This community connection and mutual appreciation has made Farm-City BBQ one of the most well-attended and beloved annual events for over 65 years.

Farm-City BBQ is part of National Farm-City Week, which takes place the week before Thanksgiving every year to celebrate and recognize the partnership between rural and urban communities who prepare, transport, market, and retail our food. Thanksgiving is the perfect time to consider the food on our tables and where it comes from.

66 years ago, the National Farm-City Council was established with the goal of showcasing the vibrant communities of farmers and business owners and their interdependence. When Collier County’s farmers had a bad year of crops, the Naples business leaders reached out to them for a BBQ so their families wouldn’t go hungry on Thanksgiving. A year later, the farming communities reciprocated—and a beautiful tradition was born.
There are more than 300 farms on almost 150,000 acres in Collier County. Some are large producers that sell wholesale regionally or nationwide and others are just a couple of acres. They include cattle ranches, organic vegetable farms, fruit tree farms, tomato seed producers, the state’s third-largest grower of annual and perennial flowers, and much more. Southwest Florida’s agricultural and natural resources industries have an annual impact of $8.11 billion through direct, indirect, and induced sales.