News and What’s On across the state (and beyond!)
News and Updates
Find everything newsworthy and noteworthy here. From announcements and events to our Member Spotlight feature, find it all below.
Member of the Month: Mahlstedt Ranch
Nestled on the foothills of the divide between the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers, Mahlstedt Ranch was homesteaded in 1912 by John and Mary Mahlstedt with their nine children. Through the Great Depression, through dry summers and bitter winters, their farm stands strong because of the calloused hands of the family that have kept it together. When it comes to Agritourism, the ranch has developed exceptional western ranch experiences, like their Cowgirl Retreat. Cattlewomen teaching cowgirl skills through the art of working with cattle. They also offer horse riding and a rodeo getaway.
SAVE THE DATE: on June 3rd, Mahlstedt Ranch is hosting an Agritourism Day on their ranch in Circle, MT. Learn more about their agriculture story, how they are navigating the current economic conditions, and why agritourism has given them an added enterprise to help meet rising costs.
“For us, agritourism is as a way to help keep the next generation on the ranch.”
If you are:
- interested in offering Agritourism
- already offer Agritourism
- a member of local, state, or federal government
- seeking public office
- tourism personnel
- just curious about what they are doing
CLICK HERE to purchase your ticket.
See them featured on our social media below:
Spring Community Dance
Come join us for an uplifting afternoon of dancing and live music in the Bitterroot Valley! We’ll be guided by the Montana Dances of Universal Peace team (Diana Mariam, Tom Schmeling, Connie Zareen, Wayne Talmadge, and more) as we move together through the music of the world in the ancient practice of community circle dance.
Cold Process Soap Making Workshop
Join Olivia from Lilly of the Valley Homestead to learn the chemistry and art that goes into soap making as you make your very own custom cold-process soap. In this hands-on class you will learn about the safety requirements, the equipment needed and the different ingredients (oils, fats and herbs to use). This will be a vegan oil soap recipe (coconut/shea butter base) with infusions and scents to choose from for customization. Each participant will make one soap loaf which includes 10 cut bars of soap that you will get to take home once they have cured. This workshop makes a great Mother's Day gift and activity to share with the special mother in your life!! This is a wealth of knowledge to gain and also a wonderful way to load up on soap or give as gifts in your future!
Mother’s Day Celebration: Honoring Corn Mother (Make • Taste • Plant)
Mother’s Day is a celebration of love, nourishment, and the many ways care is given through families, community, and the earth itself. In many traditions, Corn Mother is honored as a life-giver: a symbol of abundance, nourishment, and the sacred relationship between people, seeds, and soil.
At Cultivating Connections Montana, we’re gathering on Mother’s Day to celebrate corn as a teacher and a gift and to honor all forms of mothering: mothers, grandmothers, aunties, mentors, caregivers, and anyone who helps life and love grow.
This is a family-friendly, farm-fest style event with hands-on activities, storytelling, food-making, and planting you can take home (or help distribute to others).
Mayday! Gardens 2026
"Mayday! Gardens" is a call to share, an answer to Nature's need for our attention, care, and cooperation. It's community, it's food, it's a seed for our futures. Garden plants are grown and cared for with the generous help of volunteers, visiting school classes and groups, and our youth interns. Food plants are a gift from our heart to yours- because we believe in Us, Together!
Memorial Day Weekend at the Greycliff Village
Memorial Day Festival at the Greycliff Village. Food venders, crafts, and fun for all.
11 Greycliff Creek Lane, Greycliff, MT, United States, Montana 59033
Agritourism Day: Mahlstedt Ranch
You can expect information on what Agritourism looks like, the challenges & rewards of offering agritourism, what insurance & waivers are recommended, how legislative decisions have affected those offering agritourism, and get to experience agritourism as we offer it.
Members of the Montana Agritourism Association will be available to talk about how agritourism looks on their operations and how it varies with each operation.
The day will have lots of Q&A time so you will be sure to have your questions answered.
Montana Moments, LLC on Mahlstedt Ranch, Inc.
