By LINDA McGURK
Indiana Correspondent

DANVILLE, Ill. — When was the last time you were able to buy a meal featuring a pork barbecue sandwich, baked beans, applesauce, potato chips and milk or Pepsi, all for 50 cents?
On April 2, the Danville Area Community College (DACC) Ag Club served lunch for that price, highlighting the small share of the cost of a meal that actually ends up in the farmer’s hands. “It helps show that it’s not easy being a farmer and that farmers don’t profit much,” said Tom Lusk, a sophomore in DACC’s agribusiness program.

When the annual event started as Farm City Day 33 years ago, the lunch cost 35 cents and attracted about 250 people. This year, organizers expected nearly 2,000 hungry people to show up for the luncheon and up to 1,500 more for a petting zoo that was set up by three local FFA chapters.

“We’ve brought in 650 pounds of barbeque pork and there won’t be much left when we’re done,” Lusk said. The food and drinks were donated or sold at cost to the Ag Club from various businesses and individuals.

The price of the meal may not be the only reason behind the strong growth of Ag Day. Lusk, who grew up raising cattle and horses on a farm in Rossville, Ill., believes people in general are getting more interested in agriculture.

“I think it’s getting better. A lot of people seem interested, especially now with alternative fuels. People want to know more about that,” he said.

Many elementary school teachers seized the opportunity to take their classes on a field trip to the DACC campus, where elated children made a beeline for the goats, horses, chickens and other animals in the petting zoo.

“Hopefully we’re raising awareness (about agriculture),” said Craig Potter, DACC ag instructor and advisor to the Ag Club, “and hopefully we’ll get some of these high school students into our programs,” he said about some of the volunteers serving the luncheon.

Members of three local FFA chapters also participated in an unofficial discussion meet during Ag Day. Gale Cunningham, an agriculture reporter with WITY Radio in Danville, judged the competition, which included discussions about the 2008 farm bill, country of origin labeling, the influence of California’s Proposition 2 and the effect of fertilizer costs on this spring’s planting decisions.
Amie Burke of Oakwood High School won the meet based on her knowledge of the topics, and Bailey Edenburn of Armstrong Potomac High School was the runner-up.

“The purpose of this is to teach young people to talk about ag issues in public,” Cunningham said. “They need to know that a lot of outside groups are putting out information that’s not backed by science, and they need to know how to respond.

“Agriculture is faced with so many challenges today from outside sources, even from consumer groups. Some of (the students) may well have to deal with a lot more ag topics being discussed over the kitchen table today.”