This bull named Payweight won the title of World Super Bull at the 2012 Iowa State Fair.

This year, I attended the Iowa State Fair while vacationing in Des Moines. This year's attendance was the second-largest in the event's 159-year history: 1,097,142.

Visiting fairs has been a passion of mine through the years. When I was a kid, our family tradition was attending the Hookstown Fair in Beaver County and the Allegheny County Fair each year. I cannot forget seeing the animals and eating fair food at an early age. I also remember seeing Rin Tin Tin at the Allegheny County Fair.

The Iowa State Fair celebrates agriculture's true meaning. The grounds cover more than 400 acres with attractions such as the butter cow, one of the world's largest livestock shows, crop exhibits, music, food, contests and carnival rides.

There are numerous contests for the biggest animals, the biggest boar, biggest ram, world's super bull and largest rabbit.

There are also contests for rooster crowing, sheep shearing, pigeon racing, turkey, duck, hog and chicken calling, wood chopping, pie, corn and ice cream eating and arm wrestling.

The livestock shows featuring sheep, swine, beef, dairy cattle, goats, llamas and rabbits, as well as dog and cat shows, take place daily.

The food vendors sell turkey legs, roasted corn, pork chops, meatball sandwiches, steak dinners and summer salads.

A unique item is the beef sundae with a cherry on top. There are numerous food items served on a stick, including chicken, fish, shrimp, pickles, apples, sand and even chocolate covered bacon.

During the Iowa State Fair my sister, Cindy, a television news anchor in Des Moines, is on television live.

The fair helps remind us of the importance of the agricultural community in our lives. I took more than 1,000 pictures with my new digital camera!

Our Big Butler Fair, Butler Farm Show and Butler County Farm Tour demonstrate excellence in farming and how we all depend on agriculture to sustain life.

The agricultural events can be large or small, but the message is the same!

Ron Fodor is manager of the Butler County Conservation District.