Farm Fair

Dandy went to the Farm Fair last week. Farm Fair is a day sponsored by local agriculture groups when all county fourth graders come and rotate through different stations to learn how agriculture affects them. Some of the other stations were on goats, dairy, beekeeping, poultry, 4-wheeler safety, 4-H, the food pyramid, and more.

(The boy in the white shirt was a preschool student of mine. I got to see 4 of my former students.)

Sam and I taught the kids a bit about the hard work of raising beef cattle, beef products they eat, and byproducts of beef. And of course, they got to pet and brush Dandy. Many fed him grain also, and I know he has never eaten that much in one day! Dandy was so good, but Sam was worried about us talking about his demise right in front of him:)

I researched on the internet to find out some beef byproducts and was surprised to learn what some of them are. They include pet food, candles, make-up, soap, shave cream, nail files, band aides, butter, gum, mayo, marshmallows, cellophane, crayons, glue, paint, paint brushes, shoes, footballs/basketballs/baseballs, medicines, and more. Some of the kids were confused on this, but I explained to them that each of these items has some small part that comes for a cow. A few said they would never brush their teeth again, but they were still planning to eat hamburger!

Thank a farmer next time you see them!