Illinois State Fair Ag Tour – A Peek at Local Agriculture Industry

Are you going to the Illinois State Fair? Be sure to take the Illinois State Fair Ag Tour for an inside view of the state’s agriculture industry.

We took the tour the first year it was offered. Aboard an antique tractor-pulled wagon, we visited several areas of the fairgrounds, as college interns explained various aspects of agriculture. Our tour hosts, Ellie and Amy, both grew up on farms and major in agriculture-related studies.

Ag Tour Stop: Dairy Barn

A stop at the dairy barnAt our first stop, the Dairy Barn, Morgan, a fourth-generation dairy farmer and a Midwest Dairy Association summer intern, hopped aboard the wagon. She shared these fascinating facts about the dairy industry:

  • A calf weighs about 100 pounds when born.
  • Cows are usually milked two or three times a day. However, some farms milk them even more frequently.
  • By volume, Holstein cows produce the most milk. Jersey cows produce milk with the highest butterfat content, good for making cheese.

Ag Tour Stop: Piglets on Parade

Ellie and MorganpigletsEllie and Amy filled us in on a few pig facts on our way to the Piglets on Parade exhibit, where the Illinois pork intern provided even more pig information..

  • Pigs don’t sweat. They roll around in mud to keep cool.
  • A pig’s gestation period is three months, three weeks and three days.
  • Market weight of a pig is 250 to 270 pounds.

Farmer’s Little Helper

Before we left the Piglets on Parade area we learned about the Farmer’s Little Helper exhibit. Here children learn about the two types of grain grown in Illinois: corn and soybeans. In the “ag-tivity” tent young children can play games, hear stories and use special equipment that checks for dirty hands.

Ag-tivity Tent

Ag Tour Stop: Horse Racing Barns

At our next stop we visited the Giberson Racing barns, where the Giberson’s horses stay year-round.  We met some of the Giberson family, including trainer Nick Giberson.

GibersonHorse facts:

  • Horses have been domesticated for 5,000 years and have been used for racing since 648 B.C.
  • Horses have the largest eyes of any land mammal.
  • Race horses practice 365 days a year.
  • Horses can run up to 27 miles per hour, but the fastest horse has been tracked at 55 miles per hour.

Ag Tour Stop: FFA Barnyard

Our last stop was the FFA (Future Farmers of America) barnyard, a temporary home of baby animals. The FFA has been part of many Illinois high schools since 1929 and is an integral part of exposing students to agriculture. The organization also helps develop students’ leadership skills. The FFA isn’t just for future farmers, but for anyone thinking about a career in agriculture-related fields. Some of those fields are environmental engineer, conservation police, landscape designer, and nutritionist.

goatssheepEllie and Amy chatted about other farm animals, like goats, sheep, rabbits, and poultry as we rode from stop to stop. (Did you know that rabbits can breathe only through their noses, not their mouths?) Although we thought we knew quite a bit about agriculture, we learned even more on the tour.

The tour is free, but you must register at the Illinois Department of Agriculture Tent since space is limited. Visit the Illinois State Fair web site for times and complete fair details.

Disclosure: The Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau hosted our visit to the Illinois State Fair. We received complimentary accommodations at the Quality Inn & Suites and a meal from the Illinois Pork Producers Association, but any opinions expressed in this post are my own.

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17 thoughts on “Illinois State Fair Ag Tour – A Peek at Local Agriculture Industry

  • August 20, 2015 at 1:26 am
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    Seems that you’ve learned a lot from this fair. I love the little piglets, but breastfeeding them for only 3 days seems a little too little. If humans didn’t intervene, probably the mother would feed them much longer. Very interesting stuff.

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    • August 21, 2015 at 11:29 am
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      We did learn a lot on the ag tour and had a lot of fun at the fair, too. One of the things I’ve learned when I’ve toured farms is that although it may seem to us that some things that are done on farms don’t seem right, they are done for other than financial or convenience reasons. It’s often done in the animals’ best interest.

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  • August 21, 2015 at 11:58 pm
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    Interesting stuff. I grew up in the country but not on a farm so a lot of the agriculture stuff is foreign to me. My college had one of the largest agriculture majors in the area, and we had our on dairy which made cheese and the best ice cream around. I wish we had state fairs like this where I live.

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    • August 27, 2015 at 8:19 pm
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      Nice that you were able to reap the benefits of the on-campus dairy without having to milk the cows or make the cheese and ice cream yourself. Sounds delicious. I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to get to a state fair. I’d like to experience a different one every year now. It was a lot of fun.

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  • August 22, 2015 at 7:30 pm
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    Seems like you had a nice time and learned a lot of new things. Were the farmers at the fair independent farmers from the area or big corporations?

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    • August 27, 2015 at 8:20 pm
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      I think there were a few larger companies but mostly independent farmers.

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  • August 22, 2015 at 9:59 pm
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    This a great list of facts; actually, I’m surprised at how long horses have been domesticated for. I mean, I shouldn’t be surprised but it’s kinda cool to get the stats. Seems like a great way to spend a day out on a nice day.

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    • August 27, 2015 at 8:21 pm
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      I was surprised, too, at how long horses have been domesticated. I’m glad we took the tour. We learned a lot and got off of our feet for a while.

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  • August 23, 2015 at 3:01 pm
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    What a great way to learn about local agricultural life! And how cute are all those animals? I love going to visit the local farm near where I live just to see the little pigs, goats, sheep and alpacas 🙂

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    • August 27, 2015 at 8:27 pm
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      Baby animals are always so cute.

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  • August 23, 2015 at 4:17 pm
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    Cute piglets! It sounds like you learn a lot as well as enjoying music and all the fun of a fair. Its good to highlight that the main reason is to teach about farming and support agriculture. I actually never knew that. I’ve read other posts about the state fair and it was more about the entertainment. Great information here and brilliant photos

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    • August 27, 2015 at 8:31 pm
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      The fair is such a big mix of things, from top-name entertainment to judging the best pickles. And food, lots of food. The variety is one of the best things about it.

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  • August 24, 2015 at 10:23 am
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    OMG… love the photos – I would go just to see the piglets. How cute are they!

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    • August 27, 2015 at 8:31 pm
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      The piglets really are adorable.

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  • August 28, 2015 at 8:36 am
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    We live within a day trip to Springfield and have never been to the State Fair. I need to put that on our radar for next year. Thanks for sharing.

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  • September 7, 2015 at 7:57 am
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    4-H fairs can be a lot of fun, especially for the kids who don’t have much contact with farms – it teaches them where their food comes from! The attractions, rides, and food are an added benefit!

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    • September 9, 2015 at 8:36 pm
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      I agree. I remember when my kids little and we were visiting a relative who had chickens. The kids wouldn’t eat the eggs from the chickens. They wanted the kind that come from a grocery store. LOL

      Reply

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