BROWNSTOWN — Jackson County 4-H youth have earned top honors in Southeastern Indiana for their community relief efforts, placing third overall in a competitive statewide initiative to combat local food insecurity.
Organized by financial cooperative Farm Credit Mid-America and consumer lender Rural 1st, the annual “Fight the Hunger, Stock the Trailer” food drive challenge mobilized 40 county fairs across the state this summer. Participating youth groups collected a collective total of 181,152 pounds of non-perishable food to stock 52 food pantries statewide.
Jackson County 4-H members gathered 14,934 pounds of food during their county fair drive, claiming the highest collection total across the Southeastern Indiana region. Statewide, Jackson County finished behind first-place LaPorte County, which collected 23,246 pounds, and second-place Miami County.
The county maintains an impressive record in the contest, having never finished outside the top three statewide since the program’s inception. Jackson County previously took home the overall statewide first-place titles in both 2022 and 2024.
Supporting Future Ag Leaders
As the Southeast regional winner, the Jackson County Fair Board will receive $5,000 to invest in youth development and agricultural leadership programs.
Every participating junior county fair board across Indiana received a baseline $500 donation from Farm Credit Mid-America, with top regional performers receiving additional cash awards ranging from $1,000 to $5,000. In total, $52,750 was awarded to county fair boards statewide this season to support future agricultural programming.
According to organizers, the dual goal of the initiative is to alleviate food shortages while cultivating civic responsibility among young leaders.
“With more than 1 million Hoosiers facing hunger, seeing Indiana youth rally their communities to help address that challenge is a powerful example of neighbors supporting neighbors,” said Natasha Cox, senior vice president of agricultural lending for Farm Credit Mid-America in Indiana.
Regional Results Breakdown
Contributions were recorded across five Indiana regions:
- Southeastern Indiana: Jackson County led the regional effort with 14,934 pounds, followed by Harrison County (6,920 lbs) and Clark County (3,010 lbs).
- Northern Indiana: LaPorte County led both the region and the state with 23,246 pounds, followed by Lake County (8,660 lbs) and Fulton County (5,780 lbs).
- West Central Indiana: Miami County posted the region’s top total with 18,298 pounds, followed by Howard County (10,446 lbs) and Benton County (7,760 lbs).
- Southwest Indiana: Monroe County anchored the region with 9,439 pounds, followed by Morgan County (4,520 lbs) and Putnam County (3,880 lbs).
- East Central Indiana: Wabash County led regional efforts with 8,416 pounds, followed by Wells County (4,544 lbs) and Huntington County (1,740 lbs).
All donated food collected during the fair season remains in the local communities where it was gathered to supply local food pantries and community kitchens.
