Former Provincial 4-H Club Coordinator Estrella A. Gorres and former Administrative Officer Milagros A. Agustin, both retirees from the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist in Zamboanga del Norte, attended the recent Lake County Fair & 4-H Club at Lake Country Fairgrounds, Grayslake, Illinois, USA.

Gorres and Agustin who were both active in the 4-H Club movement here, have helped poor but deserving farm youths of Zamboanga del Norte become exchange scholars to Hawaii, USA under the Philippine Agricultural Training Program (PATP) and to Japan under Japan Agricultural Exchange Council Association (JAECA).

Under the theme “4-H: The Power of Youth,” various exhibits and contests were conducted during the said occasion, like Diary Junior Livestock Show, Dairy Goat Milking, 4-H Pony and Horse Show, Youth Show Diary Goats, Poultry, Game Birds Judging, 4-H Clubs Projects Judging and Special Youth Livestock Show.

It was also in this five-day activity that they learned important farm methods and modern technologies such as: gasoline can be made from corn called ethanol, soybeans can be made into fuel called biodiesel, the delicious ice cream sundae was invented in Evanstar, Illinois in 1881 and popcorn is its official state snack.

Other interesting information shared by the delegates from the different counties in Illinois, USA were: farmers near Collinsville grow more horseradish than anywhere else in the world, Decator is named Soybean Capital of the world, farmers there produce more than 800-million chicken eggs each year, America’s favorite backyard crop is tomato and over 100 companies in Illinois manufacture candies.