Quality Assurance

Last Chance: QA Instructor Training for Advisors is April 26th

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2023 Fairfield County Quality Assurance: Instructor Training for 4-H and FFA Advisors, Superintendents, and Show Committee Members

Quality Assurance is an annual Ohio Department of Agriculture (see 901-19-07 of Ohio Administrative Code) requirement for 4-H and FFA youth to exhibit at the Fairfield County Junior Fair who are enrolled in beef (breeding and market), goats (dairy, meat, market, & pygmy),rabbits (market and breeding – this does not include pet rabbits), sheep (breeding and market), dairy cattle (breeding and feeders),poultry (breeding and market), hogs, and alpacas/llamas. Fairfield County youth must attend a qualified Quality Assurance Clinic by June 30th of the current year to be eligible to show at the 2023 Fairfield County Junior Fair. Youth who wish to show in a Junior Livestock Show at the Ohio State Fair should have QA completed by June 1st, 2023.

We will continue the same process of allowing 4-H club volunteers/FFA chapter advisors to teach QA at the club/chapter level IN-PERSON. We are looking for interested “Assistant Instructors” to be trained (and “certified”) to educate exhibitors on the required Good Production Practices (GPP’s) to be covered in 2023. As a certified Assistant Instructor, you will be able to teach Quality Assurance at the club/chapter level for 2023 after completing this training. We will also be looking for trained individuals to help with our countywide make-up dates on Saturday, May 6th (9:00 – 10:30 a.m.) or Sunday, May 21st (12:00 – 1:30 p.m.) at the fairgrounds.

All 4-H Advisors, FFA Advisors, and Show Committee Members are invited to attend the QA Instructor Training. Please share with your fellow advisors to be sure they know about this information.

The final QA instructor trainings will be: Wednesday, April 26th at 6:30 p.m. at the Ag Center/Extension Office.

Please RSVP to Leslie Cooksey at cooksey.25@osu.edu or call the Extension Office at 740-653-5419.

 At the training, you will:

  1. Learn the 10 Good Production Practices of Quality Assurance Education and which GPP’s need to be covered for 2023.
  2. Learn the documentation process planned for 2023. This will be structured for smaller groups and more at the club/chapter level.
  3. Receive training materials to cover this year’s required GPP’s for 2023. As an instructor, you will teach market exhibitors about all 10 GPP’s but go in detail on 3 of them. Activities will be provided to you to work through with market exhibitors for the 3 required GPP’s.
  4. Learn more about how record keeping and the accountability of your instruction to clubs and chapters needs to be documented and returned to the OSU Extension Office to ensure market exhibitors will then be eligible to show market livestock at the 2023 Fairfield County Fair. As a reminder, the deadline to complete Quality Assurance for Fairfield County Junior Fair Exhibitors is June 30th of the current year.
  5. Learn about any changes in Ohio Department of Agricultural Fair Exhibition Rules that affect Junior Fair Livestock Exhibitors so that you can share these with all livestock participants in your club/chapter.

If questions, Leslie (cooksey.25@osu.edu) know!

We are looking forward to continuing this process in 2023.

Quality Assurance should be completed for Ohio State Fair exhibitors by June 1st

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Fairfield County 4-H and FFA youth planning to exhibit at the Ohio State Fair must have their Quality Assurance completed by June 1st, 2022. Youth who do not meet this requirement, will have any entries denied.

If youth still need to complete Quality Assurance to meet this requirement and your club/chapter is not planning to host their own QA Clinic by June 1st, we recommend you complete QA through the Youth for the Quality Care of Animals online modules or attend the countywide makeup QA Training May 22nd at NOON.

  • In-Person Countywide Make-Up Clinic: To be held on Sunday, May 22nd from 12:00 p.m.- 1:30 p.m. in the Ed Sands Building at the Fairgrounds. An RSVP is required. Please click here to register for a countywide QA makeup clinic.
  • Online: Youth for the Quality Care of Animals (YQCA). This is the ONLY approved ONLINE Quality Assurance Program for youth in Ohio. For 2022, this web-based course has been approved by ODA for 8-18 year olds.
    • Go to  https://yqcaprogram.org/ for the training and quiz.
    • Instructions for using the new website can be found at: 2022 YQCA Website Instructions
    • Exhibitors must complete by June 30, 2022 or they will not be able to show at the Fairfield County Fair.
    • You will need to select the web-based training ($12.00 per member, annually).
    • When you are finished, please send name(s) and certificate number(s) to Leslie Cooksey at cooksey.25@osu.edu.

