Hartford-Litchfield Sister Cities: December 2010

Monday, December 13, 2010

Dairy award named for Bruce Cottington, founder of Hartford-Litchfield Sister Cities

The Minnesota Milk Producers Association has renamed their Friend of Dairy award the "Bruce Cottington Friend of Dairy" award. Bruce with the first recipient of the award in 2006. This year, Minnesota Milk’s board chose to rename the award in Bruce Cottington’s name and legacy for Bruce's legacy of lifelong dedication and service to Minnesota dairy farmers. Commissioner Gene Hugoson was announced the first recipient of the Bruce Cottington Friend of Dairy Award during the Midwest Dairy Expo on November 30th in St. Cloud, Minn. Read article.

History of Program

The idea began in January of 1971 when Bruce Cottington, a Litchfield grocery store owner and host of a talk show on local radio station KLFD, was talking about how often he ate peanut butter and drank milk. Looking for a good sales promotion, Litchfield was proclaimed the peanut butter capital of the world, and the Peanut Butter and Milk Festival was begun to promote rural America, good food, agriculture and the dairy industry, and young people.

As a lifetime Future Farmers of America (FFA) member, Cottington naturally involved the FFA.Cottington’s search through Auburn Univ. in Alabama led to Paul Dean, FFA advisor at Geneva County High School in Hartford. In October, Cottington’s family traveled to Alabama to make a presentation to then Governor George Wallace who signed a legislative resolution proclaiming Meeker County citizens as residents of Alabama. (Although they couldn't vote, they were welcome to pay taxes!) They then visited Hartford, Dothan and the National Peanut Festival. Cottington and Dean then developed the idea of a north-south FFA and FHA exchange program.

In 2008, the Sister Cities Program celebrated the 37th year of what has become an annual exchange of people, good will and peanut butter and milk. Hartford students and citizens travel to Litchfield each February for the Peanut Butter and Milk Festival, and Litchfield students and citizens travel to Hartford each November.