Ohio Receives Reaching for Excellence Award

Support, Engage, Recover theme to assist Ohio farmers recognized with award sponsored by FMC

The National Corn Growers Association announced that the Ohio Corn & Wheat Growers Association (OCWGA) is the winner of the 5th Annual Reaching for Excellence Award sponsored by FMC. This award recognizes the innovative solutions developed by state corn associations to address a variety of challenges, spotlights new approaches and encourages the broader adoption of successful advances in other states facing similar challenges.

“Ohio Corn & Wheat Growers Association strongly believes that farmers are the backbone of our country and this year, they needed more from their trade association,” said Brad Reynolds, communication director for OCWGA. “Together with industry partners, OCWGA launched specific and targeted events and efforts with our “Support, Engage, Recover” campaign.”

Among the many various aspects of this program, OCWGA brought attention to mental health challenges facing farmers, offered casual dinners on the farm designed to provide a respite from the hard-to-swallow realities of the difficult year, and “surprise and delight” visits to members farms that provided an opportunity to check-in on grower priorities and gauge sentiment on a number of issues, including the value of membership.

“Ohio Corn & Wheat values the work our farmers do and we wanted to make sure that, in the face of a difficult year, we were doing everything that we could do to support them and their families,” said Brad Moffitt, OCWGA director of market access and membership. “This recognition is nice…but we are not finished. We plan to continue to reach out to farmers to make sure they are okay and have any and all needed resources.”

The 2020 OCW Reaching for Excellence Award Submission can be viewed here.