County Farm Bureaus Honored for Quality Programming at AFBF Convention

The American Farm Bureau Federation will honor 24 county Farm Bureaus at its 105th Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah, Jan. 19-24. The selected winners participated in the County Activities of Excellence program and demonstrated a commitment to offering quality programming to their counties. Attendees can learn more about these winning programs during the trade show at convention.

“I’m proud of the strong leadership and engagement at the county level that leads to these outstanding volunteer-driven programs,” said AFBF President Zippy Duvall. “Improving the lives of Farm Bureau members, supporting our rural communities and giving our urban neighbors a window into the world of agriculture are all worthy goals,” said AFBF President Zippy Duvall.

The winners (listed by state and county Farm Bureau) are:

Illinois

• Touch-A-Truck & Tractor, Coles. Event to help local children learn about agriculture and the heavy equipment farmers use.
• Sow and Tell: Building Bridges in Agriculture, Shelby. Local farmers exchanged monthly letters with elementary students to answer questions about agriculture.
• Racoon Roundup, Greene. An initiative that helped alleviate crop damage.

Kentucky

• Farm Bureau Market Night, Mercer. A market featuring agricultural goods encouraged members to shop locally. 

Michigan

• Farmer for a Day, Van Buren. Students from local elementary schools rotated through various stations to learn about how their food is grown.

Minnesota

• I Love Strawberries, Meeker. An event connecting children with local farmers who read them books and answered questions about strawberry farming. 

Missouri

• Choo Choo Choose Agriculture!, Cape Girardeau. Partnership with a local historic train to host agriculture-themed train rides.
• YF&R Shindig Social, Webster, Greene, Christian. A dinner for Young Farmers & Ranchers participants and their families to facilitate networking and relationship building.

Nevada

• Small Agriculture Conference, Clark. A conference for small-scale and urban agricultural producers provided educational and networking opportunities for attendees. 

Ohio 

• Books and Barns Ag Literacy Project, Trumbull. An initiative created to increase agricultural literacy in youth through “Storytime with a Farmer,” the construction of book barns and donation of accurate ag books.
• Building for the Future of Agriculture, Muskingum. Interactive displays about careers in agriculture were made available to youth at the county fair. 
• Farm Bureau Day at the Fair, Adams. A member benefits-focused community collaboration provided attendees access to free health care screenings, food, games and a tractor show.   
• Farm to Fork Goes to Town, Fayette. Participants visited educational stations and collected locally sourced products to create butter boards.
• Local Agriculture Activity Book, Logan. An educational coloring and lesson book outlining county agricultural activities was distributed to local youth.
• Piggies, Pie, Play Ball and Putt-Putt, Clinton.  A program to help at-risk youth learn responsibility, ownership and leadership skills through raising a hog for the county fair.
• Shine in the Show Ring, A Leadership Development Livestock Show for Individuals with Special Needs, Henry.  An alternative livestock show allowing individuals with developmental disabilities to partner with junior fair exhibitors to exhibit an animal.
• Tomato to Table, a Breakfast on the Farm Event, Fulton. An event to help urban and rural consumers understand how modern farms operate, produce food and continually improve water quality. 

Oklahoma 

• County Ag Tour, Okmulgee. A tour exposing participants to various commodities grown in the county.

South Carolina 

• Homegrown Homeruns, Lexington. A partnership with the collegiate baseball team highlighted the importance of agriculture and Farm Bureau’s mission in a new way.

Texas 

• Farmers Corral Agricultural Learning Center, Brazoria-Galveston. An agricultural learning center where visitors of all ages learned about different types of agriculture.
• Harvest Fest, Johnson. An educational experience helped community members learn about diversity in agriculture.
• Youth Discussion Meet and Public Speaking Contest, Montgomery. Professional development contests helped youth increase workplace skills and boost agricultural literacy at the county fair.

Virginia 

• NextGen Ag Talks: A Forum for Young Farmers, Loudoun. A panel discussion featured young farmers and ranchers telling their stories while discussing current issues facing agriculture.

Wisconsin 

• Community Night, Winnebago. An evening event that helped attendees learn about Farm Bureau and the importance of agriculture while also building relationships and raising money for charity.

For more information on the winning programs, contact Mary Beth Dale, AFBF project coordinator, leadership development (maryd@fb.org, 202-406-3658).