Attention STATE FAIR livestock/dog/horse exhibitors – PLEASE READ!

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Those who plan to exhibit at the 2022 Ohio State Fair will need to complete their Quality Assurance by June 1st, 2022 (this is a recommended deadline set by the Fairfield County Senior and Junior Fair Boards to meet ODA requirements). Members must also be enrolled at the county level by April 15th in the project(s) they intend to exhibit at the Ohio State Fair. Our office will be asked to verify both QA  completion and that members are enrolled in the correct projects (breeding projects, for example) on all Ohio State Fair junior livestock entries.

Ohio State Fair dates are July 27 – August 7, 2022. Entries will be due by 1:00 p.m. June 21st (online). Here is the link to the Ohio State Fair livestock website.

4-H and FFA members must make OSF entries online at https://ohiostatefair.com/livestock/

No late OSF entries will be accepted. Additionally, you may review the link above to confirm rules and possession dates for the Ohio State Fair.

Countywide (make-up) Youth Quality Assurance Trainings: May 7th and May 22nd (RSVP required)

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The FIRST of two make-up countywide Quality Assurance Clinics will be held Saturday, May 7th at the Fairfield County Fairgrounds (Ed Sands/Farm Bureau Building) from 9:00-10:30 a.m. Advanced registration is required. RSVP by completing the survey at this link. Please arrive on time so we can get the training started promptly at 9:00 a.m.

Quality Assurance Training is required for all members who will be exhibiting a livestock project at the Fairfield County Fair or Junior Exhibitor at the Ohio State Fair. This includes the following projects: Beef (Breeding & Market); Dairy Breeding & Dairy Feeders; Goats (Dairy, Meat, Market & Pygmy); Poultry (Breeding & Market); Sheep (Breeding & Market); Swine; Rabbits (Breeding & Market), and Alpacas/Llamas.
Members are required to attend one Quality Assurance Clinic taught by a certified instructor. Members should sign in at the beginning of the clinic and complete a questionnaire at the end of the clinic. Please return the questionnaire to an adult instructor at the clinic.

The SECOND QA Clinic will be Sunday, May 22nd from 12:00 – 1:30 p.m., in the Ed Sands/Farm Bureau Building. Advanced registration is required. RSVP by completing the survey at this link.

Ohio 4-H DairyPalooza: April 30th at Wayne County Fairgrounds (registration due April 8)

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Celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the Ohio 4-H DairyPalooza at the Wayne County Fairgrounds on April 30th, 2022. Registration must be postmarked by April 8th and can be found by clicking this link. Youth may also attend this event for the required Quality Assurance training needed to show at the Ohio State Fair and Fairfield County Junior Fair. For an information video (posted on April 2nd), check out the Ohio 4-H Dairy Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/Ohio4HDairyProgram.

Attention Livestock Exhibitors: Quality Assurance Updates

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Quality Assurance is an annual requirement of the Ohio Department of Agriculture for youth taking livestock projects to county and state fair. In Fairfield County, Quality Assurance Training is required for all members who will be exhibiting a livestock project at the Fairfield County Fair or Junior Exhibitor at the Ohio State Fair. Beef (Breeding & Market); Dairy Breeding & Dairy Feeders; Goats (Dairy, Meat, Market & Pygmy); Poultry (Breeding & Market); Sheep (Breeding & Market); Swine; Rabbits (Breeding & Market), and Alpacas/Llamas.

Deadlines for 2022:

  • Youth planning to exhibit at the Ohio State Fair must have their Quality Assurance completed by June 1st, 2022.
  • Youth planning to exhibit at the Fairfield County Fair must have their Quality Assurance completed by June 30, 2022

At this time, Quality Assurance CANNOT be taught by club/chapter advisors to Fairfield County 4-H/FFA youth virtually (i.e. Zoom, Google Hangouts, Google Classrooms, Facebook Live, etc.).

