Hay quality can vary greatly due to many factors including height at harvest, weather conditions and type of forage. Producers are often at a loss on the nutritional values of their hay. To address this problem Crittenden County ANR agent Dee Heimgartner has worked with Crittenden County Lions Club and KY Department of Agriculture to host a hay quality contest in the county fair for forage producers.

In 2018, there were 26 entries in the contest. This was an increase in entries from the first contest in 2017. The hay was divided in categories for competition; cool season grasses, warm season grasses, alfalfa, and mixed hay. The participants recieve nutrtion quality results back from the KY Department of Agriculture Forage Testing program. Those results along with the UK Beef Cattle Forage Supplement app data is sent to each participant. One participant said that the free hay test which normally costs $10 per sample is well worth the time and effort.

The contest would not have happened without the partnership between Crittenden County Extension, Crittenden County Lions Club Fair, and Kentucky Department of Agriculture Forage Testing program. The producers who won were excited to see that there efforts of harvesting the hay was paying off. The producers who didn't win were glad to see where they could improve on next years hay production. Each producer is better able to balance a diet for their animals based off of these results.There are plans to continue this free service next year.