Top couples compete for Florida Farm Bureau’s Excellence in Agriculture Award

Three couples have been selected as finalists in Florida Farm Bureau’s Excellence in Agriculture competition. This competition is open to farmers and ranchers who are under the age of 35 and do not derive the majority of their income from an owned farm operation.

The finalists include John and Emily Eubanks of Alachua County, Earl and Ashley Jones of Gilchrist County and Carlton and Laura Lee Taylor of Polk County.

The Eubanks live in Micanopy on the farm where John was raised. Although they both have careers off the farm, they remain involved in the family’s cow-calf operation. Emily works as an agricultural communicator for the University of Florida/IFAS Center for Landscape Conservation and Ecology. John is a loan specialist with the USDA’s Farm Service Agency.

The Joneses live in Trenton and are involved in the family’s cattle and hay operation. Earl is a field appraiser for the Gilchrist County Property Appraiser. This position requires him to visit area farms to determine their eligibility for the agricultural classification for property taxes. Ashley is a teacher at Bell Elementary School.

The Taylors live in Lakeland and have a cow-calf operation in addition to leasing land to vegetable farmers. Carlton is also involved with his family’s citrus, cattle and ornamental nursery operations. Carlton is a sales representative for beef cattle and dairy herd health products. Laura Lee is assistant director of the Lakeland Economic Development Council.

The winner will be announced during the President’s Celebration and Awards Ceremony at Florida Farm Bureau’s 2009 Annual Meeting at the Hilton Oceanview Resort in Daytona Beach Oct. 29. Contestants are judged on the basis of their involvement in agriculture, their leadership ability, and their participation in Farm Bureau and in the life of their home community. The winner will receive an expense-paid trip to the American Farm Bureau Federation Annual Meeting in January.

Florida Farm Bureau Federation will celebrate 68 years of service to agriculture this year. It is the largest independent agricultural organization in the state with approximately 140,000 member-families, statewide. There are 60 county Farm Bureaus in Florida, where agriculture accounts for $72 billion in annual economic impacts across the state. For more information on the annual meeting, visit http://FloridaFarmBureau.org