Telling the story of modern agriculture to the 98 percent of the non-farm population has always been the goal of Sue and Mike McCloskey.
"Opening our farms to the public was a little scary, but we said, come, come and see what we do," McCloskey told the audience at the un-veiling of the Winfield Crop Adventure last Wednesday.
Now, the focus is on modern crop farming at the newest addition to the Fair Oaks campus.
The McCloskeys and a group of dairy farmers are the co-founders of both the Fair Oaks working dairy farm and the agritourist attraction near Demotte, Ind. They began with The Dairy Adventure and, in partnership with Belstra Milling Co Inc., opened The Pig Adventure in 2013.
The grand opening of the Crop Adventure included a "Fields of the Future" webcast hosted by Pam Jahnke and a panel of guests headlined by the Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack. Vilsack, McCloskey, Land O' Lakes President and CEO and native Hoosier, Chris Policinski, and WinField COO, Mike Vande Logt all reiterated the need to inform the consumer where their food comes from and how it is produced.
During the broad-cast, Vilsack was enthusiastic about the place of agriculture in the economy, technology, education and national security.
"I think it is one thing people don't realize about agriculture. It is really important to our national security. It is really important how we convert enemies to friends. I was in Vietnam and Cuba recently. Two countries we used to have a very different relationship with. And now we are using agriculture to build a bridge," said Vilsack.
He also cited the im-portance of agriculture for the youth.
"I think in the case of young people, there is no more innovative, no more exciting, no more passionate place to be than in agriculture. No better op-portunity for changing the economy and help it grow jobs," added Vilsack.
The WinField Crop Adventure is one way to fill a gap in agricultural knowledge for young people. Farmers are doing a great job talking amongst themselves about the great productivity and sustainability but a really poor job of engaging the consumers said Policinski. The goal of the Crop Adventure is to tell this story in a way that the public can have fun but also be informed. This is especially important as farmers are looking to feed a growing world population in the next 30 years, added Policinski.
According to Keith Negrin, account executive at Colle + McVoy advertising agency, the Crop Adventure was de-signed with the six- to twelve-year-old in mind. The agency conceptualized and supervised the building of the Crop Adventure for their Land O'Lakes client.
Part of the building's exterior looks like two grain bins. The first bin contains a standup theater for an introduction to farming video and the second houses an interactive history of American agriculture complete with a timeline of significant events.
The next portion, called "Battle Underground," creates the feel of an earthworm tunnel. Real roots hang overhead in rows and there are walls of "soil." Participatory stations at a child's height on the edges encourage a child to learn about soil textures, living creatures in the soil and different nutrient needs of plants.
Children can follow a crop such as corn or soybeans from farm to the table or the gas station in the following section. There is even a selfie station where kids can dress up in different kinds of farm gear and take photos with a farming backdrop. The emphasis of the Crop Adventure is the role technology has always played in agriculture and what is yet to come.
The last part of the Crop Adventure encourages children to imagine the future of agriculture. This section was actually imagined by a focus group of kids. There are hover tractors in fields and drones targeting weeds with herbicides as well as a working example of a seed chipping machine scientists use for genetic analysis.
Another activity connected with the opening of the Winfield Crop Adventure was the planting of a pollination garden by the children from Christian Hills Church summer program. The students donned gloves and wielded trowels as they dug holes in the ground to plant lavender and salvia. Other plants will be added during the summer to the front of the Crop Adventure building.
After the webcast, Vilsack, McCloskey and Policinski joined Gov. Mike Pence for a further discussion of Indiana's place in agriculture, both past and future.
Vilsack reminded the audience of how fortunate Americans are. He said that the average citizen spends only about 10 percent of his or her paycheck on food whereas those in developing countries may spend as much as half their paycheck to put food on the table. American consumers spend less on groceries, which means they can afford to buy goods and services with their extra money. Agriculture and the technology behind it is the engine that drives the U.S. economy, said Vilsack.
As Fair Oaks continues its mission of educating the public, another adventure is in the works. Rose Acre is preparing an egg/chicken adventure for opening in 2017. However, the story remains the same.
"It is a simple message that we are trying to convey to the consumer—that we care for the environment, we care about our animals, and we care about the product we produce, that it is safe and nutritious for you," said McCloskey.