OLYMPIA — Members of the Washington Association of Wheat Growers will meet with more than 50 legislators and agency heads from both sides of the aisle.

The wheat growers will meet with Gov. Jay Inslee, legislators and agency staff during the association’s annual Olympia Days.

“With budgets and funding on most legislators’ minds, we need to make sure we are advocating for and protecting the Washington wheat industry’s priorities, including retaining all food and farm-related tax incentives, and making sure that any clean air or clean water policies don’t harm our ability to farm,” said Ben Adams, president of the Washington Association of Wheat Growers and a wheat farmer from Douglas County.

The association’s other priorities include protecting the Snake River dams and advocating for funding for Washington State University’s new plant sciences building and animal health building on the university’s Pullman campus.

“One of our top responsibilities is advocating for our growers’ right to make a living growing a wheat crop,” said Michelle Hennings, executive director of the Washington Association of Wheat Growers. “Every winter, our members take time away from their farms to meet face to face with legislators and tell their story. Sometimes, legislators don’t understand how a bill or regulation discussed in Olympia will impact a farmer on the ground, especially if they are from a more urban district. By bringing farmers into a legislator’s office, we can help them make that personal connection.”

Education and outreach are the heart of Washington Association of Wheat Growers activity, all of which is aimed at helping Washington wheat families. Since 1954, WAWG has been dedicated to the enrichment of the Washington wheat industry as a nonprofit trade association, which depends on volunteers, membership dues and donations to carry out activities as representatives on the state and national levels. WAWG monitors state, transportation, research and natural resources policy.