In celebration of National Farm to School Month in October, states throughout the Mountain Plains Region (Colorado, Montana, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming) are competing to see which state can get the most “crunches” into a local apple or other local produce, per capita.

South Dakota State University (SDSU) Extension and the South Dakota Department of Education’s Division of Child and Adult Nutrition Services are partnering to bring this event to the state Oct. 4-8. During that week, South Dakotans are invited to crunch into local produce and help South Dakota win the “Crunch Crown.” “Crunch Off” participants will join students, teachers, farmers, parents, community members and local food enthusiasts in celebrating the wonderful produce South Dakota has to offer.

There are a couple of ways to participate:

1. Host a Crunch Off event. Schools, preschools, day care organizations, offices, families and farms are examples of groups that may be interested in hosting a Crunch Off event. Upon registration, hosts will receive examples of activities to make the crunch engaging and educational for pre-K through high school participants. Hosts can create their event to suit their group, ranging in simply biting into local produce to hosting an assembly with guest speakers. Each Crunch Off event is responsible for finding and supplying local crunchable produce. Resources are available to help connect those interested with area growers.
2. Sell or donate produce to a Crunch Off event. Have a farm or garden with crunchable produce? Consider reaching out to area schools and care centers to sell or donate to their crunch event. Producers may also attend crunch events to educate participants about the farming that went into bringing them the product.

Whether selling or donating produce or hosting a Crunch Off Event, participants will be encouraged to share their Crunch Off photos and videos on social media, using the hashtags #MountainPlainsCrunch and #SouthDakotaCrunch.

“Serving local foods as part of farm to school programs has been shown to increase fruit and vegetable consumption among students,” says Anna Barr, SDSU Extension Farm to School Nutrition Field Specialist and Registered Dietitian. “Getting youth excited about fruits and vegetables sets them up for a healthy future. Also purchasing local foods stimulates the local economy and supports area growers, and it’s health-promoting for all ages to pause and appreciate a piece of local produce.”

Crunchable local produce that can be used for these events includes apples, beets, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, carrots, cucumbers, peppers, pole beans (green beans or snap beans) and peas (snap or snow).

For more information and to register, visit the SDSU Extension Events page (extension.sdstate.edu/events) or contact Anna Barr at Anna.Barr@sdstate.edu or 605- 995-7378.

Also follow SDSU Extension Food and Families and the South Dakota Department of Education on Facebook for more updates and Crunch Off photos.

The 2021 Chamberlain Oacoma Harvest Festival will take place on Saturday, September 25th in the Chamberlain Oacoma area.  It will feature a food and craft vendor fair, “Punkin Chunkin”, and many fun family activities.  For more information call the Chamberlain Oacoma Chamber of Commerce at 234-4416.

The Wellmark Foundation has notified six South Dakota organizations they will receive Matching Assets to Community Health (MATCH) grants. The grantees are planning projects that can help individuals, families and communities achieve better health through built environment initiatives that encourage physical activity or access to nutritious foods.

“The Wellmark Foundation Small MATCH grant winners are truly being creative in how each is promoting health in their communities,” said Mary Lawyer, The Wellmark Foundation executive director. “From revitalized parks and playgrounds to food pantries and greenhouses, these projects will impact the quality of life and the overall well-being of South Dakotans for generations to come.”

In total Wellmark Foundation is investing $135,780 into South Dakota communities through the 2021 Small MATCH grant program. To ensure community support for these projects, final funding is contingent upon organizations securing 50 percent of the grant award. The required match may be a combination of in-kind donations or services and cash. Organizations have until Nov. 3 to secure their matching funds.

The organizations selected to receive a Wellmark Foundation 2021 Small MATCH grant include:

• City of Canistota, $20,873

Pickleball Courts

After being approached by pickleball enthusiasts in the community including the Canistota Pickleball Group and other players, the City Council resolved to replace the existing tennis courts with new pickleball courts. Grant funds will be used to fund the new courts which will include a new concrete base with game lines, pickleball nets and ground sleeves, fencing and lighting.

• City of Chamberlain, $25,000

Chamberlain Dinosaur Park

The city is using its Small MATCH funds to add a dinosaur fossil playground to the existing park. This will allow children to balance, hop, jump, run and play with the interactive equipment, while learning about the history behind the monstrous bones and prehistoric creatures.

• City of Willow Lake, $25,000

Improving the Playground at Veterans Memorial Park

Willow Lake’s “Patriotic Play” project will replace old playground equipment in the city’s Veterans Memorial Park. The new commercial-grade equipment and play surface is designed for safety, accessibility, durability, and ease of maintenance. Once complete, the remaining length of the park will then be freed up for other outdoor activities such as playing catch, bean bags, or tag.