Here are the acceptable options to complete Quality Assurance in 2022:

  • In-Person 4-H Club/FFA Chapter Clinic taught by a 4-H/FFA Advisor who has completed the Quality Assurance Assistant Instructor Training this year (which took place on March 14th and March 28th). Advisors who attended this training will notify their members of their club/chapter QA Clinic date and will be responsible for getting all QA paperwork submitted to the Extension Office by the appropriate deadlines.
  • In-Person Countywide Make-Up Clinics: To be held on Saturday, May 7th from 9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. and Sunday, May 22nd from 12:00 p.m.- 1:30 p.m. in the Ed Sands Building at the Fairgrounds. An RSVP is required. Please click here to register for a countywide QA makeup clinic.
  • In-Person Beef Quality Assurance: Members who complete an in-person BQA taught by a certified BQA instructor must submit documentation to Leslie Cooksey at cooksey.25@osu.edu.
  • In-Person Pork Quality Assurance: Members who complete an in-person PQA taught by a certified PQA advisor must submit documentation to Leslie Cooksey at cooksey.25@osu.edu. Youth MUST be age 14 or older (current age) to complete in-person PQA. Youth will receive a PQA certification number from the National Pork Board upon completion.
  • Online: Youth for the Quality Care of Animals (YQCA). This is the ONLY approved ONLINE Quality Assurance Program for youth in Ohio. For 2022, this web-based course has been approved by ODA for 8-18 year olds.
    • Go to  https://yqcaprogram.org/ for the training and quiz. 3
    • Instructions for using the new website can be found at: 2022 YQCA Website Instructions
    • Exhibitors must complete by June 30, 2022 or they will not be able to show at the Fairfield County Fair.
    • You will need to select the web-based training ($12.00 per member, annually).
    • When you are finished, please send name(s) and certificate number(s) to Leslie Cooksey at cooksey.25@osu.edu.

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Detected in Backyard Flock in Franklin County

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REYNOLDSBURG, OH (March 30, 2022) — Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) has been detected in a backyard chicken flock in Franklin County. The positive detection was confirmed by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS). The samples were first tested at the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory and confirmed at the APHIS National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa.

HPAI is a highly contagious virus that spreads quickly and can be fatal to flocks and devastating to poultry owners, both commercial and non-commercial.

State officials quarantined the affected premise, and birds on the property will be depopulated to prevent the spread of the disease. Birds from the flock will not enter the food system.  Federal and State partners are working jointly on additional surveillance and testing in areas around the affected flock. Surveillance activities will be conducted in a 10-kilometer zone around the infected premise.

HPAI can infect poultry (such as chickens, turkeys, pheasants, quail, domestic ducks, geese, and guinea fowl) and is carried by free flying waterfowl such as ducks, geese, and shorebirds. The recent HPAI detections do not present an immediate public health concern, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. No human cases have been detected in the United States. As a reminder, the proper handling and cooking of all poultry and eggs to an internal temperature of 165 ˚F is recommended as a general food safety precaution.

“Enhanced Biosecurity is the number one preventive measure against avian influenza,” State Veterinarian Dr. Dennis Summers said. “HPAI can infect any size flock. We urge all poultry owners to intensify their biosecurity and best management practices.”

Biosecurity and best management practices include:

  • Prevent contact with wild birds and waterfowl. Keep birds indoors when possible.
  • Keep visitors to a minimum.Only allow those who care for your poultry to have contact with them and make sure they follow biosecurity principles.
  • Wash your hands before and after contact with live poultry. Use soap and water. If using a hand sanitizer, first remove manure, feathers, and other materials from your hands.
  • Provide disposable boot covers (preferred) and/or disinfectant footbaths for anyone having contact with your flock.If using a footbath, remove all droppings, mud or debris from boots and shoes using a long-handled brush BEFORE stepping in. Always keep it clean.
  • Establish a rodent and pest control program. Deliver, store, and maintain feed, ingredients, bedding, and litter to limit exposure to and contamination from wild animals.
  • Use drinking water sourced from a contained supply (well or municipal system). Do not use surface water for drinking or cleaning.
  • Clean and disinfect tools and equipment before moving them to a new poultry facility. Trucks, tractors, tools, and equipment should be cleaned and disinfected prior to exiting the property. Do not move or reuse anything that cannot be cleaned.
  • Look for signs of illness. Monitor egg production and death loss, discoloration and/or swelling of legs, wattles and combs, labored breathing, reduced feed/water consumption.

