MARIETTA, Ill. (WAND) — Central Illinois made a strong showing among the five Illinois producers to be honored as 2024 Master Farmers at Prairie Farmer magazine’s annual event in Bloomington, Ill., on Thursday, March 28.
The award recognizes exceptional agricultural production skills, commitment to family and service to community.
The 2024 Master Farmers are:
- Chris Hausman, Pesotum
- Malcolm and Susan Head, Blue Mound
- Lou Lamoreux, Lanark
- Gerald Thompson, Colfax
Profiles of each winner will appear online at PrairieFarmer.com as well as the March 2024 Prairie Farmer.
A University of Illinois professor has also been named as a new Honorary Master Farmer this year. Gary Schnitkey is a renowned agricultural economist at the University of Illinois who teaches, conducts research and shares farm management information with farmers across the state via the Farmdoc website, which he pioneered and has authored more than 1,000 articles for. He is one of only 17 Honorary Master Farmers to have been named by the magazine.
“The Master Farmer award is Illinois agriculture’s lifetime achievement award,” says Holly Spangler, Prairie Farmer editor. “These farmers are at the top of their game, and they’ve received this award because they raise good crops and even better families, and they’ve built their communities along the way.”
Prairie Farmer first offered the Master Farmer award nearly 100 years ago, in 1925. Editors have continued the tradition annually since 1968, following a pause initially caused by the Depression. When Editor Clifford Gregory established the Master Farmer program, he felt the award would help give farm people a greater sense of “pride and permanence.” More than 300 Illinois producers have been inducted as Master Farmers or Honorary Master Farmers over the program’s history.
Prairie Farmer is published 11 times a year for Illinois farm families, and its editors provide daily agricultural news at PrairieFarmer.com.
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