The TPP Agreement is a trade agreement among twelve of the Pacific rim countries, in what would be the world’s largest free trade area, accounting for 40 percent of the global economy. These countries include Singapore, Brunei, New Zealand, Chile, United States, Australia, Peru, Vietnam, Malaysia, Mexico, Canada, and Japan.

Our current trade policy, puts our workers and businesses at a disadvantage, with higher costs for American goods, more barriers to trade, and lower standards for workers and the environment abroad than we have at home. With the TPP, we can change the rules of trade to benefit America’s middle class. If we don’t, competitors like Chine, who don’t share our values, will step in.

It is possible to write a trade agreement that is fair to workers and provides broadly shared benefits for all Americans? But when people other than those representing the interests of big businesses are shut out of writing the rules of the economy, that outcome is unlikely. TPP threatens internet freedoms and civil liberties, collective bargaining rights, public and environmental health, food safety and financial stability.

The U.S Trade Representative’s office said the agreement would eliminate or significantly reduce tariffs on U.S. products and deter non-science based sanitary and phytosanitary barriers that have put American agriculture at a disadvantage in TPP countries in the past. However, this new agreement seems like it will have a positive impact on Agriculture. It will eliminate import taxes as high as 40% on U.S. poultry products, 30% on soybeans, and 40% on fruit exports. It is estimated that total U.S. exports could increase by $130 billion.

New Castle’s County Extension Agent, Dan Severson, came to speak about the Livestock Industry in Delaware. 40% of Delaware’s land area is in farms. With more than half of the farms in Delaware being under 50 acres. Delaware ranks number one in the U.S. in value of agricultural production per acre and number two in value per farm. We learned the different livestock in Delaware and what each was used for. The largest annual per capita consumption was beef. Pigs are used for showing along with Sheep. Goats are used mostly for milk and meat. We learned that the number of dairy farms have decreased as the herd size in farms have increased. an also told us about other/unusual livestock in Delaware such as Bison, Water buffalo and Alpacas.

Our last field trip was to our very own farm here at UD.  The farm superintendent, Scott Hopkins, gave us the tour. It was my first time being on the campus farm and it was really exciting to see everything that they did. Scott showed us the bees that are kept there and explained what it was liked to take care of them. It was really cool seeing that they had their own compost piles. On the Webb farm we saw the Ewes and their lambs. Scott even told us that the wool they sheer from the sheep gets sent out and made into blankets and sent back to UD. Towards the end of the tour we got to see the milking parlor. There was a lot more electronics involved in their parlor than in ones I have worked in at home. Scott also showed us the cows they been doing research on. Certain cows are trained to eat out of a certain spot. The tag that is hung by their neck allows them to eat at only their spot. So the cow with the number 231 can only eat in the spot numbered 231. They cannot go to another spot and eat, the tag only works at their spot. Overall, it was a really great experience to get to see all the different types of things they do on the farm!

Our next field trip was to Hoober’s in Middletown, Delaware. While we were there, we got a tour of their shop and got to see a tractor that was taken apart and learned a little about the mechanics of it. We got to see a demonstration with a drone. If the signal had stopped or the battery of the drone was dying it knew exactly when and where to come back to without having to tell it to come back. You have to take a test to be able to fly a drone and there are also rules/regulations you have to follow. I didn’t realize farmer’s used drones to help monitor their crops.  It was really exciting to drive a tractor with the guidance system.  When I first got in I was really surprised with how quite it was. I assumed that because it was such a big piece of equipment that I would have to swing wide to turn but the tractor could turn on a dime.  I had driven tractors before but nothing of that size or with that type of technology, it was a great experience.

The second field trip was to Fifer’s Orchard. I really enjoyed seeing that it was a family run business. I was excited to hear about their CSA program, it’s a very good way to get their name out and promote what they’re doing at Fifer’s. We learned how they planted their apple fields, they have a program that you can basically map out like google maps and put it into the system and the machine will follow and plant where you marked within a few inches. I would have thought since they were an orchard that their most popular products would be apples but it was actually sweet corn and pumpkins. We got to see how they sorted their apples, too. As they come in a picture is taken of each individual apple then the system moves it to the group that it fits best into(based on color), then you have the workers take one last look at them as they are packaging them to make sure that they are in the best shape before being shipped out.