By Julie Tomascik
Editor

Floyd-Briscoe County Farm Bureau and Austin, Walker and Wharton County Farm Bureaus were recognized during the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 99th Annual Convention & IDEAg Trade Show.

Floyd-Briscoe CFB hosted the Ag Issues Leadership Discussion Meet last year to connect with high school students and encourage them to take a closer look at agriculture.

Their exhibit was on display during the trade show in Nashville, Tenn.

Students studied agricultural issues and discussed them in a roundtable format. They exchanged ideas and information to work toward solutions.

Topics included trade, regulatory obstacles, ways to help first generation farmers and ranchers get started in agriculture and how to strengthen the positive perception of family farms.

Participants honed their discussion skills, developed a keen understanding of important agricultural issues and explored how groups can work together to reach a consensus to solve problems.

Three county Farm Bureaus also received national recognition for their agricultural engagement and training efforts in an urban setting.

Austin, Walker and Wharton County Farm Bureaus joined forces to host the Agricultural Training Day for the Tours Committee members at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

An exhibit outlining their project was also on display in Nashville during the national meeting.

The committee directs tours to more than 450,000 patrons in the Ag Venture Experience, but committee members don’t always have extensive knowledge of agriculture.

Austin, Walker and Wharton County Farm Bureau leaders recognized the need for this educational activity, and they set out to engage and inform the Tours Committee on agricultural production in an effort to counter common agricultural myths.

During the one-day training, 178 registered committee members attended 45-minute workshops on beef cattle, dairy cattle, poultry, swine, sheep and goats, grain production and agricultural misconceptions.

Those involved in the training took home valuable information and a better understanding of agriculture.

These programs were two of the 24 programs nationwide to receive a County Activities of Excellence award from AFBF and be recognized during the national meeting.

The county Farm Bureaus and their volunteers were also recognized during TFB’s Annual Meeting Dec. 2-4, 2017 in Frisco.