NORWICH – A bee can visit up to 10,000 flowers in a single day, but only produce about a teaspoon of honey during its entire life span – around 28 days – says Sherburne bee-keeper Lash Taylor.

That was just one of the many farm facts offered up Friday from a host of local food producers during “Agriculture Awareness Day 2007” at the Chenango County Fair.

Taylor has been keeping bees for about six months. He says curiosity is what got him started.

“It’s interesting,” he said. “They are fascinating little creatures. But you have to understand them.”

Helping the public to better understand the local farmer is the idea behind Awareness Day, which is sponsored by the county’s Ag Development Council. With exhibits and booths set up under an open-air tent in the ag area of the fairgrounds, it’s become a showcase for farmers like Taylor, who represent a growing number of non-dairy producers in the area.

“There is quite a bit of diversity in our farm community,” said Chenango County Farm Bureau President Bradd Vickers. “We have a lot going on that people don’t really know about until they see it.”

From bio-diesel manufacturers to chicken farmers, local ag industrialists are thinking more and more outside the box, Vickers said.

“There are alternatives,” he said. “We have to find ways, other things we can do, to expand our income.”