PEORIA, Ill. — The Illinois Fertilizer and Chemical Assoc. (IFCA) annual meeting kicks off its two-day convention and trade show, which attracts hundreds of agricultural chemical retailers, farmers and their families to Peoria.

There, they enjoy a series of seminars, networking opportunities and training for pesticide applicators and anhydrous ammonia handlers. This year’s convention, Jan. 20-22 at the Peoria Civic Center and Marriott Pere Marquette Hotel, also served as a celebration of the IFCA’s 50th year.

The meeting began with a video tribute to IFCA’s 50th anniversary, offering a glimpse at people, places and innovations notable to IFCA over the years, according to Meg Yargus, 2015 convention committee chair.

“Fifty years ago, a group of determined young men got together during the old ‘spray school’ at the University of Illinois and began to discuss a combined vision for the Illinois fertilizer and agrichemical industry. They didn’t have a lot of resources, but they were rich in determination,” Yargus wrote in the convention brochure.

The preparation and effort Yargus and others on the committee put into extending the 50th anniversary theme throughout the Civic Center Exhibition Hall and other staging areas was apparent. Special signage was strung throughout the facility, and 8-foot-tall multi-sided photo collages from as far back as the 1960s were scattered about.

Guests were asked to write on index cards their favorite aspect or memory of IFCA membership or to make note of some of the greatest innovations in machinery and equipment.

The efforts of the committee were not lost on Jean Payne, IFCA president, who waxed nostalgic about some old IFCA newsletters from the ’60s and ’70s she had come across.

“I was really struck by the stewardship of how you handle pesticides and fertilizers – it was always a very important part of the mission of the IFCA,” she said. “One of the first reasons they got together in the 1960s was to deal with safety of anhydrous ammonia.”

In addition to providing a voice and political lobby for its retailer members, IFCA’s core mission remains focused on safety and education. “I would say the majority of what we do today is education,” said Payne, who has served as its president since 2004. “Education on safety has really been the fundamental message of the IFCA for the past 50 years.”

She took the top IFCA office when longtime leader Lloyd Burling stepped down after holding the title of president for more than 40 years. She was hired by Burling in 1989 as director of regulatory affairs. Prior to working for IFCA, Payne was employed by Bloomington,-based GROWMARK for 12 years, having been hired right out of college. The IFCA office is also located in Bloomington.

“This is a great job because our customers are so appreciative and supportive of their organization, that it really makes it fun coming to work every day on behalf of thousands of people employed in crop production,” she said.

Recently, the IFCA has worked with other state agricultural organizations in drafting the Illinois EPA’s new Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy. IFCA also offers ag retail employees and farmers opportunities to earn certification in anhydrous ammonia handling and other potentially dangerous applications through online courses and classes at the Asmark Institute in Bloomington.

The association is also offering 4R Code of Practice certification and 4R Certified Crop Advisor (CCA) certification through the Illinois CCA program, among other efforts on behalf of growers and those who work in the ag chemical industry.