Agriculture touches many different aspects of our everyday lives. Still, many individuals do not understand the industry. This year the Larry Harper Young Writers Contest, sponsored by Missouri Ruralist, asks Missouri FFA members to consider how best to bridge that disconnect.

The 600-word essay, entitled "Agriculture: Bridging the Gap," may cover any aspect of the agriculture industry, such as explaining science to savvy shoppers, economic impact to environmental regulators, or limiting laws to legislative liaisons. FFA members can offer their views on any areas in which they feel the agriculture industry needs to do a better job disseminating its message.

The essay should provide an FFA member's own reasoning, along with ideas as to how Missouri farmers, agribusiness and FFA members can be involved in bridging the communication gap.

The essay contest is named after the late Larry Harper, who was a strong FFA supporter. He often challenged young people to discuss important ag issues of the day. Harper served as editor of Missouri Ruralist from 1976 to 1999.

Here are few requirements of this year's Larry Harper Young Writers Contest:

•The essay should be the student's original work.
•The essay should have more than one source of information. Personal interviews with experts are encouraged.
•The essay should be a Word document, 12-point Times New Roman, typed and double-spaced.
•The essay should have a cover page that includes the entrant's name, title, school name and date.
•The essay should have a maximum of 600 words.

The top three winners will appear on stage at the Missouri FFA Convention in April. The winning essay will be read by the entrant during the convention. Winners will receive $250 for first place, $150 for second place and $75 for third.

First-place winners from previous years are not eligible for the essay contest.

Email entries to [email protected], or send a hard copy to Missouri Ruralist, 21680 Smith Creek Road, Marthasville, MO 63357.

All entries must be postmarked by March 18.