The 37th annual Farm City Celebration is proud to announce that three outstanding members of the agriculture community were recognized at the Awards Reception and Dinner Dance hosted by the Farm City Celebration committee and the Butte County Young Farmers and Ranchers on Saturday November 5, 2016 at the Butte Creek Country Club in Chico, Calif. Andy and Janet Bertagna for Agriculture Service, and Butte County Rice Growers Association was awarded the Agri-Business of the year, Butte College Agriculture Department, was awarded for Community Service.

Andy and Janet Bertagna farm almonds and walnuts in the Chico area and have been leaders in supporting agriculture education for youth. Not only have they been long time supporters of the Farm City Celebration, they have also supported local youth through purchasing 4-H and FFA project animals at Silver Dollar Fair and Butte County Fair. Andy was a founding member of the Friends of Agriculture that formed when budget cuts threatened agriculture programs such as FFA at Chico High School. Janet is an active member of the California Women for Agriculture.

Butte County Rice Growers Association (BUCRA) has been a key supporter of the Farm City Celebration for many year. It is also an integral part of the agriculture community providing rice seed, crop input supplies, agronomic advice and drying and storage for area rice growers. BUCRA was founded in 1914, by 400 Northern California farmers and has continued to grow. In 2015, it dried over 470 million pounds of rice for its members.

The Butte College Agriculture Department was founded in 1969 and now serves almost 700 students. Butte College students and faculty are known in the area for being willing to help and leaders in community service. Each year, students from Butte College participate in youth agriculture education programs such as Farm City Celebration Kids Day at the California State University, Chico Farm and the Harvest Festival at the Bidwell Mansion, co-hosting FFA Field Days and much more.

Each year, the Farm City Celebration looks forward to honoring leaders in the community at the Awards Reception and Dinner Dance. This fun event brings the community together for the cause of agriculture education and connecting agriculture and its neighboring urban communities.

For more information about the Farm City Celebration and any of the events, visit www.farmcity.com or call (530)533-1473.