A Simpson County family was honored as the states Outstanding Young Farm on Friday at the Kentucky Farm Bureaus annual conference in Louisville. Chris and Jill Kummer of Franklin were selected as the winners of the competition, which is based on operational efficiency, return on investment, increased net worth and personal leadership and open to couples and singles under 35.The Kummers will received an expense-paid trip to Tampa, Fla., next month to compete in the national young farmer finals at the American Farm Bureau conference along with 300 hours free use of an AGCO tractor, $500 cash from the Dodge Truck Division of Chrysler Motors, a years free use of Farm Bureaus ACRES computer marketing system and a $500 voucher from Syngenta Crop Production. The Kummers Oak Hill Farm is sited near Franklin on land that has been in his family since 1886, and he began the operation full time in 1990 after receiving an agronomy degree from the University of Kentucky. This year, the Kummers raised 846 acres of soybeans, 462 acres of corn and 294 acres of wheat. The soybeans that are sold in Japan are intended for sale at the highest level of the premium tofu market and command at least a $1 premium, Chris Kummer said. I traveled to Japan this past summer to meet customers and further develop the market. In addition to farming, Jill Kummer is a teacher at Franklin-Simpson High School and operates a small accounting firm. The Kummers were honored along with several other Kentucky farmers at the conference, which began Thursday and concludes Saturday at the Galt House Hotel in Louisville. In addition to awards ceremonies, the event also featured discussions of several key issues to farmers as the state legislature and U.S. Congress prepare to reconvene in January. The states huge budget deficit, in particular, concerns many farmers, who fear funding for various programs may be cut to help with the budget crunch, said state Farm Bureau President Sam Moore at his keynote speech Friday. Make no mistake about it, agriculture will be a target, the Butler County farmer said. We need to be on guard. The Phase One Tobacco Settlement Fund is a definite target for legislators wanting to cut the budget shortfall, Moore said. Under current state law, half the settlement funds are appropriated for a statewide agriculture development initiative plus some other farm programs, and one of Farm Bureaus top priorities for next months General Assembly session will be to convince legislators to maintain that spending level, he said. This initiative has touched every county in the state and has our agriculture industry moving forward as never before, Moore said. I and many others feel that it is vital that we stay the course and build on this momentum. The conference concludes today with a breakfast featuring a keynote speech by U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Farm Bureau spokesman Gary Huddleston said. McConnell is a longtime member of the Senate Agriculture committee and is expected to address a potential tobacco program buy-out, potential weather-related disaster funds for farmers and other agriculture-related issues, Huddleston said.