OXFORD, Ohio – In 2019, his junior year at Talawanda High School, Justin Beckner started his business, In Pursuit Show Feeds, as an FFA Supervised Agriculture Experience (SAE). In 2020 that business helped him place second in the Ohio FFA Agricultural Sales Entrepreneurship competition.

Next year, Beckner, the son of Jason and Stephanie Beckner, will study business at Miami University with an emphasis on entrepreneurship to help him further his company.

Beckner was eager to join FFA in his freshman year. During his four years at Talawanda, he took full advantage of FFA opportunities, Kari Roberts said. Along with Mike Derringer, she was Beckner’s advisor at the Talawanda High School/Butler Tech FFA.

“My freshman year, I was elected as Greenhand president,” Beckner said. “I started early getting involved in the leadership aspects of FFA. In my sophomore year, I was a greenhouse manager. We put together an aquaponics system, and I headed up that effort. It was an amazing process to see the different ways of agriculture.”

Beckner was the vice president of the FFA chapter his sophomore to junior year, Roberts said. During his junior to senior year, he was Ohio’s State Sentinel. Then he served as chapter president in 2019-20. He was also the 2020 winner of Ohio’s FFA Extemporaneous Speaking contest.

“Justin had a great FFA experience, and he is on track to earn his American Degree,” Roberts said. “I think he will apply for that, and his feed business is helping him achieve his goal. Justin has been an enormous help with the aquaponics system. I am going to miss him next year.”

Beckner said the feed business “all started by somebody asking me if I wanted to sell a couple of bags of feed. I said, sure, why not? I went to my ag advisor, and he said, ‘This would be a good opportunity to start something for yourself.’ It has turned into something bigger than what I imagined, but I have enjoyed the entire learning process and being able to become a salesman myself.”

Beckner visited a lawyer, registered his business name and trademark, and became a legitimate Ohio business with sales throughout Warren, Preble, Butler and Montgomery counties.

“I’ve done more business in the first four months of 2020 than I did entirely in 2019,” he said. “I’m working to establish a website – that is exciting. I’m ready to rock and roll!”

But life is not all farming for Beckner. His church, Shandon Congregational, has a children’s program. He was going to present the Easter Sunday Children’s Moment until COVID-19 canceled it. Beckner decided to do it online. He was pleased with how it turned out and with the excellent feedback he received. 

He’d like to do another Children’s Moment. In addition to attending college and continuing to promote his business, he plans to return to his FFA chapter as an alumnus to help coach some of the Career Development Events he was involved with.