Youth News
Wheat Commission Chief Encourages Participation in 2014 Junior Wheat Show
Thu, 01 May 2014 17:52:47 CDT
Mike Schulte, executive director of the Oklahoma Wheat Commission, manned the commission's booth at the career show during the 2014 Oklahoma State FFA Convention in downtown Oklahoma City. In addition to passing out samples of bread made with Oklahoma wheat, he spent his time encouraging students to participate in this year's Junior Wheat Show.
The purpose of the show is to encourage the production of wheat with superior market qualities. In line with this, Schulte told Radio Oklahoma Network Farm Director Ron Hays the parameters for this year's show have been changed. He said that the emphasis of judging is moving away from the visual appearance of the sample to the milling and baking aspects of the crop.
"The reason we are doing that is because we are trying to educate the producers that that is what our foreign and domestic buyers are wanting so we are going to have a different score sheet this coming year. Traditionally, in the past, we have taken the top 10 samples out of the 4-H and FFA for milling and bake tests to go on, but this year we're going to be doing the top 25 samples.
"Part of the reason is that sometimes we're seeing that the protein quantity does not necessarily meet the protein quality and so with the higher protein qualities that are out there we feel by taking all of the samples through we will get a better indicator of what's going to be possibly acceptable."
Schulte says 4-H and FFA members still have time to segregate their five-acre sample plots and collect a ten-pound sample for judging. He said participants can mail those samples to the Payne County Expo Center, but they must do so by July 25th or they can bring their sample to the competition on July 30th.
Complete rules are available on the Oklahoma Wheat Commission website by clicking here.
The Wheat Commission will also sponsor three in-service days in support of the contest. The first is May 22nd in Stillwater and is for FFA sponsors and will educate them on how the samples will be tested so they can advise their students accordingly. The second and third in-service days, will both be held on July 10th. One will be at the Grady County Extension office in Chickasha and the other will be at the Okeene FFA Building. Schulte said contestants can bring their samples to these locations for pickup.
He said that $16,000 worth of scholarship money is up for grabs in this year's contest.
Click on the LISTEN BAR below to hear Ron Hays's conversation with Mike Schulte.
Our coverage of the 2014 Oklahoma FFA state contests and the 88th Annual Convention is brought to you in part by your Oklahoma Ford Dealers, a Platinum Level Title Sponsor of the 2014 Convention! Click here to learn more about why Ford is Best in Oklahoma!
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