Capital Farm Credit’s GROW your AgriRoots contest opens for agricultural producers on April 15, with $50,000 in award money up for grabs for rising stars in agriculture, as well as trailblazers.
The GROW your AgriRoots contest was established to award outstanding agribusinesses with financial support to continue to grow their operations. The winners are those who excel in their field, with selection based on applicants’ efforts in agriculture, financial character, leadership, community involvement, continuing education and sustainability practices.
This year’s award categories are Rising Star and Trailblazer. Rising Star applicants have less than two years of experience, while Trailblazers have between two and 10 years of experience.
Applications will open on April 15, 2025, for online submission and will close on June 20, 2025. All applications must be received online before midnight on June 20, to be eligible for awards.
In 2024, four winners were chosen to receive $10,000 – two relatively new farmers and two more experienced farmers. Finalists were awarded $1,000, for a total of $50,000 in prize money.
The top winners were:
- Katherine Johnson and Shaun Maier: First-generation ranchers who have expanded their registered Angus seed stock and commercial beef cattle operations.
- Caitlin and Kevin Book with Kevin Book Farms: A dynamic duo farming approximately cattle, corn, cotton, and wheat in Central Texas.
- Matt Barattino with Wild Texan Farm: A veteran who established a sustainable farm offering pasture-raised chickens, eggs, pork, and lamb in Jourdanton, Texas.
- Charlie Agar with Charlie Bee Company: Beekeeper Charlie Agar manages 400 bee hives in and around the family homestead in Seguin, Texas where he and wife Kaye operate a mom-and-pop bee school, retail store and agritourism site on 15 acres.
For more information regarding the GROW your AgriRoots program and a chance to apply visit GROW your AgriRoots (capitalfarmcredit.com).
About Capital Farm Credit
For more than 100 years, Capital Farm Credit has supported rural communities and agriculture with reliable, consistent credit and financial services that include home, land and agribusiness lending; equipment and facilities leasing, and insurance for crops and livestock. Capital Farm Credit is a proud member of the Farm Credit System with more than 600 employees, serving over 24,500 members and more than $13 billion in loan volume.
Since 2006, CFC has returned $2.9 billion in combined cash and allocated equities to its members. Headquartered in College Station, Texas, Capital Farm Credit has offices serving 192 of Texas’ 254 counties. For more information about financial services or our cooperative returns program, visit CapitalFarmCredit.com.