1270 Rd 422
Circle, MT 59215
Cattail Basketry workshop
As part of our Heritage Skills Workshop series, we invite you to join us for this fascinating workshop on how to use this abundant resource that is found everywhere! Participants will learn cattail cordage and platting and will make a mat and a small basket. You will also learn about the many uses of this versatile plant.
Karen Coombs has been a crafter all her life. She was hooked when her mother’s friend showed her how to make pine needle baskets when she was 11. Over many years, she has explored various fiber arts. She enjoys, crocheting, knitting, weaving, spinning, basketry and horticulture. For 25 years, Karen organized a bush kitchen for the Tracking Project, a non-profit organization that teaches hard ground tracking and other survival skills, along with indigenous cultural teachings. She also taught basketry for the Glacier Institute. Seasonally, Karen runs Garden City Nursery growing perennial herbs and bedding plants.
Fall Women's Wellness Retreat Day at Sleeping Child Hot Springs
*** Group Health and Wellness classes such as:
Dancing with the Divine Feminine- Qi Gong- Sound Bath- Breathwork- Restorative, Shape Shifting, Gentle, and Vigorous YOGA- Women's Health Lectures- Intuitive Art- and more!
**Individual health and wellness Mini Treatments such as:
Reiki- Thai Bodywork- Sound Healing- Massage- Craniosacral- Herbal Foot Soak- Lymphatic Facial Massage- Hypnotherapy - Intuitive Wellness- and more!
We'll feed your body with delicious Organic and Montana-grown foods. The Morning SMOOTHIE BAR, the Lunchtime SALAD BAR, and the Light Evening BUFFET DINNER will nourish your body and liven your palette.
What to Bring: Yoga mat and a blanket, swimsuit and towels, comfortable clothing, slippers or warm socks, a notebook or journal and a pen, the book you're reading, your silent auction donation... heck you can even bring your bathrobe!
MEDA Conference
The MEDA 2026 Spring Conference, held April 7–9 in Helena, is Montana’s premier biannual gathering of economic development professionals and community leaders, bringing together practitioners from across the state to share ideas, build connections, and explore strategies that support strong local economies, with this year’s conference presented in partnership with the International Economic Development Council as part of its Centennial Event Series celebrating 100 years of leadership in economic development and expanding the conference’s national and international reach.
Montana Agritourism Association 2nd annual conference
Back for our second year, the 2025 Agritourism Conference promises to be another special event - check back for more details and announcements later in the year! This year we’ll be hosted in Bozeman at MSU.
Women in Ag Community Well-Being Retreat
This retreat was created to bring together women in agricultural communities from across Montana for a chance to take a break from the busy-ness of typical life. We know that life can be challenging: running a business, a family or both… working the ranch, tending the garden, living in rural communities, and navigating the complexity of community relationships comes with its own benefits and costs. We believe that we are all stronger together as we attempt to navigate the overwhelm.
Montana Outdoor Recreation Summit
Located in historic Butte, the traditional homelands of the Shoshone-Bannock and Séliš & Ktunaxa (Salish & Kootenai) people, and a city rich in heritage and outdoor recreation adventures, the Summit will serve as a gathering place to convene, learn, and create partnerships that will guide solutions to the challenges we face in creating, building, and sustaining Montana’s outdoor recreation experiences. You can expect live panels, dynamic guest speakers, workshops, field tours, a film festival, and so much more.
NET Conference in Meredith, NH
Connecting through Tourism Conference - Topics of interest include (but are not limited to):
Visitor demographics, tourism trends, and industry forecasting
Creating inclusive visitor spaces and experiences
Climate resilience and destination recovery
Outdoor recreation development and management
Agritourism and rural tourism development
Destination town vitality and heritage/historic preservation
Expanding Markets Conference
The Rising Tide of Consumer Demand is Propelling Regenerative Agriculture Markets
An increasing number of people are actively seeking out food options that are not only good for the planet but also benefit the well-being of farmers and ranchers, and local communities.
This year’s Expanding Markets Conference will be held September 22nd-24th at the Delta Hotel in Helena, Montana with a ranch tour and two full days of speakers, exhibitors, and networking.
