year's event was canceled due to the pandemic.

She said the bureau is raising money to buy an emergency grain bin rescue tube for the North Washington Volunteer Fire Department.

The bureau has already provided grain bin rescue tubes to the Prospect and Saxonburg volunteer fire departments.