Canstruction® Exhibit Drives Fun and Food at this year’s Missouri State Fair
August 1, 2012, Sedalia, MO – The Missouri State Fair, along with several partners, will unite to offer a second annual food drive to help alleviate hunger in Missouri. New to the cause this year will be a Canstruction® exhibit of a full-size Ford Super Duty F-250 pickup, created with nearly 7,000 cans of food, or 3.5 tons. The display will be at the Missouri Farmers Care booth, located in the Agriculture Building, Aug. 9-19, with the canned goods going to the Missouri Food Bank Association.
Missouri Farmers Care Food Drive Tuesday, in cooperation with the Midwest Ford Dealers, the St. Louis Ford Dealers and Missouri Farmers Care, was kicked off early this summer in a food collection campaign at Ford dealerships across the state. The collection effort will culminate at the State Fair as canned food will be accepted from fairgoers in exchange for a discount on gate admission from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Centennial Gate.
“The Ford Super Duty F-250 Canstruction® exhibit will awe onlookers as well as serve as a reminder to help others in our communities,” said Missouri State Fair Director Mark Wolfe. “Fairgoers can save up to half-off a regular gate admission, while showing their support of the worthy cause.”
Each canned food donation is worth $1 towards gate admission Aug. 14, with a maximum of half-off the regular ticket. Adults bringing four canned items can receive $4 off a regular $8 adult ticket; seniors bringing three canned items can receive $3 off a regular $6 senior ticket; and children bringing one canned item can receive $1 off a regular $2 child ticket.
“Hunger is real in Missouri and it is spread throughout the entire state,” said Missouri Food Bank Association State Director Scott Baker. “One in eight Missourians rely upon emergency food assistance every year. To fix this problem, the first step is awareness. The State Fair food drive is an excellent way to shine light upon this growing problem and help people understand that it is solvable, if we work together. We are grateful to all of the partners for making the fight against hunger a priority.”
Missouri Farmers Care is proud to take part in the food drive.
“Missouri farmers care about feeding every family,” said Missouri Farmers Care Chairman Don Nikodim. “We are proud to work with so many groups that care about delivering high-quality food to the Missourians that need it most. This is a tough year for farmers, but our commitment to feeding Missouri families has never been greater.”
Other contributors, instrumental in the Canstruction® exhibit, include Bing’s Grocery Stores of Sedalia, who donated all of the canned food used in the exhibit, and Canstruction® Mid-Missouri of Columbia-Jefferson City.
Canstruction® is a trademarked professional design/build competition and community service project sponsored by the Society for Design Administration. Mid-Missouri’s architects, engineers and students create giant structures built with canned food. The events showcase the ingenuity of the design community, while benefiting food banks in Missouri. The Fair’s exhibit was designed and directed by project engineer Patrick Earney of Trabue, Hansen & Hinshaw, Inc. of Columbia. A rendering of the Ford Super Duty F-250 exhibit is available at the Fair’s website.
More information about the Fair is also available by following the Fair on Facebook and Twitter, or by calling 1-800-422-FAIR (3247). The 110th Missouri State Fair will be held Aug. 9-19 in Sedalia, and is themed “Celebrate Then and Wow.”