Decorah HS FFA Members Compete at the Tri-State Dairy and Ag Expo

Posted: Tue, Sep 17, 2019 7:31 AM

Decorah FFA at Tri-State Dairy and Ag Expo: Front Row from left: Steven Sexton & Tyler Bullerman. Middle Row from left: Maggie Lovstuen, Kyleigh Batterson, Rachel Mikkelson, Paige Aten, Brooke Courtney, Dalton Hemesath, Karter Einck, Justin Nierling, & Dalton Zidlicky. Back Row from left: Addison Wemark, Hailey Novak, Melia Kruse, Brittney Ehrie, Kaeley Downing, Sage Wedmann, Grace Gerleman, Ashley Nierling, Shayla Smith, Parker Monroe, & Alex Zweibohmer

22 Decorah FFA members competed at this months' Tri-State Dairy and Ag Expo at the Dairy Center in Calmar. The chapter competed against 27 other schools, with nearly 400 participating in the contests. Chapter members attended workshops, competed in contests, and enhanced career skills while attending the expo.

Members of the Decorah FFA competed in dairy cattle evaluation with oral reasons, dairy cattle evaluation without reasons, and dairy products evaluation.

Six Decorah FFA members competed in the dairy cattle evaluation with oral reasons contest--Kaeley Downing, Brooke Courtney, Ashley Nierling, Steven Sexton, Shayla Smith, and Addison Wemark. The team of Courtney, Nierling, and Sexton received seventh place overall and the team of Downing, Smith, and Wemark received eighth place. Brooke Courtney earned top honors in the individual dairy cattle contest while Addison Wemark placed eighth individually. Both teams also competed in the district cattle contest where the team of Courtney, Nierling, and Sexton placed eighth as a team.

Nine members participated in the dairy cattle evaluation contest--Kyleigh Batterson, Tyler Bullerman, Brittney Ehrie, Melia Kruse, Maggie Lovstuen, Rachel Mikkelson, Justin Nierling, Hailey Novak, and Dalton Zidlicky. These members attended two educational workshops and evaluated four classes of dairy cattle.

Seven members participated in the dairy products and milk quality competition--Paige Aten, Karter Einck, Grace Gerleman, Dalton Hemesath, Parker Monroe, Sage Wedmann, and Alex Zweibohmer. Members were asked to evaluate milk quality, identify different types of cheese, and determine real versus imitation dairy products. The team of Einck, Gerleman, Hemesath, and Wedmann received 7th place overall. Sage Wedmann was honored with first place overall in the products examination.