Author: Amanda Sublett
Planning Unit: Marion County CES
Major Program: Agriculture & Natural Resources
Plan of Work: Core Program Area: Agriculture
Outcome: Initial Outcome
Farm to Fork Field Day is a program that teaches 5th grade students across the county about agriculture and food in their community. In our rural community there is a critical need to teach youth about where their food comes from. Giving real life examples of many different food products is one way to show the students how their food gets to them. Reinforcing the information with take home items such as coloring books, handouts with literature, pencils, and other goodie bag items also keep the message fresh in their minds. There are several stations set up throughout the day to give a hands-on perspective of how food gets from the farm to the table. Station topics include beef, dairy, grain, sheep/goats, bees, pork, agriculture technology, soil conservation, fruit/vegetable production, agriculture careers, and poultry. Samples of different foods were given out at some stations so the students could make a stronger connection between the food and animal or process. For example, at the dairy station volunteers demonstrated making butter with the students and allowed them to sample butter they made on crackers. Also, ice cream was provided for a sample and the process of making ice cream was discussed with the students. Other examples of samples given to students include beef jerky for beef discussion, salsa for vegetable product and honey for bee discussion. At the soil conservation station, a demonstration of soybean production was taught to the students. During this lesson students placed a soybean in a small baggie with a paper towel and water. This process helps to show students the full process of the plant growing and then ties in with the grain production session where they learn what the soybean can be used for. During this field day a total of 280 youth and 40 adults were reached including 261 white, 20 black, 1 Asian, 1 Hawaiian, 15 Hispanic, and 5 others. The audience was made up of 159 males and 144 females. This turned out to be an excellent event for the community as it was able to bring numerous community leaders and farmers together to teach young people about one of the biggest industry sectors in our community, farming. Some different organizations such as Marion County Farm Bureau Agents and Agency Managers, Marion County Cattlemen’s Association, and Marion Co. NRCS also partnered with us for this field day by providing financial support or volunteers. Outcomes of the program include youth gaining knowledge about where their food comes from as well as how the food is produced. This gives them the opportunity to connect the things they see in their everyday life such as beef and dairy cows, chickens, and crops to their plate at home. Sessions such as agriculture careers also give them some insight as to what they may want to pursue for a career in the future to give back to agriculture or be involved in production agriculture.
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