A little over three years ago, the President of the Rush County Chamber of Commerce, Greg Hall, and the past President of the Rush County Economic and Community Development Corporation, Tom Tully, shared a vision for agriculture as a driver of the Rush County Economy. The two approached the Executive Directors of the respective organizations with the thought of creating an "Agricultural Advisory Group" to assist the two organizations in economic development projects in agriculture, giving birth to what is now known as the Rush County Agricultural Roundtable.

The Rush County Agricultural Roundtable is comprised of a diverse group of leaders in Rush County and the region who have a common appreciation for agriculture as an economic development driver in rural communities. The Roundtable has been a leader in the industry and is a best practice model for the State of Indiana. The Roundtable created a regional Ag Strategy, which has set the region aside from other areas. The strategy calls for intense focus on growth in four primary agricultural sectors including, Bio-Fuels, Livestock Production, Food Processing, and Research and Development.

The Rush County Agricultural Roundtable has tackled large issues such as land use and ag/city relations through our partnership with the model zoning committee. The end result is a zoning structure, which seems to be agreeable to all.

The Rush County Agricultural Roundtable has received tremendous recognition for their efforts, including the Indiana Association of Counties "Winning Communities" certification. The group will also be receiving the 2007 Beyond the Fence Award for Outstanding Farm-City Relations" award a the Indiana Soybean Alliance's Indiana Livestock Forum on December 6, 2007.

The Rush County Agricultural Roundtable meets once a month at the Rush Memorial Hospital Kenneth L. Earnest Conference Center. For more information, please contact Pam Leisure at pamleisure@rushcounty.com.