Fun on the farm - Experience MBS Series

By: 
Bethany Carson

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What is life like on a modern family farm? The Mehmen family of MBS Family Farms in rural Plainfield invites neighbors to find out. Their series, Experience MBS, an event held September 15-16, 22-23 and 29-30 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., offers loads of family fun and an educational agritourism experience for young and old alike.
     A corn maze will provide excitement and entertainment for visitors. Visitors to the maze are given bags to pick their own squirrel corn. There will be cards to pick up to mark off each portion of the maze as you travel through it. Once a person makes it through all parts of the maze, there is a prize at the end. Kids are invited to play in a corn pile. There will be many activities, from pumpkin bowling and tire hopscotch to ring toss and photo ops.
     A party bus will take visitors on a short tour of the farm to see how the farm works. A video will be shown, and visitors will see the truck lot and learn about their anhydrous plant. The farm is somewhat like a mini-elevator. They’re almost self-sufficient. They use manure from hog buildings they rent out as fertilizer injected into the ground for crops. There are solar panels on the hog facilities to supply energy for the buildings. And there’s even a butterfly garden. Conservation practices are discussed. For the past 10 to 12 years, MBS Farms has hired a third-party auditor to look at and evaluate their farming practices and audit against conservation standards. They have also been preparing for traceability, to help people keep track of where their food comes from.
     On tour, visitors will learn about the jobs created on the farm, and the importance of getting an education in agriculture.      People are needed in the agricultural field and in small towns.
 
Read more in the August 30 edition of the STAR.

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