Scavenger Hunt Puts Rhode Island Agriculture on the Map

Being the smallest state has some advantages. For one, traveling the state to visit the 30 farms participating in Rhode Island Farm Bureau’s 2024 Farm Scavenger Hunt was doable for many residents, especially over the nearly eight months the hunt was held.

The scavenger hunt was launched by the Rhode Island Fruit Growers in 2011. When they handed it over to Rhode Island Farm Bureau in 2022, many aspects of the event needed to be tweaked, if not overhauled.

In 2024, the 30 participating farms were located in various areas of the state and represented the different types of farms – from dairies and vineyards to berries and sweet corn – found in one of the most urban states in the country. USDA’s 2022 Census of Agriculture shows over 1,000 farms in the Ocean State, with the scavenger hunt reflecting a select few.

Farms pay to participate, with the money going toward printing tens of thousands of scavenger hunt fliers and funding a $250 prize package for a single winner among those who completed a flyer. Participating farms also agree to redeem up to $50 in $5 gift certificates for those returning completed or nearly completed flyers.

People who visited 20 of the participating farms received two $5 gift certificates, while those who visited all 30 received four $5 gift certificates. The farm-specific gift certificates are valid at farms participating in the submitted year’s scavenger hunt, so those participating in the May 1-Dec. 31, 2024, scavenger hunt received their gift certificates just before the hunt started this year.

Visitors on the hunt get a trifold map of all the participating  locations. Once on the farm, they get a stamp or unique hole punch to officially mark their visit. Even better, they may be enticed to buy some of the farm’s offerings. The maps are available at all the participating farms, which are listed on Rhode Island Farm Bureau’s website, and many grocery stores, libraries, activity centers and other
locations.

While logistics and funding limit the number of participating farms to 30, Rhode Farm Bureau intends to continually grow the number of locations at which visitors can pick up a scavenger hunt flyer and play along – and learn a little bit more about Rhode Island agriculture and Farm Bureau.

“The cards and photos some participants include with their returned fliers have been so rewarding to receive, with many participating for a decade,” said Heidi Quinn, Rhode Island Farm Bureau executive director. “Some even stop by the office to drop them off and share highlights of the hunt.”

One participant’s local magazine article about the Farm Scavenger Hunt prompted U.S. Sen. Jack Reed’s staff to partner with Rhode Island Farm Bureau for a joint tour of several of the participating farms, promoting the scavenger hunt and Reed’s EAT Local Foods Act.