The 26th Annual Great Eastern Iowa Tractorcade made its way through the Washington Fairgrounds Monday, with Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig in attendance.

Two groups full of tractors, some over a century old, went out for the first full day of the tractorcade, setting out from Mt. Pleasant and travelling through Brighton on their way to Washington. The tractorcade itself then returned to Mt. Pleasant, while Naig split from the group to attend an event in Conesville.

Naig described the impact that events like the tractorcade have on Iowa agriculture, “It brings folks from all over the Midwest, even outside the Midwest, that come in for this, so it’s good from a tourism standpoint, but I just love that there’s a lot of conversation and a lot of talk about the history of ag, telling stories about these tractors, a great celebration.”

To hear the full interview with Naig, tune in to Thursday’s In Touch With Southeast Iowa Program.