Wisconsin Ag Connection - Extension Cuts Will Mean Less Educational Displays at WFTD

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Extension Cuts Will Mean Less Educational Displays at WFTD
Wisconsin Ag Connection - 04/07/2016

The board chairman of Wisconsin Farm Technology Days says there will be some unintended consequences due to the $3.6 million annual budget cut to the University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension program. John Shutske, who also serves as the associate dean of the UW-Madison College of Agriculture, said 'Tent City' will reduce the number of Extension educational displays from 30 down to 10, starting in 2018.

"We currently fill two large tents at the show with booths ranging from well water testing to recommended conservation practices," Shutske told Wisconsin Ag Connection during the WFTD annual meeting on Wednesday. "Starting with the 2018 show in Wood County, the grounds will only have one Progress Pavilion tent due to the limited amount of staff available to man those exhibits."

Another major change will occur in 2019, where the agriculture extension agent of that year's host county will no longer be required to serve as the executive secretary of the local planning committee. Shutske says the state will help the county find an event coordinator to fill that role as part of a pilot program.

"The selected coordinator will likely be someone who lives in that area, such as a retired agriculture agent, farmer or anyone else who has familiarity with the show," he noted. "The cost of that position will be split between the county and our state FTD board."

As for Shutske's obligations with the annual event, he said he plans to continue leading the WFTD board for one more year, despite the fact that he's stepping down from CALS on July 1 to return to his faculty position in the UW-Madison Department of Biological Systems Engineering.

Meanwhile, final preparations are being made for the 2016 exhibition in Walworth County. County Ag Agent Peg Reedy said the show will be bringing back the 'Innovation Square' area for a second consecutive year. That section of Tent City will be relocated near the entrance of the show, and will include a miniature 'Lake Geneva'--a 100-foot replica of the real lake that will be dug into the ground.

"Since Walworth County is a major grain producing area, we will also be taking bus tours to a local grain elevator this year," Reedy said. "This will allow tour participants a chance to see the process of how grain comes off the field, gets stored in the bins and eventually placed in shipping containers."

Ebert Enterprises, located near Algoma, will host the 2017 show in Kewaunee County. Extension Agent Aerica Bjurstrom announced that her committee has already raised about half of the funds needed to put on their event. And they have selected the Gehl 800 pull-type forage harvester as their collector farm toy.

Wood County will welcome attendees to the Marshfield area in 2018 at the Sternweis and Heiman farms in July of that year.

The host county of the 2019 Farm Technology Days will be announced later this summer, according to Shutske.

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