On Monday, November 18th, 2019, Mark Davis talked to the class about the Horse Racing Industry in Delaware. Horse racing is one of the oldest sports, and it all began in the 12th century. Knights back in the day used Arabian horses for crusades. The earliest record of horse racing was in the 1500’s in England, not long after racecourses became a thing. In 1665, America received their first racecourse in Long Island. The Jockey Club was then established. It’s a club for racers. Americas first harness racing track was called the Harlem Course, and was in New York. The first speed record was recorded here in 1806. There are 9.2 million horses in the U.S. 2 million people own horses. Horses have a 102 million impact on U.S economy. Delaware racing began in 1706. Delaware park had its grand opening June 26, 1937 and was a thirty day meet. In 1967 Dover Downs was incorporated. First race took place in 1969. Horse racing was a huge, 182 million. Horse racing is a huge industry, and will forever amaze those interested,
All posts by victiaa
Industry and Academia in AG
On November 11th, Dave Mayonado talked to our class about the industry and academia in agriculture. He talks about the technology in agriculture, working in industry, and safety and litigation. Farming used to be very hands on, people were involved, and animals. Agriculture use to be very labor intensive. He talked about the Morrill Act of 1862 and 1890 which established the raising of funds and allowed land grant to universities. UD happened to be one. The Hatch Act of 1887 established an agricultural experiment station, this was affiliated with the grant. Technology allows farmers to be innovated. Farmers can produce larger crops while improving soil and fostering environment with technology. Farming used to be hands on work (muscle), then it became mechanical (steel), then it became chemical (small molecules) and has no-till, then it was biological (proteins, RNA/ information). When it became biological, they got CRISPR, RNAi, GMO, and, GWS. Agriculture is all about genes and proteins. Proteins are not generally stable outside the confines of living cells. Genes are information packets for making proteins. Is it safe to modify a crop? If they do the right regulations to make sure all their crops are safe, then yes. USDA has a job to make sure the crops are safe to grow, EPA must approve if it’s safe for the environment, and FDA makes sure it is safe to eat. When working in industry, to survive, you must know your products. Industries must keep relationships with colleagues in academia and keep them abreast with their products. I learned some cool things by listening to today’s guest speaker Dave.
GMO Scandal
Non-GMO food that false advertises. Have you ever heard of the store Whole Foods? Whole Foods are known for their false advertising on lots of their products. I didn’t choose a specific product to write about, I chose a whole store. Whole Foods have been caught in false advertising by saying “nothing is artificial ever.” When they say that people tend to believe it. Well it is false. They openly admitted to selling products with artificially modified ingredients. They sell unlabeled GMO products. They speak of no artificial products to trick their costumers into believing nothing has GMO’s, but they sell it, just unlabeled. Many people got upset about how they were being rigged. Many people began lawsuits against Whole Foods, in claiming they were selling unsafe products to their customers. Many people are suing Whole Foods in hopes they will get shut down. Over the years, their profits have dropped and they have been run out of business too.
Newark Farm
On November 2nd, my agriculture class took a trip to the Newark farm. At the Newark farm we learned about lots of different research projects they do. Our tour guide talked to us about the crops they grow and how they manage them yearly. According to our tour guide their most interesting research project ranges from disease to bee mating. They have bees! That was on of the coolest things to know. They have bees on the farm that they tend too. They have done a research project on artificially inseminating female bees with drones. Lots of the food that is grown and produced on the farm is organic, and mostly produce. They have a little produce stand to sell their produce, and they give it to some restaurants. They also have beef cattle on their farm. I thought they only had dairy cattle due to their UD Creamery and all the talk about the dairy. I learned so many cool things about the Newark Farm. They also have an insect place, that they contain lots of bugs they do research and work on before releasing to the public. EW!
Livestock Industry of Delaware
October 21st, 2019 Dan Severson talked to the class about the overview of the livestock industry in Delaware. Delaware has an economic impact of 8 million dollars. Delaware has 2,500 farms. 40% of Delaware farms are land area, and 29% of that land area is corn and beans. The Agriculture products sold to consumers make up 3.5 million in profit. 174,000 acres of farm are enrolled to Agriculture Land Preservation District, and 134,000 land is preserved. Delaware ranks first in U.S value of Agriculture production per acre, leaving California to rank second. Go Delaware! We are number one in lima beans. 98% of Delaware farms are family-owned. We spend 9.7% of our income on food. Poultry is the one food production that has increased over the years, the rest like pork, beef, lamb, and goat are less. Delaware has 235 cattle farms. We have about 14,000 cows in the whole state, making a 6-million-dollar profit. We have 55 pig farms, making that 3,300 pigs total in Delaware, making that a 2-million-dollar profit. There are 89 sheep farms, and about 179 sheep’s total in Delaware. In Delaware there are 91 goat meat farms with 1201 goats, 34 goat milk farms with 320 goats, and 5 angora with 15 goats. That makes about 81,000 in profits. In Delaware there are only 21 dairy farms with 4.500 dairy cows. Dairy production is dropping tremendously, even in the U.S. In Delaware we have four creamery’s that make ice cream with dairy. Learning about the livestock industry is so fascinating, to know how much animals can really affect us.