• Clark County, $25,000

Clark County Activity Center

The new Clark County Activity Center will serve youth and adults of all ages from across the entire community. It includes a large space for youth wrestling, gymnastics, dance, basketball, and taekwondo — activities currently offered in Clark but lack adequate space. The building is also designed with a walking track around its indoor perimeter, providing a safe, nonslip surface for those who want to walk indoors for exercise.

• Edmunds Central School District, $24,907

Ag Innovation Lab

Funds will be used to construct an Ag Innovation Lab that will include a 18′ x 36′ greenhouse and the equipment and materials needed to grow fresh fruit and vegetables using growing benches, environmentally controlled growth tents, hydroponics, and aquaponics. The lab will be utilized throughout the school year for horticulture course work and food science investigations, as well as simply growing produce for the school’s Fresh Fruit and Vegetable program, school lunches and snacks, and other student and community needs.

• Mercy Housing Midwest, $15,000

Rapid City Resident Food Growth and Safety Initiative

This project will launch the Food Growth and Safety Initiative at Mercy Housing Midwest Rapid City properties, providing 270 residents access to on-site food pantries, a community garden, and associated food safety and culinary educational opportunities. While the project will be launched on-site, programming is available to residents and the surrounding community and will include three major components: Food Access, a Community Health and Safety Council, and Food Safety and Culinary Education.

Since 1991, The Wellmark Foundation has provided more than $36.6 million in grant funding to communities across Iowa and South Dakota. To view previous Wellmark Foundation MATCH grant recipients, visit Wellmark.com/Foundation.

Natasha Artz from Fair City Foods in Huron took the top prize at the state’s first-ever “Best Bagger”competition hosted by the South Dakota Retailers Association at the State Fair on Friday, September 3rd.

Sponsored by Associated Wholesale Grocers, the inaugural Best Bagger Competition featured eleven different contestants from across the state. The quickest hands in the grocery business went head-to-head during this fun, fastpaced competition.

“It was an incredible event,” said Retailers Association Exec. Dir. Nathan Sanderson. “I’m proud that the South Dakota
Retailers Association could host this competition at the State Fair, and we’re already looking forward to next year.”

All contestants bagged identical grocery orders and were judged on speed, bag building technique, uniform bag weight,
and personal attitude and appearance.

Artz was the South Dakota Best Bagger Competition winner and received an expenses-paid trip to compete at the National Grocers Association’s National Competition in Las Vegas, N.V., plus a $200 cash prize. Abby Walder from HyVee in Sioux Falls took home second place and $150, and Jacob Hone also from a Sioux Falls Hy-Vee Store was awarded $100 and third place.

When asked about why Artz decided to compete in Friday’s event she explained that she was excited that something new was offered for the grocery industry and thought “why not try!” As a hometown contestant, Artz was surrounded by friends, family, and coworkers as she celebrated her victory.

Participants included: Natasha Artz from Fair City Foods in Huron, Jacob Boesel from Hy-Vee in Sioux Falls, Devon Enno
from Buche Foods in Mission, Theresa Gottlob from Coborn’s in Mitchell, Jacob Hone from Hy-Vee in Sioux Falls, Tyler
Jaeger from Hy-Vee in Sioux Falls, Ricky Kohlmeyer from Coborn’s in Huron, Brian Kalenda from Buche Foods in Gregory,
Kara Meisenhoelder from CashSmart in Scotland, Nicolaus Nelson from Cahoy’s General Store in Bonesteel, Abby
Waldner from Hy-Vee in Sioux Falls.

Look for the second annual Best Bagger Competition at the 2022 South Dakota State Fair!
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The South Dakota Cattlemen’s Foundation just announced that the Fed Cattle Challenge program is open for registration. The Fed Cattle Challenge provides an opportunity for youth (14 to 18 years old) to learn about the science and economics of finishing cattle by participating in a calf finishing program. Participants will understand the process for finishing cattle through ownership of three head of cattle at a custom feedlot, receive curriculum on twelve topics related to cattle feeding, calculate a closeout and present what they have learned to a panel.

Awards for the top three participants will be awarded. First place will receive $1,500, second place will receive $1,000, and third place will receive $500 award. “The Fed Cattle Program was designed to give students a more in-depth look at the ins and outs of the cattle feeding industry and help encourage young people to consider going into the business with a good foundation and understanding of how it works,” said Roxanne Knock, South Dakota Cattlemen’s Foundation board member. Each participant will own a percentage of a pen approximately equal to 3 head of cattle from a pen at Winner Circle Feedyard.

