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by Susie Taylor

In its third year, the Land and Living exhibit at the Nationwide Agriculture and Horticulture Building at the Ohio State Fair is one of Ohio Farm Bureau's largest outreach efforts. The fair will be held from Aug. 1 to 17 at the Ohio Expositions Center in Columbus.

This year puppies, peeps and barn painting will pull visitors into the interactive exhibit, which will again feature a riparian stream, the popular corn climbing wall, and a sand box with miniature farm implements so the younger set can play while Mom, Dad and older siblings visit the exhibits.

Farm Bureau day at the fair is Thursday, Aug. 14. Throughout the day, announcements encouraging fairgoers to visit the Ag and Hort building will be made.

According to Jim Chakeres, coordinator of the exhibit for Ohio Farm Bureau Federation, the exhibit is focused on modern agriculture and on ensuring consumers that Ohio farmers produce a safe, wholesome product that feeds and clothes the world.

If you have been to the exhibit in the past, you may remember some of the more popular attractions: the stream, climbing wall, soybean bin, sand box and peeps or newly hatched chicks. But don’t think you’ve seen it all because new this year is an exhibit to honor Ohio's bicentennial, Chakeres said. The exhibit will include photographs of each bicentennial barn from every county. Scott Hagan, who painted all 88 barns, will be at the exhibit on Saturday, Aug. 9, to paint a backyard barn that will be auctioned, with the proceeds benefiting the Ohio Farm Bureau Foundation. The Foundation was established in 1985 and is committed to community improvement through its support of special projects that focus on agricultural education, environmental and economic issues.

Also participating in the special bicentennial celebration will be Beth Gorczya, who wrote Bicentennial Barns, and Bill Miller, the book’s photographer. Copies of the book will be available for sale and Gorczya, Miller and Hagan will be available for a time for autographs.

Also new this year is a collaborative exhibit with the Ohio Veterinary Medical Association featuring pets at work, at home and on the farm. Puppies will be displayed as will information about how veterinarians not only work to ensure the health and welfare of family pets, but also work to maintain public health and educate caregivers and livestock producers about best animal care practices.

• Ohio's green industries: horticulture, floriculture and landscaping. As part of this display, each child who visits will be able to pot his or her own plant to take home. This year’s OFBF Children’s Literature Award winning book Oh Say Can You Seed will be featured throughout this exhibit. Each child will take home an instruction sheet on how to care for the potted plant. Other information about Ohio agriculture will be included on the sheet.

• Trains: A working train display will show how agriculture depends on Ohio railways as an efficient, economic way to transport commodities to market.

• Commodities: This will show how raw commodities are turned into everyday products. For example, visitors will see a bushel of corn, then see what products can be produced from it, such as corn flakes, corn syrup and corn oil and ethanol.

"This exhibit is one of the most intensive events we coordinate to bring farmers and consumers closer together," Chakeres said. "And it’s well worth the effort. We get thousands of fairgoers a day who walk through our building just hoping to get out of the sun for a bit and find themselves surrounded by Ohio agriculture. I think they’re pleasantly surprised and go home with a better feeling about Ohio’s farmers and our agricultural industry."