ADM Commits $30,000 to Support Agriscience Fair, Middle School Leadership Conferences for Kentucky FFA Members

The Kentucky FFA Foundation is pleased to announce that ADM has committed ,000 to expand opportunities in agriscience and leadership for Kentucky FFA members.

A major multi-national corporation that purchases, transports, and transforms crops, ADM operates a regional hub in Northern Kentucky focused on developing and manufacturing food and beverage ingredients. Its support of the Agriscience Fair and Middle School leadership conferences encourages students to both explore science-based fields and prepare for a future leading those industries.

At the state level, approximately 200 FFA members participate annually in the Agriscience Fair, with many more completing projects at the local level. The Agriscience Fair teaches students how to identify real-world questions and solve them as industry professionals would, using research and the scientific method. Kentucky has consistently had 15-20 students qualify each year as National Agriscience Fair Finalists, with 24 qualifying to compete nationally this year alone. In 2025 a team from Bloomfield Middle School placed 3rd nationally in their area of focus, Food Products and Processing.

Kentucky FFA holds two Middle School Leadership Conferences each March – one at Kentucky State University and the other at the FFA Leadership Training Center in Hardinsburg. Both conferences are planned and presented by FFA State Officers and is often the first opportunity for students to consider what it means for them to pursue a leadership role within their own community.

These conferences have grown since they were started in 2016, with nearly 400 middle school FFA members attending last year. This reflects the tremendous growth in middle school FFA programs across the state. Often middle school agricultural education programs involve most students in a school. This is beneficial because students who may not have elected to take an agriculture class in high school sometimes discover they are passionate about the subject and continue their studies in high school and beyond.

The Kentucky FFA Foundation appreciates ADM’s investment in our members and its commitment to providing opportunities that help students discover their potential. Together, we are creating experiences that are helping prepare our students for the future of agriculture.