LAPORTE, Ind. – Close to 1,000 fourth graders from northern Indiana learned a thing or two about where food comes from, and the work required to get it to their dinner tables.

All the students from LaPorte County attended Ag Days March 20 and 21.

The annual event is sponsored by LaPorte County Farm Bureau and the LaPorte County Row Crop Food Producers with help from Purdue University Extension.

Children from each grade school visited 12 stations manned by volunteer instructors touching on subjects like beef, dairy cows, farm machinery, row crops, rabbits and chickens at the LaPorte County Fairgrounds.

During a question-and-answer session, one boy from Kingsbury Elementary School asked if chocolate milk comes from a chocolate cow.

Instructor Frank Minich, a fourth-generation dairy farmer near Kingsbury, explained flavorings like chocolate are added to milk from a cow at processing plants before placed into containers for sale at grocery stores.

“That’s a pretty common question. It doesn’t matter what color the cow is. All of the milk that comes out is white milk,” he said.

He also provided facts such as a cow drinks 40 to 60 gallons of water a day and, depending on certain factors, gives about 10 gallons of milk over a 24-hour period.

Instructor Paul Herrold talked about corn and how it’s used to make ethanol to mix with gasoline for a cleaner burning fuel.

Herrold, who raises about 3,000 acres of corn and soybeans in the Westville and Wanatah areas, said a lot of corn harvested from fields is also used to feed farm animals before they’re processed for human consumption.

“Corn is high in energy. When you give it to animals, they grow very quickly,” he said.

Schasta Antrim, of LaPorte, adult 4-H volunteer, told the children rabbits give birth about a month after conception and have 28 teeth.

Antrim, 26, showed rabbits while in 4-H as a youth and, currently, her family has over 20 rabbits used for meat and for her younger siblings now in 4-H to show.

She said interacting with the kids and getting them excited about learning is what she likes most about being an Ag Days instructor.

“When they start answering my questions and they have such confidence when they tell me the correct answer back, it’s exciting to see their faces just glow. Of course, they can’t wait to pet the animals,” she said.

Some of the children petted live animals like a chicken and a rabbit during the presentations or while leaving for another station.

Megan Bowman, a fourth-grade teacher at Coolspring Elementary School in Michigan City, said it was her first time having a class at Ag Days.

She particularly liked her students thrilled reaction to learning the ketchup they have at home is made from tomatoes grown in the fields, including some locally. “It’s been really educational and we’re having a blast,” she said.

Westville area farmer Mark Parkman, president of LaPorte County Farm Bureau, said another purpose of the event is to promote the 4-H youth program.

Despite popular belief, Parkman said owning livestock is not required to enroll because there are many offerings for children in 4-H ranging from cooking to photography and small engine repair, aside from showing farm animals.

“There’s something in 4-H for everybody,” he said.

Students also learned about Future Farmers of America during their stops at a station manned by members of the LaPorte High School FFA branch.

Stephanie Boo-Howe, a senior and FFA member since a freshman, said the students were told about the activities, contests and public service opportunities provided by the organization.

Boo-Howe, who lived on a cattle farm in Illinois until her family moved to LaPorte County, said she especially likes meeting people on her FFA- sponsored trips for activities in the region and as far as Indianapolis. “It’s a lot of fun,” she said.