Superior Young Dairy Producer winners named
URBANA, Ill. — The Superior Young Dairy Producer Award (SYDPA) program was Aug. 21 at the Illinois State Fair. Twenty 4-H and/or FFA dairy project members from across the state took part in this educational activity.

This three-phase competition awarded each of the top five overall participants with a $1,000 scholarship. The 2010 recipients include Rick Koehn of Peotone, Haley Lyons of Rockford, Aaron Mitchell of Winnebago, Erik Sheppelman of Bloomington and Jessica Telgmann of Strasburg, Ill.

The scholarships were sponsored by Archer Daniels Midland Co. of Decatur. Individual plaques sponsored by the Land of Lincoln Purebred Livestock Breeders Assoc. and the Illinois State Fair were awarded to the top three in each phase and the top five overall winners.

The first phase included a dairy management test on dairy nutrition, health, reproduction, milk marketing and other dairy-related information. The winners were Lyons, Mitchell and Sheppelman. The second phase was a skill-a-thon on various topics in the dairy industry. The top three contestants were Koehn, Sheppelman and Telgmann.

The third phase included a judging contest with four classes of dairy cows and two classes of heifers. The top three were Tyler Carter of Greenville, Kaleb Hoerbert of Delavan and Kohen.

Sheep Producers Award recognizes youth
URBANA, Ill. — Outstanding youth in the sheep industry were honored for their knowledge and abilities at the Superior Young Sheep Producers Award Contest at the Illinois State Fair Aug. 13. The event drew 24 4-H and FFA members from across the state.

Five $1,000 scholarships were awarded to those young people who excelled in the overall contest. Winners included Sullivan Finlay of Quincy, Shiloh Lueschaw of Elmwood, Zak Leskanich of Streator, Gavin Arvin of Congerville and Grade Foster of Joliet, Ill.

In the Management Test, youth were questioned about sheep, wool, national and international sheep industries, sheep care and disease management. The top three included Finlay, Leskanich and Agusta Sandoval of Knoxville. The top winners in the skill-a-thon included Arvin, Sidney DeVries of Freeport and Jeremy Woods of Baylis.

In the meats contest, contestants identified individual cuts of meat and answered questions about the processing and production of meat. The top three were Foster, Caitlyn Bowyer of Sumner and Leskanich.

The contest is sponsored by Archer Daniels Midland Co. of Decatur, the Illinois State Fair and the Land of Lincoln Purebred Livestock Breeders Assoc.