Delaware’s Green Industry
October 16th, 2019 Tracey Wooten and Valann Budischak talked to our class about the Delaware Green Industry. Delaware’s green industry is full of producers, retailers, landscapers, etc. There aren’t many Nurseries in Delaware. By Nursery they mean fields and greenhouses. There is a lot of science involved in plant producing. The biggest plug producer is in PA. Cut flowers and succulents go into the play of plant producing. Nursery crops are categorized by what you would typically see in your home. The Christmas tree industry is one of the biggest things involved in Nurseries. The grower sales for nurseries are 8 billion dollars. Annual doesn’t grow back the nest season perennial grows back every season. They talked to us about the effects of soil on grass and the landscaping side to planting. Horticulture is very important to small communities.
Hoobers
October 12th, 2019 the class took a field trip to Hoobers Farm. At Hoobers we learned all about the technology they use with their equipment. They gave us an opportunity to try it out. When we were given the chance to take a spin at the wheel, we saw firsthand how they drive and set their tractors to do their job. Hoobers has been going since 1941 and have nine locations scattered throughout Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Delaware. They discussed how technology isn’t always dependent. Directing and setting a tractor is like using a cell phone. If the service is bad it is hard for the technology to want to operate. This can be a tremendous downfall on their work ethics. They put their customers first when it comes to productivity. They taught the class how to operate the tractors and the brands they use for all their equipment. They sell their equipment for construction purposes as well. They provide a lot. It was a very interesting field trip.
Mark Lynas Video Review
Mark Lynas, an environmentalist, does a whole 180 on his opinion on GMO’s (genetically modified organisms). At the 2013 Oxford Farming Conference, Mark talks about how Anti-biotech’s complained about GMO’s, but yet they created them. They put the power into making them something. GMO’s cannot be processed without the consent of Anti-biotech’s permission. He talks about how the organic field is myth for helping improve the environment and peoples health. They say its healthy, but has been proved not to be many times. People spend lots of money for the name “organic,” when it is no better then other foods. Organic is also the lowest in production, and its worse for biodiversity. Many people question what is behind global warming. One guy assumes it cant be carbon dioxide. Green house gases are responsible for the warmer temperatures in the colder times of the year. This can be why certain winters are so atrocious. He answers many questions about GMO’s, nutrition, and global warmer.
Fifers Orchards
September 28th, 2019, my class took a field trip to Fifers Orchards. At Fifers their main goal is to grow and sell high quality produce, while preserving the environment, serving the community, and maintaining family values. The Fifer family has been growing fresh fruits and vegetables since 1919. Fifers grows a variety of fruits and vegetable; strawberries, asparagus, blueberries, tomatoes, sweet corn, pumpkins, plums, cut flowers, and way more. They talked about their community supported agriculture club (CSA). This allows Fifers to get more active in their environment. People receive produce boxes and have a choice as to where they get it. People from further away can get access to these boxes with their multiple locations. Fifers is a big step in helping our agriculture every day.
Guest Speaker James Adkins
October 2nd, 2019 James talked to our class about irrigation. 20% of the worlds farmland is irrigated. While 40% of our food is irrigated. He discussed the different ways water is accessed and granted to the farmland. Fertile Irrigation is when fields are built into runs. The fields are typically flat, or slightly grated fields. The water runs through the run and provides to other parts of the farm. For this to be able to happen, the soil must be able to hold the water. Gated pipes are also used to give fertile water. They have holes on them, that give out water. You can determine what holes are giving out water. Pressurized irrigation was never a thing until after World War 2, because the war needed the pipes and equipment. While the war was happening, the pipes were also very expensive to receive. It was sitting idle after the war, so the agriculture community made something out of it. They latch together so you can assemble them and disassemble them. They work best for vegetable fields. The positive thing is that they will fit any field, the negative is the amount of labor it takes to move them. My class learned many things about water, rainfall, and irrigation. Fun fact is that 68% of the world’s irrigation comes from China and irrigation has increased 280% since 1950!
