County Young Farmers members win statewide achievement award

Ty and Sacha Brown of Clinton County have been named the winners of the Indiana Farm Bureau Young Farmer Achievement Award.

The Young Farmer Achievement Award recognizes young farmers whose farm management techniques and commitment to their communities set a positive example for those involved in production agriculture.

The winners were announced during the closing session of the Indiana Farm Bureau convention on Saturday. The Browns will represent Indiana in the American Farm Bureau Federation Young Farmer Contest; Rancher Achievement Award competition, which will be held in January as part of the national convention in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The Browns live in Clinton County but farm in both Clinton and Carroll counties and are active in the Carroll County Young Farmer group. They own their own independent farm but are also involved in the farming operation owned by his parents.

Together, the two operations include a 2,000-head feeder-tofinish hog operation, a Beck’s seed dealership, corn and soybeans, and a grain merchandizing business. Their three children - Hannah, Jayden and Landon - range in age from seven to one.

Ty said that besides the encouragement of their IFB field representative, Janice Deno, the reason they entered the competition was that it gives them a new perspective on their farm.

“It offers you a chance to look at your farming operation from a different point of view,” he said.

In addition to a trip to the national convention, the Browns earned a $6,000 cash prize from Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, $500 from Dodge, one year’s (or 400 hours’) use of a Kubota tractor, and the David L. Leising Memorial Award, which includes a $200 U.S. Savings Bond.

Mark and Kathy Justice of rural Delphi were one of three finalists. They won $1,000, courtesy of Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance.