Colorado State Launches 17th Annual Ag Day Celebration with Food, Fun, Football and the Best of Colorado Agricultural Tradition

Colorado State University on Sept. 26 will launch the 17th annual Agricultural Day celebration, honoring a way of life that has been a vital part of Colorado’s history and which continues to be the state’s second-largest industry. The all-day event includes a picnic showcasing Colorado agricultural commodities, agricultural displays and activities. CROSS TIE WALKER of Denver will provide music and K99 and TRI-102 radio will broadcast live throughout the event. For football fans, a faceoff between the Colorado State University Rams and the University of Nevada-Las Vegas Running Rebels kicks off at 1:30 p.m. in Hughes Stadium.

The fun begins at 11:30 a.m. in the parking lot south of Hughes Stadium with agricultural activities and displays open to the general public. Participants can visit farm and ranch animals, learn about modern agricultural equipment and visit booths sponsored by local Colorado businesses. The picnic begins at 11:30 a.m. in the area adjacent to the displays and features Colorado’s finest foods including apples, beef, beer, cheese, lamb, melons, milk, pork, potatoes, sugar, corn and wheat bread.

Tickets are advance sale only and can be purchased by calling the College of Agricultural Sciences at (970) 491-6272. Barbecue tickets are $8 and barbecue/football combination tickets are $20. Barbecue attendance is limited to 3,500. Football tickets may also be purchased separately at regular prices from the athletic ticket office at Moby Arena. All profits will go toward agricultural scholarships.

Ag Day is made possible by the partnership of Colorado State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Intercollegiate Athletics and Colorado agricultural organizations and associations. "This annual event celebrates one of Colorado’s finest industries, but also one of its finest traditions: working partnerhsips," said James Heird, Associate Dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences.

Some Colorado Food Facts:

  • About 75 percent of commercial beans are grown in northeast Colorado and 95 percent of seed beans are grown on the Western Slope.
  • Colorado farmers grow 4.7 million bushels of malting barley for Coors, the world’s largest single-site beer brewery, located in Golden.
  • Colorado ranks third in the United States in potato production.
  • Apples are the major fruit crop in Colorado, with sales centered on the Western Slope.
  • Colorado ranks as the No. 1 state for lamb feeding in the nation and No. 4 for inventory of sheep and lambs, with an estimated 685,000 head.
  • Colorado dairy cows produce 1,774 gallons of milk per cow per year.
  • Colorado-developed Olathe sweet corn varieties are sold worldwide.