If you notice any symptoms or unexpected deaths in your flock, please report them immediately to the Ohio Poultry Association (614.882.6111), or the Ohio Department of Agriculture (regular business hours: 614.728.6220; after hours: 888.456.3405).

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Ohio Department of Agriculture, Office of Communication

(614) 752-9817     communications@agri.ohio.gov 

Shelby Croft, (614) 752-9817, shelby.croft@agri.ohio.gov

Last Chance: QA Instructor Training for Advisors is March 28th

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2022 Fairfield County Quality Assurance: Instructor Training for 4-H and FFA Advisors, Superintendents, and Show Committee Members

Quality Assurance is an annual Ohio Department of Agriculture (see 901-19-07 of Ohio Administrative Code) requirement for 4-H and FFA youth to exhibit at the Fairfield County Junior Fair who are enrolled in beef (breeding and market), goats (angora, dairy, meat, market, & pygmy),rabbits (market and breeding – this does not include pet rabbits), sheep (breeding and market), dairy cattle (breeding and feeders),poultry (breeding and market), hogs, and alpacas/llamas. Fairfield County youth must attend a qualified Quality Assurance Clinic by June 30th of the current year to be eligible to show at the 2022 Fairfield County Junior Fair. Youth who wish to show in a Junior Livestock Show at the Ohio State Fair should have QA completed by June 1st, 2022.

We will continue the same process of allowing 4-H club volunteers/FFA chapter advisors to teach QA at the club/chapter level IN-PERSON. We are looking for interested “Assistant Instructors” to be trained (and “certified”) to educate exhibitors on the required Good Production Practices (GPP’s) to be covered in 2022. As a certified Assistant Instructor, you will be able to teach Quality Assurance at the club/chapter level for 2022 after completing this training. We will also be looking for trained individuals to help with our countywide make-up dates on Saturday, May 7th (9:00 – 10:30 a.m.) or Sunday, May 22nd (12:00 – 1:30 p.m.) at the fairgrounds.

All 4-H Advisors, FFA Advisors, and Show Committee Members are invited to attend the QA Instructor Training. Please share with your fellow advisors to be sure they know about this information.

The final QA instructor trainings will be: Monday, March 28th at 7:00 p.m., Rickett’s Hall, Fairgrounds

Please RSVP to Leslie Cooksey at cooksey.25@osu.edu or call the Extension Office at 740-653-5419.

 At the training, you will:

  1. Learn the 10 Good Production Practices of Quality Assurance Education and which GPP’s need to be covered for 2022.
  2. Learn the documentation process planned for 2022. This will be structured for smaller groups and more at the club/chapter level.
  3. Receive training materials to cover this year’s required GPP’s for 2022. As an instructor, you will teach market exhibitors about all 10 GPP’s but go in detail on 3 of them. Activities will be provided to you to work through with market exhibitors for the 3 required GPP’s.
  4. Learn more about how record keeping and the accountability of your instruction to clubs and chapters needs to be documented and returned to the OSU Extension Office to ensure market exhibitors will then be eligible to show market livestock at the 2022 Fairfield County Fair. As a reminder, the deadline to complete Quality Assurance for Fairfield County Junior Fair Exhibitors is June 30th of the current year.
  5. Learn about any changes in Ohio Department of Agricultural Fair Exhibition Rules that affect Junior Fair Livestock Exhibitors so that you can share these with all livestock participants in your club/chapter.

If questions, please let Chuck (keywest100@att.net) or Leslie (cooksey.25@osu.edu) know!

We are looking forward to continuing this process in 2022.