AGRICULTURE SPOTLIGHT
Delaware County Fair, Iowa his issue’s winning entry from the Delaware County Fair in Texhibit Manchester, Iowa, is from category 4 — Program/event/ designed to educate consumers/fair-going public of a current agriculture or fair industry challenge — and division 1 — fairs with attendance up to 100,000. The fair created the Giant Bacon-Cheeseburger to inform the public that some of the “facts” they hear about their food are myths and educate them on the truth about their food. The burger was created with four layers: bun, cheese, bacon, and beef patty. Each layer contained both a myth about their food and the fact that dispelled the myth. The burger was about four feet wide and seven feet tall to attract fairgoers’ attention and entice them to read the facts. The burger was suspended from a tree and the public was invited to pull out the layers of the burger to check out the individual layers. It was a great tool to teach people about food safety. This project was designed and created by Delaware County Fair staff, but was made possible through the Community Chest Grant. This grant focuses on education and health of the community. Once obtained, the Delaware County Fair
staff cut and assembled the cheese burger from insulation foam and used a fiber glassing technique to make the burger strong and able to withstand the public using it during the fair. Lastly, the fair called upon a past intern who donated her time to come back and paint the burger to look realistic. This message is relevant because both the fair and community are heavily involved in the agriculture industry. Falsehoods propagated about agriculture, and the products it creates, can have a very negative impact on the community. Educating the public on their food sources is important. The public needs to feel confident that their food is, not only safe, but healthy. Many fairgoers were impressed with the size and impact that the exhibit had. It was an eye-catcher having a giant burger suspended from a tree. Many younger children were drawn to it and had fun reading the information on the giant burger. Older kids and adults also took their turns reading and looking at the exhibit. Many people complimented the burger and said how interesting it was to present the facts in this new and interesting way.
This article was written using information from an entry submitted to the IAFE Agricultural Awards Program, sponsored by ShoWorks.
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FAIRS & EXPOS | JULY/AUGUST 2019