How Iowa and California Contribute to Agriculture in a Big Way
September 25th, 2019 Mr. Ed Key talked to the class about agriculture in Iowa and California. Iowa is an agriculture force. Although it is ranked behind California in cash farm. Iowa has 87,500 farmers till 30.5 acres. That’s a lot of farmers to cover a lot of land. Iowa ranks first in corn production. Farmers harvest 13.1 million acres of corn. Iowa also ranks first in soybean production. They have 9.8 million acres of land, 553.7 million bushels. That’s 57 bushels an acre! Iowa ranks first in hog production as well. They raise 20.9 hogs annually. That’s 32% of the nation’s pork production. They are the nations leading producer of eggs. Iowa chickens laid 12.5 billion eggs last year. Mr. Key also taught us a term; loess: which is wind blown deposits of silt and clay. California is ranked first in tomato’s, almonds, grapes, milk and cream, strawberries, flowers and foliage’s, walnuts, hay, and lettuce. California exports 26% of its agriculture production by volume. California is the 10th largest general economy in the world. 95% tomato’s come from California. These two states imply a lot of hard work and effort in providing the nation with certain grains, fruits, dairy, and meats. They feed millions of people a year. The coolest thing I learned was that 40% percent of corn crops go in animal feed and 40% goes to ethanol.
Agriculture as a Food Shed
September 16th, 2019 Mr. Ed Kee talked to the class about why we should see our Agriculture Industry as a food shed. In Delaware there are 2,500 farms which covers 510,000 acres of land. All together it comes out to about 1.2 billion in Agriculture sales. That then multiplies 6-7 billion to economic activity. In total there is 41 percent farmland coupled with forest land! That’ leaves 76 percent FREE SPACE! The change in the economy from 1950 to 2007 decreased by 25 percent in farms and 24 percent in acres. In 1950 there were 8,300 farms and 904,000 acres. When 2007 came around there were only 2,546 farms and only 510,000 acres. Transportation was a big deal in agriculture and food production. Sail power and steam ships moved grain and produce to markets. Delaware’s first completed railroad was in Delmar in 1859 and stimulated a market driven to agricultural economy. When the railroad started to receive major competition, they then built the Dupont Highway in the 1920’s which is still used this very day!
Understanding the Poultry Industry
September 9th, 2019 Mrs. Georgie Cartanza spoke to my class about the poultry industry. Mrs. Georgie is a poultry extension agent. In her job they take egg laying chickens and make them meat chickens. This process began after the “Chicken of Tomorrow Contest.” As well as many others, Mrs. Georgie works in the Delmarva poultry industry. In Delmarva they produce 605 million birds, which is 9.6% of national production. Sussex county is #1 in broiler production and there are 825,000,000 birds in Delmarva a year. WOW! That comes out to be 3.2 billion in bird value. Only 1300 people are growers. Its amazing how they put so much effort and dedication into taking care of chickens and feeding the world. Learning about the poultry industry has been very fascinating to me. I never knew much about the poultry industry until I heard Mrs. Georgie’s story.
Mrs. Georgie’s Poultry Farm
September 7th, 2019 was the first agriculture field trip of the semester. As a class we attended Mrs. Georgie Cartanza’s beautiful poultry farm. Mrs. Georgie has four chicken houses, all of them are 65” wide by 600” long. Each house contained 37,000 chicken which equals out to be 148,000 chickens on her farm. Each chicken is raised to be seven weeks old and six and a half pounds at total. Of all the chicken she has on her farm, she makes up to 913,900 pounds a flock times five and a half flocks a year, equaling 5,000,000 pounds a year, feeding 59,808 people a year! All of Mrs. Georgie’s chickens are conventionally grown, antibiotic free, and some being organic. She never uses steroids or hormones on her chickens and takes the best care of them. It’s amazing seeing how chickens are truly treated in person, instead of how they portray them to be treated on the internet. Learning all about Mrs. Georgie’s farm and holding the baby chicks made my day.
Understanding Social Media
September 11th, 2019 Mrs. Michelle talked to the class about her job in communications. Mrs. Michelle works with top social media sites such as; twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. She helps people understand how to create an appropriate profile account, that can later be reflected on by mentors, bosses, or specific important people. When it comes to creating a profile based on yourself, you should always consider the future. Who is going to see what you post? Will they think bad of me if I post this? Never post something you wouldn’t want certain people to see. Everyone typically does a background check when hiring, meeting, or searching for new people. I learned to be more cautious about what is said and done on social media. Your job could be at risk if you decide to be incautious.