The participant will be responsible for a 30% equity down payment and the feedyard will finance the remaining value of the cattle and expenses. Following harvest, proceeds from the cattle will be divided among the owners of the cattle and the three head of cattle participants own, minus the divided costs. Participants will be given the information and closeout template they need to understand, complete and present to the panel. Registration for the Fed Cattle

Challenge closes September 30, 2021. For more information please visit www.sdcattlemensfoundation.com/education/fed-cattle-challenge About the South Dakota Cattlemen’s Foundation The South Dakota Cattlemen’s Foundation facilitates the generosity of the beef industry to educate and build trust with the state’s consumers, ensuring the industry’s long-term viability. The development of the Fed Cattle Challenge program is a part of our mission to support the youth that are sincerely interested in careers in the cattle industry.

Governor Kristi Noem and the South Dakota Department of Public Safety provided the full investigation file into the fatal crash involving South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg and the late Joseph Boever to Spencer Gosch, the Speaker of the South Dakota House of Representatives. The file includes a minimal amount of redacted information referring to unrelated investigations and/or security matters.

“This investigation file represents incredible work by our excellent law enforcement officers, and I thank them for their efforts,” said Governor Noem. “The remarkable detail in this investigation file will assist the House in its important work of considering whether to proceed with impeachment articles for the Attorney General.”

The cover letter from Craig Price, Secretary of the Department of Public Safety, to Speaker Gosch, which is contemporaneously being released, sets out generally what is included within the investigation file. You can read that letter here.

Speaker Gosch said in March that the House would wait until after “the judicial system is able to do its job” to proceed with articles of impeachment against Ravnsborg. The South Dakota Sheriff’s Association, the South Dakota Police Chiefs Association, and the South Dakota Fraternal Order of Police previously called on him to resign.

There will be a new round of the Chase the Ace chamber promotion. as well few changes this time around.  Drawings will be held on Tuesday mornings at 10:30 starting on Tuesday, September 14. The Chamber is starting the Jackpot at $500.

The South Dakota State University (SDSU) Calf Value Discovery Program will accept steers at two delivery times this year due to dry conditions. The early delivery date is set for Oct. 5, while the regularly scheduled time will be Nov. 3 and 4. For the Oct. 5 delivery date to occur, a minimum of 60 head must be registered due to pen size.

Established in 1990, the Calf Value Discovery Program provides cow/calf producers with the value of their cattle through value-based marketing systems, along with carcass and feedlot performance data that will aid in management decisions that impact the financial bottom line.

“Post-weaning performance influences the price received when calves are marketed at or near weaning,” says Julie Walker, Professor and SDSU Extension Beef Specialist. “Obtaining post-weaning animal and carcass performance data provides producers with additional information to make the best financial and management decisions for their operations.”

The program allows producers to consign a minimum of five steer calves. The minimum weight of steers consigned in October is 425 pounds, while November consigned steers should weigh 500 to 800 pounds. October steers will be backgrounded until November steers are delivered.

Cattle will be fed in an accelerated finishing program at Vander Wal Yards located near Bruce, South Dakota, where SDSU personnel will weigh cattle periodically and send performance updates to their owners. Feed, yardage and veterinary bills will be financed, and any death loss will be shared with participants.

Interested participants in the western region of the state are welcome to drop off cattle at the Cottonwood Research Station, located near Philip, South Dakota, for cattle to be delivered to Vander Wal Yards. More information on drop-off dates can be found below.

According to Walker, cattle will be sold in truckload lots beginning on or around May 15, 2022. All cattle will be sold on a grid price system.

“We encourage producers to have calves arrive at the facility with sufficient vaccination against important disease issues,” Walker says. “The timing and success of vaccinating calves at arrival is less than optimal.”

Sufficient vaccination is considered as:

• 5-way viral (BVD-1, BVD-2, IBR, BRSV, PI3) vaccine
• At least two doses of a killed 5-way; or
• At least one dose of a MLV 5-way
• Mannheimia haemolytica vaccine: one dose
• 7-way clostridial vaccine: two doses

Cattle must also arrive dehorned, castrated and healed.

Registration for the October delivery closes Sept. 20 and November delivery ends Oct. 15. Delivery of steers to the Cottonwood Research Station (October vs. November) will depend on the preference of the majority of producers planning to deliver to Cottonwood. Cattle will only be received at the Cottonwood Research Station on one day between 8 a.m. and noon MT. Steers can be delivered directly to Vander Wal Yards on either Tuesday, Oct. 5 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. CDT, Wednesday, Nov. 3 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. or Thursday, Nov. 4 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Calves delivered to the Cottonwood drop-off location must be brand inspected prior to arriving, as there will not be a brand inspector present at that location.

For more information, go to the Calf Value Discovery Program page. (extension.sdstate.edu/calf-value-discovery-program). If you have any additional questions or would like to register, please contact Walker at Julie.Walker@sdstate.edu or 605-688-5458, SDSU Extension Beef Feedlot Management Associate Warren Rusche at Warren.Rusche@sdstate.edu or 605-688-5452, or SDSU Extension Cow/Calf Field Specialist Kiernan Brandt at Kiernan.Brandt@sdstate.edu or 605-882-5140.