Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
Days after Maryland Farm Bureau officials decided to reintroduce tiara-wearing to the state’s farm youth competition, the state fair’s board of directors voted to sever ties with the event.
Board members Thursday night moved to end a nearly 60-year sponsorship with the farm queen contest, with some officials calling it outdated.
Last year, the bureau dumped its farm queen in favor of a more businesslike and gender-neutral “agriculture ambassador,” with the winner wearing a black blazer instead of a gown and glittering crown.
But the change rankled traditionalists on the Farm Bureau’s governing board, which voted earlier this week to go back to the original farm queen format.
