by Taylor Burns

Junior Emily Hugen and Ag Teacher Ms. Nicole Gent traveled to downtown Des Moines at the
Marriott and stayed in a hotel for the Global Food Prize on Oct. 16-18. The Global Food Prize consists of 29 U.S. states and six other countries. It is a meeting of land grant universities and high school students to discuss the issue of world hunger.
Hugen was selected for the state food prize, along with 20 other Iowans, to represent Iowa at the national level. She was selected by a panel of judges based on a paper she wrote for the State Food Prize last spring.
“It was an honor,” Hugen said. “I was nervous about what was expected of me.”
At the Global Food Prize, Gent and Hugen had the chance to meet other people and learn about agricultural, hunger and diversity around the world.
“I think it was a great experience for students and a great working opportunity for teachers,” Gent said.
Each year, the Global Food prize has a different topic, so no year is the same.
“If I got the option to go again next year, I would take it. It was a great experience, and they cover different topics every year, so it would be a different experience,” Hugen said. “Meeting and becoming friends with people from other countries and states was really cool.”