Ask a youngster today where food comes from, and far too many are likely to reply: “The grocery store.”

Today, March 20, is National Ag Day, which caps National Ag Week. The week is hosted by the Agriculture Council of America.

It’s a good time to remember – and remind your youngsters that food comes not from the grocery store, as too many people think, but from the farm.

Years ago, there was no question of where food came from. Most people were a part of producing it on land that ranged from truck patches to entire farms. Working the cattle or chickens or cotton or vegetables on the farm was an inescapable fact of life for youngsters.

Today, however, all that has changed. Even in predominantly rural areas such as Tippah County, fewer people work the land or have any direct involvement with farming. Increasing numbers of young people have never farmed or known anyone who has.

Today, there are fewer farmers and fewer farms than ever before. As the number of farms has fallen though, their average size has grown.

The average size of a Tippah County farm is 165 acres, and the average value of agriculture products sold per farm is about $17,100 according to a detailed analysis of the county. About 94.8 percentage of farms in this county are operated by a family or individual. Average age of principal farm operators: 60 years.

Farmers feed America. They also help feed the rest of the world. Those food and fiber products serve as some of this country’s primary exports. The money they bring is an important part of the local and national economy.

That job will grow more important in coming years, as population in this country – and the world -- continues to increase.

Farming does more than feed people. Intelligent techniques such as no-till farming, contour farming, strip cropping, terraces and other conservation practices have helped to preserve the environment and cut erosion substantially in recent years. Does that matter? Read about the Dust Bowl years in this country in the 1930s. See the pictures. Decide for yourself.

Intelligent agriculture also helps protect and promote wildlife populations. The trees that help prevent erosion also shelter various game animals. Freshwater streams and ponds that nurture crops are also home to fish, including catfish, which may be a farm crop in themselves.

In schools, farmers could discuss grain and livestock operations with students. Local tours could display different farming operations and conservation practices. Local farmers who do a good job of promoting agricultural awareness should be recognized. There could be an agricultural art contest to develop interest by youngsters in where they get their food.

Farming is so important that it can’t receive too much attention.