FFA Announces Annual Writing Contest and $1.4 million Expansion

November 1, 2006 — 

The USDA is encouraging FFA students to participate in the annual RMA-Future Farmers of America (FFA) writing contest. The contest, a Risk Management Strategies for Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) Program, gives FFA student members an opportunity to learn about agricultural risks and apply risk management tools.

For their essay, students are encouraged to select a risk management strategy relative to their supervised program, analyze the risk, indicate tools used to minimize risk, and explain their application of these tools in an essay of no less than 1000 words.

Ten national winning essays will be selected on the basis of content, adherence to the assigned topic, grammar, organization, originality and creativity. Each of the ten winners and their advisors will travel to Washington, D.C., all expenses paid, for a special USDA Risk Management Agency/FFA Day in April/May 2007. At that time, students and advisors will meet with USDA officials and members of Congress and be recognized in a special ceremony.

Entries must be postmarked by January 31, 2007. Additional information including how to submit entries is available on the USDA's RMA website.

In other FFA news, the National FFA Organization announced that next month, the organization will break ground on the future home of its new 36,000 square foot Merchandise Center near its headquarters in Indianapolis. "The reason we're building the merchandising center is to be able to meet current customer demand and build capacity for future growth," said Lee Anne Shiller, director of merchandise operations.

The new facility includes the merchandising, licensing and customer and distribution services departments. Within the new facility, 18,000 square feet have been designated for distribution operations, 9,000 for office space and the balance reserved for operations and student visitors.

Sources:
USDA Press Release, October 25, 2006

Future Farmers of America