Press contact: Angela Try
SPRINGFIELD — Twenty-nine Lincoln Land Community College Agriculture students participated in a week-long agricultural industry tour in Italy May 20-28.
Tour stops included locations in Rome, Tuscany, Siena and Florence. At the Maccarese farm, outside of Rome, students experienced a multi-faceted enterprise growing grains, fodder crops and vegetables, dairy cow breeding and production, and the operation of two biogas plants. In Tuscany, at the La Fescennina family-operated organic farm, students learned planting and harvesting techniques for hazelnut and olive production, and how the operation became the first certified producer and processor of organic Roman hazelnuts. They also visited Costruzioni Macchine Agricole, the leading designer and manufacturer of agricultural machinery in Italy. In Florence, students visited with a Pecorino cheese producer at the Podere II Casale and learned about sustainable farming operations and processes to make various types of cheeses.
The trip also included visits to iconic locations and historic sites including the Roman Colosseum, a walking Baroque tour of Rome and a guided tour in Florence to historic piazzas and sites including the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore and Ponte Vecchio. Along the way, students dined on authentic Italian cuisine and attended a pasta making class. The immersive and educational experience allowed students to see agricultural, cultural and historical sites in Italy.
The LLCC Agriculture study abroad experience was made possible by the Kreher Agricultural Trust. LLCC faculty and staff leading the trip include Liz Stamberger and Bill Harmon.
Participating students by hometown:
Auburn: Sawyer Smith
Carlinville: Gianna Long
Carthage: Nickolas Huls
Degraff, Ohio: Ava Shroyer
Eldred: Margaret Bland, Cara Whitlock
Franklin: Alaina Ford
Good Hope: Brayden DeCounter
Hartford, Wis.: Allison Loosen
Harvel: Avery Pope
Huntsville: Taylor Armstrong
Litchfield: Darci Wolber
Loami: Whitney Williams
Macomb: Leah Sargeant
Mount Pulaski: Kate Beckers, Mallory Shehorn, Scout Tschantz
New Holland: Malena Kirgan
Perrysville, Ohio: Linde Hahn
Pontiac: Cadence Helms
Raymond: Drake Germann, Jobeth Matli
Shelby, Ohio: Kelsey Snyder
Springfield: Peyton Bergschneider, Zoe Day, Nicholas Sabo, Leedah Scheer
Staunton: Michael Matesa
Stonington: Lacey DeClerck
LLCC offers degrees and certificates in the areas of agriculture, agribusiness, precision agronomy and custom application, and horticulture and cultivation. For more information, visit www.llcc.edu/agriculture.