Women in Ag Community Well-Being Retreat
This retreat was created to bring together women in agricultural communities from across Montana for a chance to take a break from the busy-ness of typical life. We know that life can be challenging: running a business, a family or both… working the ranch, tending the garden, living in rural communities, and navigating the complexity of community relationships comes with its own benefits and costs. We believe that we are all stronger together as we attempt to navigate the overwhelm.
2025 Montana Governor's Conference on Tourism
Registration closes April 1, 2025. Spots are limited, so plan your registration accordingly.
Regenerative Farming Cohort Kick-off
The Regenerative Farming Cohort kicks off from 1-4 p.m., Tuesday, April 15, at the Montana Electric Co-op Association Building in Great Falls. Marni Thompson with NRCS is the featured speaker, and attendees will participate in round tables, learn more about regenerative farming practices, and hear an overview of the program. A zoom link will be available for people who want to attend the kickoff virtually.
WEBINAR: Creating a Successful Agritourism Destination
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently published a guide on Creating a Successful Agritourism Experience. In this webinar, FAO-EBRD will share the guide and broader efforts in agritourism, offering insights into key projects, methodologies, and real-world applications. Through expert discussions and case studies from Jordan and Georgia, the session will explore the essential elements of a successful agritourism destination. A panel discussion and interactive Q&A will provide an opportunity to engage with global practitioners and experts shaping the future of agritourism.
Agritourism Pre-Conference in Nashville, TN
Agritourism in Action: Exploring Agritourism Opportunities. This is on-site in Nashville, TN. More information here
Creating a Beverage Tourism Destination - WEBINAR
This webinar will be presented by Kathy Kelley, Penn State Professor of Horticultural Marketing and Business Management, who will present on trends describing what tasting rooms and related alcoholic beverage venues can implement to attract visitors. Strategies include developing events based on national trend data, partnering with complementary businesses, and customizing experiences based on surveying visitors and loyalty program members. Registration is required, click here to register.
Helena's Longest Table Community Event
Indulge in a locavore guided conversation of Helena’s vibrant food scene at the 2nd Longest Table Event. This community meal (light supper) will feature delicious dishes crafted by local restaurants using fresh, locally sourced ingredients straight from Montana’s farms and ranches.
Hosted by Resilient Helena and Ten Mile Creek Brewery in conjunction with F* Your Phone February, this event isn’t just about food – it’s a gathering to strengthen community bonds and discuss challenges with the local food system.
Participating restaurants: Ten Mile Creek Brewery, The Union, Sunflower Bakery, and The Hopper. Ticket sales go directly to the restaurants and agriculture producers to pay for their time, energy, and food. Menu will include charcuterie, soups, fresh
baked breads and desserts, and a beer or beverage of your choice.
No tickets sold at the door, please purchase ahead of time. Tickets are $35 pp, nonrefundable but can be transferred.
Abundant Montana speaker series
Join Abundant Montana for the first installment of Winter Speaker Series 2025 with The Carbon Capture and Storage Talk hosted by the Northern Plains Resource Council.
CSA Week
CSA Week is taking place from February 16th through February 22nd, 2025! During this special week, we are encouraging farmers and farmer support organizations across the country to come together in promoting CSA, and we want YOU to participate!
In previous years, CSA Day was led by Small Farm Central and it become “the day” when CSA farms collectively promote CSA across the country with unified messaging and urgency for members to sign up. It’s a way for all of us to encourage CSA sign-ups while promoting the CSA movement across the nation. In 2021, the CSA Innovation Network extended the event from one day to an entire week, continued it in 2022, 2023, 2024, and is doing so again in 2025! This will give us more time to build engagement with new and returning CSA members.
Valentine's Day Farm Market
Stop by the Farm for locally made treats and gifts for your Valentine (or yourself…we won’t tell!)!
We will also have lots of great yummies for your Super Bowl parties!
Our new baby lambs will be out for everyone to see during the market too!
Local Vendors + Food & Gifts + Baby Lambs = Pure Love!
Montana Agritourism Conference
at Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana. Hosted by the Montana Agritourism Fellows and MSU.
Sponsored by Western SARE, Montana Farmer’s Union, MSU Extension, Montana Department of Commerce, Prospera, Montana Department of Agriculture, Montana Farm Bureau, Food and Ag Development Centers, and Land Trust.