Sugarbeet growers have always been innovative. The Grower Idea Contest was initiated to attract and disseminate ideas that led to innovations resulting in improved production efficiency. Ideas were willingly shared and adopted by many growers. Adoption of ideas generally resulted in higher yields, economic savings, improved safety, and better quality of life for the growers and their communities. Extension educators in many fields can use such contests to encourage development and dissemination of innovative practices

Khan, Mohamed FR

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The Journal of Extension Volume 43 Number 1 Article 28 2-1-2005 Using a Contest to Attract and Disseminate Innovative Production Practices Mohamed FR Khan North Dakota State University & University of Minnesota, mkhan@ndsuext.nodak.edu This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License. Recommended Citation Khan, M. F. (2005). Using a Contest to Attract and Disseminate Innovative Production Practices. The Journal of Extension, 43(1), Article 28. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/joe/vol43/iss1/28 This Tools of the Trade is brought to you for free and open access by the Conferences at TigerPrints. It has been accepted for inclusion in The Journal of Extension by an authorized editor of TigerPrints. For more information, please contact kokeefe@clemson.edu. 	 JOEHOME JOURNAL GUIDELINES ABOUT	JOE CONTACT NATIONAL	JOB	BANKCurrent	Issues Back	IssuesFebruary	2005	//	Volume	43	//	Number	1	//	Tools	of	the	Trade	//	1TOT50Using	a	Contest	to	Attract	and	Disseminate	InnovativeProduction	PracticesAbstractSugarbeet	growers	have	always	been	innovative.	The	Grower	Idea	Contest	was	initiated	toattract	and	disseminate	ideas	that	led	to	innovations	resulting	in	improved	production	efficiency.Ideas	were	willingly	shared	and	adopted	by	many	growers.	Adoption	of	ideas	generally	resultedin	higher	yields,	economic	savings,	improved	safety,	and	better	quality	of	life	for	the	growersand	their	communities.	Extension	educators	in	many	fields	can	use	such	contests	to	encouragedevelopment	and	dissemination	of	innovative	practices.	IntroductionIn	eastern	North	Dakota	and	Minnesota,	there	are	three	sugar	cooperatives	where	the	growers	ownthe	land,	machinery,	and	equipment	for	sugarbeet	production	and	the	factories	for	processing	thesugarbeet.	The	sugar	cooperatives	are	American	Crystal	Sugar	Company,	with	five	factories,	andMinn-Dak	Farmers	Cooperative	and	Southern	Minnesota	Beet	Sugar	Cooperative,	each	with	onefactory.	The	cooperatives	are	comprised	of	3,600	growers	producing	about	50%	of	U.S.	beet	sugar(Anon.,	2002).	The	sugarbeet	industry	contributes	$2.3	B	in	economic	activity	to	the	bi-state	area(Bangsund	&	Leistritz,	1998).Specialized	sugarbeet	machinery	and	equipment	are	manufactured	by	a	small	group	of	companiesmainly	in	sugarbeet	production	states.	Most	growers	modify	their	machinery	and	equipment	tofurther	improve	production	efficiency.	In	1978,	the	Sugarbeet	Research	and	Education	Board	ofMinnesota	and	North	Dakota	(SBREB)	initiated	the	Grower	Idea	Contest.	The	contest	provided	aforum	whereby	growers	willingly	submitted	ideas	to	be	shared	with	other	growers.	The	ideas	weredisseminated	at	annual	sugarbeet	seminars	and	in	the	Sugarbeet	Research	and	Extension	Reportsas	information	and	for	adoption	or	further	modification	and	adoption	by	fellow	growers.Rules,	Ratings,	and	RewardsThe	grower	idea	contest	was	managed	by	a	committee	comprised	of	one	grower	and	onemanagement	representative	from	each	of	the	three	sugar	cooperatives	and	two	Extensionsugarbeet	specialists.	The	SBREB	funded	the	contest.	In	August,	growers	were	invited	to	submitideas	they	had	successfully	implemented	in	improving	their	production	practices.	The	entryprovided	the	following	information:Title	of	idea;Description	of	the	idea,	how	it	came	about,	how	it	worked;Number	of	seasons	and	acres	where	idea	was	used;Cost	of	implementing	the	idea;Benefits	in	terms	of	financial	savings,	increased	efficiency,	improved	safety;	andMohamed	F.	R.	KhanExtension	Sugarbeet	SpecialistNorth	Dakota	State	University	&	University	of	MinnesotaFargo,	North	Dakotamkhan@ndsuext.nodak.eduPhotographs	that	illustrated	the	idea.Areas	of	production	that	were	of	particular	interest	included:Improving	plant	stand,Nitrogen	management,Environmentally	friendly	practices,Energy	savings,Reduced	tillage	systems,Equipment	modifications,Maximizing	yields,Improved	safety,	andReducing	harvest	losses.Growers	generally	submitted	their	ideas	through	their	agriculturists	who	ensured	that	the	entriesfollowed	requested	guidelines.	About	10	to	20	ideas	were	submitted	annually.	