And, said Bruce Gwynn, event chairman, “It’s become the place where people want to present their research information.”

This year’s summit will be held Feb. 26-27 at Arizona Western College, featuring former Congressman John Shadegg as keynote speaker, a panel discussion on the bee industry, equipment displays and breakout seminars on a variety of topics.

The event also will include field demonstrations, an industrial welding seminar, evening reception with live entertainment and a golf tournament. In addition, participants will be able to get an up-close look at the latest in farm equipment and products with the two-day trade show, Gwynn said.

The summit culminates with the Harvest Dinner the evening of Feb. 27 at the Yuma Crossing Quartermaster Depot, which is so popular it sold out in December.

Other activities participants and their families might enjoy are a jet boat river tour, an Algodones trip, an advanced ag tour with lunch and a cooking class at Tina’s Cocina.

The summit is hosted by the Yuma Fresh Vegetable Association in partnership with the Arizona Western College Foundation, University of Arizona Cooperative Extension and Yuma County Farm Bureau.

“It’s constantly growing,” said Steve Alameda, president of Yuma Fresh Vegetable Association.

He attributed that at least in part to the relocation of the summit last year to AWC, with its extensive facilities to hold the event. It also brings the summit to the community’s education roots and enables AWC’s agriculture students to take an active part in the educational opportunities it presents.

Through the relationship with AWC, the summit is bringing back the field demonstrations, Gwynn noted. The field day, sponsored by Booth Machinery, will be held from 8 to 10 a.m. Feb. 26 at the college’s farm, featuring new technology for weed and pest control and mechanical lettuce thinning.

Also that morning, AWC welding instructor Sam Colton will present three welding breakout sessions from 9 a.m. to noon that will be of value to anyone who maintains farm equipment, Gwynn said.

The action then moves to Las Barrancas Golf Course for the annual Jacob Louis Daily Memorial Golf Tournament that raises funds for agriculture scholarships.

That evening, a reception from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at AWC will be an excellent networking opportunity. Doug Mellon Farms will also provide a delicious meal.

Activities on Feb. 27 begin with a panel discussion at 8 a.m. on the bee industry as it pertains to pollination of valuable crops, honey bee health and pesticide issues. Panelists will include Brett E. Cameron, assistant director of Agricultural Consultation & Training; Rick Smith, Yuma-area beekeeper and farmer; Dick Rogers, beekeeper and entomologist; and Christi Heintz, executive director for Project Apis m. (PAm), a leading nonprofit honey bee research organization.

The panelists also will take part in breakout sessions later that morning to provide more information about bees.

Shadegg, lunch keynote speaker, will talk about water, immigration and other topics of relevance to the agriculture industry.

During his eight terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1994 to 2010, Shadegg served on a number of committees related to energy, the budget, natural resources, government reform and homeland security. As an advocate for American-made energy, he was involved in the fight to preserve Lake Powell. He was a founding member of the Goldwater Institute for Public Policy and currently serves as a senior fellow of the institute.

Now a partner with Steptoe & Johnson, he practices in the law firm’s Government Affairs and Public Policy Group and consults on energy, health care, telecommunications and other matters on the state and federal levels.

Gwynn noted that Shadegg is still frequently in Washington, D.C., as a lobbyist and has been asked to talk frankly at the summit about the issues and the stories behind them.

Morning and afternoon breakout session will cover such topics as fresh produce safety, pest and disease management, fertilizer management, crop management and desert production of cotton, alfalfa and small grains. A first this year is a session on the business side of agriculture that will focus on estate planning presented by T. James Lee of Fennemore Craig, P.C.

A special session, the Arizona Cooperative Extension Centennial Symposium, will address maintaining agricultural productivity in Arizona through plant and microbial sciences in light of the changing climate and potential future water limitations facing the Colorado River Basin.