St. Mary 4-H students garner awards at state show

Hundreds of young people from across Louisiana were named state champions during the 84th annual LSU AgCenter Livestock Show held Feb. 9-16 at the Lamar-Dixon Expo Center.
To qualify for the state show, competitors had to first participate in parish and district livestock shows across Louisiana. At the state show, 1,930 youths exhibited 1,874 breeding animals, 1,292 market animals and 1,415 birds, according to the AgCenter Livestock Show manager Dwayne Nunez.
Judges at the LSU AgCenter Livestock Show named more than 2,000 state champions in various breeds of beef and dairy cattle, goats, hogs, poultry and sheep.
Here are those who received honors from St. Mary Parish:
Broilers
Champion Bantam Game — Layne Battaglio, St. Mary Parish 4-H.
Reserve Champion Bantam Game — Layne Battaglio, St. Mary Parish 4-H.
Reserve Champion Bantam Modern Game — Gage Battaglio, St. Mary Parish 4-H.
Champion Standard American — Layne Battaglio, St. Mary Parish 4-H
Best Patterned Breed, Male — Layne Battaglio, St. Mary Parish 4-H.
Market Goats
Reserve Champion Market Goat — Keri Landry, St. Mary Parish 4-H.
Market Swine
Reserve Champion Hog — Keri Landry, St. Mary Parish 4-H.
Champion Hampshire — Keri Landry, St. Mary Parish 4-H.
Reserve Champion and Champion Louisiana-bred Yorkshire — Laila Hidalgo, St. Mary Parish 4-H.
Breeding Swine
Reserve Champion Louisiana-bred Duroc — Laila Hidalgo, St. Mary Parish 4-H.
Champion Louisiana-bred Commercial Gilt — Keri Landry, St. Mary Parish 4-H.
Although the event showcases examples of the state’s important livestock industries, AgCenter administrators say it is much more than that.
“This show is much more about recognizing champion young people than it is about naming champion animals,” Bill Richardson, LSU vice president for agriculture said. “Every youngster who participated in this show is a champion because of the dedication, skills and knowledge they’ve demonstrated by caring for their animals.”