The 2008 Merced County Fair really rocked according to fairgoers and now the “Come Rock With The Flock” event has gotten international recognition.

The Merced County Fair has received two Agricultural Awards of Excellence from the International Association of Fairs and Expositions (IAFE), headquartered in Springfield, Mo.

The fair’s Schools Involvement Project received a third place award in the category of Special or Specific Agricultural Educational Program for the Fairgoing Public, for fairs with up to 100,000 in attendance. The 2008 IAFE Agricultural Awards of Excellence are sponsored by John Deere.

The project, based on the fair’s annual agricultural commodity theme -- sheep in 2008 -- promotes ag literacy in the classroom. Fair staff develop, assemble and distribute free learning kits that teach Merced County students from preschoolers through sixth graders about farm animals and crops.

The classroom learning kits included instructions and materials to create sheep and other farm animals out of a sawhorse frame and paper mache. This year 24 Schools Involvement Project animals were entered, judged and displayed at fairtime. Teachers can keep all the free educational materials, which meet state curriculum standards.

The fair also received a 2008 IAFE Agricultural Award of Excellence, third place, for the Milk Producer’s Contest, in the Special or Specific Event for Agricultural Exhibitors category.

The fair celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Haydn J. “Mickey” Sartori Grade A Milk Producers’ Contest in May. The annual event sponsored by the fair is held for educational purposes and as an incentive for milk producers who don’t distribute their own products, but sell them in bulk to companies for processing and distribution. The competition’s goal is to give producers an opportunity to demonstrate their skills in producing high-grade milk and to recognize their abilities. The Creamery Awards are presented to the highest scoring milk producers.

The contest, which is reportedly the largest of its kind west of the Mississippi River, is limited to dairies in Merced, Madera, Stanislaus, San Joaquin and Sacramento Counties. There were 642 entries in this year’s competition.

There are a total of 13 agriculture award categories, each divided into five divisions by attendance, that a fair or expo can enter. The entries are evaluated and judged by a team of industry leaders. These individuals are selected from the membership of IAFE, which has more than 3,200 members around the globe.

The IAFE is a voluntary, non-profit corporation, organizing state, provincial, regional, and county agricultural fairs, shows, exhibitions, and expositions. Its associate members include state and provincial associations of fairs, non-agricultural expositions and festivals, associations, corporations, and individuals engaged in providing products and services to its members, all of whom are interested in the improvement of fairs, shows, expositions, and allied fields.

“These honors are very prestigious in the world of fairs and expositions and I’m proud that the Merced County Fair continues to be recognized for our accomplishments,” said Merced County Fair CEO Robin Hauck.

The IAFE began in 1885 with a half dozen fairs. Today, the IAFE represents more than 1,300 fairs around the world, and more than 1,300 members from allied fields. Throughout the years, the IAFE has remained true to its purpose of promoting and encouraging the development and improvement of fairs, shows, and expositions.

The awards were presented during the Agricultural Awards breakfast on Dec. 16 during the 118th annual IAFE Convention in Las Vegas, Nev.

For more information, call 722-1507 or email to Info@MercedCountyFair.com or fax at 722-3773. Visit the 2009 Merced County Fair’s web site, www.MercedCountyFair.com