By Justin Walker
Communications Specialist
Nearly 800 fourth grade students gained a deeper knowledge of agriculture last month during Farm City Week in Gainesville.
Cooke and Denton County Farm Bureaus (CFB) partnered with the Cooke County Extension Service and North Central Texas College (NCTC) to bring agriculture to students, teachers and parents during the two-day event.
Attendees learned about agriculture from industry speakers and hands-on activities on NCTC’s Gainesville campus.
Farm City Week, which was first held in 2000, is designed to give students a more thorough understanding of agriculture, Dan Reed, area coordinator for Texas Farm Bureau, said.
“We felt there was a need to get young kids in Cooke County—although it is a rural county—more engaged and connected with agriculture,” Reed said.
The focus on the event was having students understand more about the crops grown for food and clothing, he said. By attending Farm City Week, students were able to meet with farmers and ranchers from around the area and learn about the growing corn, cotton, wheat, beef cattle and swine.
Other aspects of the event highlighted safety, including tractor and electrical demonstrations.
Industry leaders—including representatives from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Blue Bell Ice Cream and the Dairy Farmers of America—explained the different aspects of agriculture, he said.
Agricultural students from NCTC and Gainesville FFA officers were also on hand to serve as leaders and speakers for the fourth grade students.
Cooke and Denton CFBs not only helped organize the event but participated in educational stations and demonstrations, Reed said.
“Our CFB leaders were talking about anything from beef cattle production to farming to tractor safety,” he said. “There were many different topics our leaders discussed.”
Farm City Week continues to grow as more organizations supply their knowledge and more schools see the benefit of attending, Reed said. And he hopes to see the event continue to expand in the future.