By Lura Roti for South Dakota Farmers Union
Teens demonstrated their farm safety knowledge competing in the 2025 South Dakota Farmers Union Farm Safety Quiz Bowl during the South Dakota State FFA Convention held on the campus of South Dakota State University April 4.
FFA teams from Brandon Valley, Canton, Howard and Wessington Springs qualified to compete in the 2025 Farm Safety Quiz Bowl championships during Farmers Union Day at the South Dakota State Fair, August 30.
“It’s important all youth understand how to stay safe on farms and ranches because agriculture is our state’s number one industry – and the work involved can be dangerous,” explained Doug Sombke, President of South Dakota Farmers Union and a fourth-generation Brown County farmer.
Twenty teams competed, answering a diverse set of questions designed to challenge all aspects of farm safety knowledge – from how to safely share the roads with farm equipment, to safe handling of ATVs (all-terrain vehicles), to implementing appropriate safety precautions when cleaning out a grain bin and how to stay safe when working livestock.
“The questions were really tough – I actually didn’t know the answers to some of them and I have lived on a farm all my life,” said Ella Kolousek, the Wessington Springs FFA Chapter Reporter. “Learning about farm safety is a good idea because I can use the information to help me stay safe.”
Kolousek served on the Wessington Springs FFA Quiz Bowl team with Hayes Christensen, Logan Klein and Chase Dunsmore. Canton FFA team members are Conley Winquist, Salvador Mancilla, Bayler Lems and Jack Trumm. Howard FFA team members are Carson Hinker, Lucas Feldhaus, Tom Connor and Mason Jacobson. Brandon Valley FFA team members are Gemma Droptiny, Caitlin Marsh, Landon Steffensen and Joseph Kranz.
“The Farm Safety Quiz Bowl at the State FFA Convention allows FFA members to apply what they’ve learned through real-life experience on the farm. This hands-on learning style reinforces safety practices in an engaging and memorable way,” said Charlene Weber, Howard High School Agriculture Education teacher and FFA Advisor. “As a teacher, I believe it’s incredibly important for students to learn about farm safety in a fun and interactive way, like a quiz bowl, rather than just through textbooks or YouTube videos. When students are actively involved, they retain the information better and are more likely to use it in real-world situations, helping them stay safe while doing the work they love.”
Canton freshman Bayler Lems agreed. “Competing really made me use my head. I live on a farm, and I know this summer I will think more about farm safety because of this contest and the fact that I will be competing at the State Fair.”
And thinking about farm safety is not just for farm kids, his teammate Salvador Mancilla added. “I don’t live on a farm, but I have friends who do. So, it is important for me to understand how to stay safe when I visit my friends’ farms.”
Much of what they learn about farm safety in high school will also benefit them in their careers, explained Howard seniors, Mason Jacobson and Lucas Feldhaus.
“I plan on becoming an electrician and I know I will be doing work on farms, so what I learned about things like grain bin safety I will put to use after high school,” said Jacobson, who plans to attend Mitchell Technical College and major in electrical construction and maintenance this fall.
Feldhaus will also be attending Mitchell Technical College. He will major in agronomy. After college he hopes to return home to farm part-time while working for a cooperative or ag business. As far as he is concerned, farm safety is something to always keep in mind.
“I think farm safety is something you need to keep learning about throughout your career because the ag world is evolving with new technologies and equipment,” Feldhaus explained.
Farm safety education is a focus
The FFA Farm Safety Quiz Bowl is one of many ways the state’s largest agriculture organization works to educate youth about farm safety.
Keeping farm safety top of mind is the goal of programming South Dakota Farmers Union (SDFU) develops for their annual summer camps that are held across the state and attended by more than 1,000 youth each summer.
Farmers Union also designed an interactive Farm Safety Trailer to bring the message of farm safety to schools, fairs and community 4-H and FFA events, explains Karla Hofhenke, Executive Director for South Dakota Farmers Union. “Kids learn best when they are having fun, like with the Quiz Bowl competition, and when they get to engage,” Hofhenke said. “So, we made sure each safety lesson exhibited in this trailer engages youth in a hands-on activity.”
For example, in the Farm Safety Trailer youth can try on a safety harness while learning about grain bin safety; drive an ATV simulator to learn how to safely drive an ATV and through the 3-D model farm, they can learn about high-risk areas of the farm and how to be safe.
Since it hit the road in 2018, thousands of South Dakota youth have visited the Farm Safety Trailer.
To learn more about South Dakota Farmers Union youth programming, and sign up for summer camps, visit www.sdfu.org.
