Kansas state tops 2019 national crops contests
Kansas State University took first place in both the 86th annual Kansas City Collegiate Crops Contest and the 91st annual Chicago Collegiate Crops Contest in November 2019. The University of Wisconsin–Platteville placed second at both contests. Finishing third was Iowa State University at Kansas City and Purdue University at Chicago. Virginia Tech placed fourth at both events. Other teams participating in both contests were the University of Minnesota–Crookston, Murray State University, Oklahoma State University, and South Dakota State University. Michigan State University and the University of Wisconsin–Madison also competed in Chicago.
The top individuals overall in Kansas City were:
- Blake Kirchhoff, Kansas State University
- Noah Winans, Kansas State University
- Nate Dick, Kansas State University
- Spencer Billings, University of Minnesota–Crookston
- Audrey Pelikan, University of Wisconsin–Platteville
- Karissa Kraulik, University of Minnesota–Crookston
- Shannon Lamb, University of Wisconsin–Platteville
- Ben Kolbe, Iowa State University
- Ted Hilgerson, Iowa State University
- Troye Hook, Purdue University
At Chicago, the top individuals were:
- Blake Kirchhoff, Kansas State
- Nate Dick, Kansas State
- Noah Winans, Kansas State
- Spencer Billings, Minnesota–Crookston
- Troye Hooke, Purdue
- Audrey Pelikan, Wisconsin–Platteville
- Lauren Jacobs, Purdue
- Shannon Lamb, Wisconsin–Platteville
- Ben Kolbe, Iowa State
- Wade Scott Reiter, Virginia Tech
First-place individuals in the three contest components in Kansas City were Nate Dick from Kansas State University in Plant and Seed Identification, Spencer Billings from the University of Minnesota–Crookston in Seed Analysis, and Blake Kirchhoff and Noah Winans from Kansas State University in Grain Grading, both with perfect scores. At Chicago, Blake Kirchhoff from Kansas State University placed first in all three contest components.
At Chicago, the contest was held at Loyola University Water Tower Campus. CME Group was the major sponsor and hosted a pre-contest tour at the CME Globex trading center. The top five individuals in Chicago received scholarships from CME Group. Donors of the trophies and plaques for Chicago were GROWMARK and the Society of Commercial Seed Technologists. ASA and CSSA also provided support for contest activities in Chicago.
The American Royal was the coordinating sponsor for the Kansas City contest. Corteva Agriscience was the presenting sponsor for the awards. Additional sponsors were GFG Ag Services, ASA, CSSA, South Dakota Crop Improvement Association, and the Association of Official Seed Analysts. Team scholarships were provided for the top five teams in Kansas City. The competition was held at the National Grain Center where Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS) staff prepared the contest materials and hosted contestants. The pre-contest tour visited FGIS labs at the center as well as Best Harvest Bakery, Innerspace Storage, PGI-Gordon, and the American Royal.
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