A&M-Commerce Makes Waves at National Collegiate Agriculture Meet

In a place like Texas, there are bound to be a great many farmers and students that want to go into agriculture upon graduating. Texas A&M University-Commerce student Dylan Bacon is one of those students, and he got to prove it when he represented the Texas Farm Bureau at the national Collegiate Agriculture Discussion Meet, which took place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Previously, Bacon had won the TFB Collegiate Discussion Meet, and proceeded to also advance to the second round in the national competition. He was only one among the 53 other students that would advance.

“The experience as a whole—both the contest and the American Farm Bureau Federation FUSION Conference—was fantastic,” Bacon said. “It was not only an opportunity for all of us to compete and further develop our communication skills, but to network with others in agriculture. Farming and ranching are so essential to our survival and way of life, and contests like this push us to become more dynamic and progressive agricultural leaders.”

During the competition, which ran from February 10-13 in Pittsburgh, Bacon talked about how important it was to have a fair and balanced tax policy for the country to benefit the agricultural sector of the economy, along with how the Farm Bureau and other food companies can ensure that consumers can trust the safety and quality of their food.

All of this was done in a 25-minute conversation, which was scored on speaking skills, effective problem-solving, and cooperative communication. The competition was intended to encourage cooperation among young farmers and ranchers.

According to Leader Development Director Whit Weems, “Dylan, along with the other collegiate students, presented innovative ideas on agricultural and consumer-related topics. Their discussions that weekend showed that the next generation of farmers, ranchers and agricultural communicators are engaged on the issues facing agriculture.”