While tens-of-thousands of farmers and agriculture professionals went to Progress City in Decatur to check out the latest and greatest in agriculture, DeWitt County's economic development leader used the three days to seek out potential businesses in Clinton. According to Ruth Stauffer, Executive Director of the DeWitt County Development Council, she used the three day event to canvas for potential businesses that could potentially come to DeWitt County.

[audio:9211582215-91815fpsdevel1.mp3] [/audio]

Stauffer says given the agriculture hub central Illinois is, she felt it was a no-brainer to try and talk with agriculture businesses about coming to DeWitt County.

[audio:9211582217-91815fpsdevel2.mp3] [/audio]

Thanks to their efforts, Stauffer indicates they came away with quite a few prospects. She notes, sometimes it's not all about receiving a "yes" or "no" answer, a lot of times the networking is a good opportunity.

[audio:9211582220-91815fpsdevel3.mp3] [/audio]

Stuaffer says she came away very excited from the week in Decatur. She also is excited about what the future of agriculture holds. She hopes young people will get behind what is happening and take advantage of the opportunities.