By DOUG GRAVES
Ohio Correspondent

FAIRBORN, Ohio — They may not have won the Ohio Lottery, but for three Ohio families, it was just as exciting.

Robert Duncan of Fairborn, Melissa Mattox of Cincinnati and Robert Chidester of Marion each received food gift cards worth $5,000 in a random drawing from more than 207,000 entrants. The sweepstakes period lasted 90 days; the registration was free and participants merely had to go online to register at FarmersFeedUS.org

In doing so, entrants were introduced to seven Ohio farmers and were able to take a video tour of their farms. Each video explained how farmers produce safe, nutritious and affordable food for Ohio consumers.

The contest was supported by the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation, Ohio Livestock Coalition, Ohio Beef Council, Ohio Pork Producers Council, Ohio Lamb Marketing Board, American Lamb Board, Ohio Soybean Council, Ohio Poultry Assoc. and American Dairy Assoc. (Mideast).

“Throughout the sweepstakes, it was great to see the support consumers showed for the farmers who raise their food,” said Jim Herimerl, a hog farmer from Johnstown who was one of the seven farmers featured on FarmersFeedUS.org

“And as Ohio farmers, we’re proud to showcase our farms, sharing how we raise the food that Ohio consumers eat, while also introducing them to our families.”

Other farmers included in this virtual tour were Allen Armstrong of South Charleston (soybeans), Ken Stammen of New Weston (turkeys), Jake Wolfinger of Lancaster (beef), Bill Grammer of Beloit (dairy) and Curt Cline of Albany (lambs).

Though the contest has ended, one can still visit http://farmersfeedus.org to access farmer videos as well as a database of recipes.