The	contestcommittee	rated	all	the	ideas	based	on:Quality	of	the	entry,Originality,Simplicity,Adaptability,Importance	to	the	industry,	andEconomics.Growers	determined	the	winners	by	ranking	the	ideas	presented	at	the	annual	winter	seminars.Generous	cash	prizes	were	awarded	to	winners,	who	were	recognized	at	the	annual	InternationalSugarbeet	Institute	(ISBI)	attended	by	several	thousand	growers	and	allied	industryrepresentatives.	The	winning	entries	were	also	highlighted	at	the	North	Dakota	State	Universityand	University	of	Minnesota	exhibition	booths	at	the	ISBI.	Agriculturists	encouraged	and	assistedgrowers	with	good	ideas	to	submit	entries	to	the	contest.	Agriculturists	who	assisted	entry	winnersalso	received	cash	prizes	and	were	recognized.	All	ideas	submitted,	with	permission	by	theentrants,	were	published	in	the	annual	Sugarbeet	Research	and	Extension	Reports.DiscussionThe	Grower	Idea	Contest	served	to	inform	and	educate	growers	of	production	practices	that	fellowgrowers	had	successfully	implemented.	Some	of	the	ideas	were	further	developed	andcommercialized.	Most	successful	ideas	were	usually	very	quickly	and	widely	adopted	by	growersand	became	part	of	sugarbeet	production	practices.	Some	examples	of	grower	ideas	widelyadopted	in	the	industry	include	the	use	of	mud	removers	on	wheels	of	trucks	at	harvest	and	the"Safety-T	Pull"	used	in	safely	pulling	machines	and	equipment	stuck	in	fields.	Some	growersmodified	ideas	to	suit	their	particular	situation.	Growers	interested	in	a	particular	idea	wouldcontact	the	developer	of	the	idea	through	the	Extension	sugarbeet	specialists	or	fieldagriculturists.Sugarbeet	acreage	in	Minnesota	and	North	Dakota	increased	by	over	250%	from	the	early	1970sto	2003.	Growers	were	able	to	cope	with	the	increased	acreage	by	quickly	adoptingmechanization.	The	Grower	Idea	Contest	played	a	significant	role	in	growers	sharing	ideas	quickly,which	enhanced	mechanized	activities	in	sugarbeet	production	(Youngquist,	1989).The	attributes	of	the	Grower	Idea	Contest	that	contributed	to	its	success	are	as	follows.The	ideas	were	developed	and	proven	by	fellow	growers.The	contest	was	voluntary.	Growers	willingly	shared	their	ideas	that	benefited	other	growers.Growers	were	interested	in	The	Grower	Idea	Contest;	the	contest	was	a	well-attended	featureat	all	winter	seminars.Sugarbeet	growers	generally	very	quickly	adopted	new	and	proven	ideas,	practices	andtechnology.Because	most	growers	were	shareholders,	all	benefited	from	improvements	in	the	industry.Possible	Usefulness	of	Contests	for	EducatorsEducators	could	use	contests	to	share	tried	and	proven	practices,	skills,	or	technology	withclientele	having	similar	interests.Contests	could	be	planned	and	implemented	to	attract	the	attention	and	develop	interests	ofparticular	target	groups.	For	example,	if	a	low	income	group	of	clients	were	interested	inusing	a	low	carbohydrate	diet,	a	contest	could	focus	on	developing	and	judging	recipes	of	lowcarbohydrate,	low	cost	meals	that	are	well	presented	and	tasty.Contests	could	be	used	to	provide	possible	solutions	to	specific	situations.	For	example,educators	working	with	organic	producers	could	develop	a	contest	to	share	techniques	ormethodologies	used	to	manage	specific	problems,	such	as	pest	control.ReferencesAnonymous.	(2000).	Sugar	and	sweetener,	situation	and	outlook	yearbook.	Economic	ResearchService,	United	States	Department	of	Agriculture,	May	2000,	SSS-228.Bangsund,	D.	A.,	&	Leistritz,	F.	L.	(1998).	Economic	contribution	of	the	sugarbeet	industry	to	NorthDakota	and	Minnesota.	In:	1998	sugarbeet	research	and	Extension	reports,	Cooperative	ExtensionService,	North	Dakota	State	University,	29,	160-179.Youngquist,	B.	E.	(1989).	International	sugarbeet	institute,	1963-1989.	University	of	Minnesota.Copyright	©	by	Extension	Journal,	Inc.	ISSN	1077-5315.	Articles	appearing	in	the	Journal	become	the	property	of	theJournal.	 Single	 copies	 of	 articles	may	 be	 reproduced	 in	 electronic	 or	 print	 form	 for	 use	 in	 educational	 or	 trainingactivities.	Inclusion	of	articles	in	other	publications,	electronic	sources,	or	systematic	large-scale	distribution	may	bedone	only	with	prior	electronic	or	written	permission	of	the	Journal	Editorial	Office,	joe-ed@joe.org.If	you	have	difficulties	viewing	or	printing	this	page,	please	contact	JOE	Technical	Support©	Copyright	by	Extension	Journal,	Inc.	ISSN	1077-5315.	Copyright	Policy

Using a Contest to Attract and Disseminate Innovative Production Practices

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Using a Contest to Attract and Disseminate Innovative Production Practices

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