Kansas State University will host the first Kansas TAPS Banquet in Dodge City, Kansas, on January 18, 2025, marking a significant milestone for this producer-led farm management competition. Since its launch in October 2023, Testing Ag Performance Solutions (TAPS) has made remarkable progress in addressing water challenges and promoting sustainable irrigation practices, engaging 34 competition teams with 98 contestants from 8 states in its inaugural year. This exciting event will reveal the winners of the 2024 TAPS program and unveil the upcoming 2025 competition, expanding the program to include a new site in Garden City.
The event is open to producers, industry professionals, educators, students, and community members. It's a unique opportunity to engage with groundbreaking agricultural research and learn about practical, real-world solutions to today's farming challenges. Attendance is free, but an RSVP is requested for an accurate meal count. You can register online at https://tinyurl.com/24KSUTAPSAwards.
Event Details
Date and Time: January 18, 2025
5:00 PM – Social
6:00 PM – Meal
7:00 PM – Awards
Location: Boot Hill Casino and Resort Conference Center, Dodge City, Kansas.
Agenda Highlights:
- Recognition of 2024 TAPS winners in four award categories:
- Overall Most Profitable
- Most Profitable at or Below Q-Stable
- Highest Input Use Efficiency
- Greatest Grain Yield
- Reveal the 2025 Garden City TAPS competition, marking a significant program expansion.
- Networking opportunities for producers and agricultural stakeholders.
Cash awards will be presented to the winners of each category, honoring their exceptional performance in farm management and decision-making during the 2024 competition.
What is TAPS?
The Testing Ag Performance Solutions (TAPS) program is an innovative real-world farm management competition that combines research and hands-on experience to enhance agricultural productivity and sustainability. TAPS bridges foundational study and practical application to address the evolving needs of today's farmers and delivers on K-State’s land grant mission to deliver practical research-backed education that contributes to the well-being of Kansans. Through this program, participants make critical management decisions—such as crop insurance, planting date and population, hybrid selection, irrigation, nitrogen application, and grain marketing—on replicated test plots.
Results are scaled to represent 2,000-acre farms, giving participants a realistic understanding of their decisions' financial and agronomic outcomes. This structure provides meaningful insights into managing at-scale farming operations, making TAPS a valuable tool for farmers and industry professionals.
Addressing the Challenges of Tomorrow
TAPS plays a pivotal role in addressing one of Kansas agriculture's greatest challenges: the decline of the Ogallala Aquifer. TAPS empowers participants to explore innovative solutions and improve input-use efficiency by promoting sustainable water management and holistic decision-making.
"TAPS isn't just about making decisions—it's about seeing the ripple effects of those decisions on farm profitability and sustainability," says Daran Rudnick, Director of Sustainable Irrigation at K-State. "This program opens up a space for producers to experiment with new technologies, network with peers, and take-home lessons that can transform their operations."
Thanks to the collective efforts of faculty and extension specialists from K-State’s Agronomy and Bio and Ag Engineering departments, Western Kansas Research-Extension Centers, and KCARE, TAPS has quickly become a catalyst for interdisciplinary research and outreach. Partnerships with over 30 community organizations, including seed companies, technology providers, and government agencies, have been instrumental in advancing TAPS' mission.
For more information or to register for the banquet, please visit https://www.k-state.edu/taps/ or contact Renee Tuttle at rstuttle@ksu.edu or (620) 805-9045.
