A little over a week until the State Fair starts, and those who grow our food are excited about a specialized license plate, honoring Minnesota's Department of Agriculture.
There are no cows, barns or typical farm images. Instead, the license plate features two pairs of hands, holding soil, with the tag line: Supporting Agriculture for All.
Agricultural leaders say the hands holding seedlings symbolize the 4-H pledge of "my hands to larger service," and the rising sun is a symbol of "a new era in agriculture."
It has taken four years and hundreds of sketches for the agriculture plate, to make rounds. F-F-A, Executive Director, Val Aarsvold, worked with legislators to get the plate signed into law.
"It really has been met with a lot of positive feedback. The people I talked to felt like this was an appropriate time to say 'look, everybody has a place in agriculture,'" said Aarsvold.
"We wanted to make sure this plate will actually grow with the state," said Assistant Commissioner, Patrice Bailey. "I think about under-served communities that do not see agriculture in their neighborhoods every day."
The agricultural plate is now outfitting over 600 cars, motorcycles and RV's. Bailey expects that number to rise. He says the governor will publicize it more, during the State Fair.
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The plate costs $15.50 with proceeds supporting agricultural programs. $20 is due with plate purchase and each year afterward at vehicle registration renewal.
4H State Director Jennifer Skuza says the proceeds will help in reaching young people from diverse backgrounds. "We want all young people who are interested, to become agricultural agents of change, really taking agriculture into the future."