FOR RELEASE:
July 20, 2007

For more information contact:
Scott Keith, Livestock and Forage Program Manager
Wyoming Business Council
Phone: 307.237.4696

Wyoming State Fair Hay Show adds new award categories

DOUGLAS – Organizers for the Wyoming State Fair Hay Show are offering new categories and prizes at this year’s State Fair Aug. 13-14 in Douglas.

The Hay Show displays Wyoming’s high quality dairy alfalfa, mixed hays for the cow-calf producer and the best grass hay for the high-end horse marketplace. This year the Wyoming Business Council will select the top five winners in the extreme alfalfa class for upper end hay and will pay the entry fees for the World Dairy Expo and World Forage Superbowl in Madison, WI on Oct. 2. Entries in the extreme alfalfa class have a Relative Feed Value (RFV) of over 250.

In addition to the extreme alfalfa class, the Hay Show has renamed its best of show award the Alan M. Gray Best of Show Award. Gray has been Wyoming’s alfalfa expert for over 20 years. This year the winner will receive a $200 award and a plaque from University of Wyoming (UW) Experiment Stations and UW Cooperative Extension Service. Judges will analyze the best in show entries based on categories such as forage analysis, physical qualities, appearance, leaf retention and leaf capture.

“The quality of Wyoming’s alfalfa has improved because of Alan M. Gray and his dedication to the industry over the years,” said Scott Keith, Wyoming Business Council Livestock and Forage Program Manager. “This is why the award is now named for him.”

The Hay Show has no entry fee, but producers must have a core analysis of their hay performed at Ward Labs a minimum of two weeks before State Fair. Local UW extension offices can help with the core analysis. Also, producers must fill out an entry application in the Wyoming State Fair Premium Book or download the application from the Web site at www.wystatefair.com.

Hay Show entry will take place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Aug. 13 at the Ag and Natural Resources Center at the State Fairgrounds in Douglas. On Aug. 14, judging will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. with awards for Hay Show winners at 5 p.m.

For more information on the Wyoming State Fair Hay Show, contact Scott Keith at 307.237.4696.

The mission of the Wyoming Business Council is to facilitate the economic growth of Wyoming. For more information, please visit the Web site at www.wyomingbusiness.org.

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