“The thing we’re really blessed with is, none of us want to do the others job” (Bobby Fifer). Bobby fifer, the farmer of the Fifer’s operation, informed the University of Delaware students about fifers orchards through giving a tour of the different crops they were growing and the processes in growing and harvesting those crops for a successful product. Fifers Orchards, unlike many local farms, began during the early 19th century when the 1st generation moved from Virginia to Delaware, purchased land, and began growing various crops for profit. With the start of the farm from the first generation, over time the family began growing more crops and purchased more land in which has led to the fourth generation of the family to own and operate 3,000 acres and growing the crops: peaches, apples, strawberries, cauliflower, kale, broccoli, tomatoes, soybeans and sweet corn today; the corn and soybeans are mainly used as rotational crops.
On the farm, each family member has their own role which is part of the reason of why the farm has become very successful, along with the additions of technology contributes to the farm’s success as well. On the orchard, the orchard uses the technology practices of irrigation, tractors to apply pesticides and herbicides to the crop as well as harvest the corn and grain crops, trucks for transport of produce, cooler rooms to keep the produce fresh, and mechanical belts to size and weigh the produce has allowed the orchard to grow to the size of the current operation and further grow as time proceeds forward. Although there are various uses of technology on the farm, most of their crops produced are handpicked and packaged, as well as they have a running produce store that causes the operation to always have a need for labor; that is mainly received through a program of the government who provides the farm with people from out of country regions who are hard working and willing to work the tasks needed to produce a successful crop on the farm. Essentially, Fifers Orchards is a large operation that needs “all hands-on deck” to make this operation successful in the present and for future day time. Throughout this trip, many things can be learned which allows the students knowledge of the vegetable operation to further grow and expand.
Throughout this trip, the process of growing to selling produce, the roles of the family, labor, and how technology is used on the farm was discussed which allowed myself and the other students of the understanding todays ag class to develop a further understanding of the vegetable industry as well as gain new knowledge of the industry on the farm and the vegetable industry as a whole. During this trip, I learned that most of the crops were hand picked and were then weighed and sized through a mechanical belt operation as well as that each family member had their own role; which allowed me to come to a realization of just how close the family was and how the main part of the success of the operation was because the family stuck to their own roles. Essentially, reducing conflict and creating more focus on each part of the operation for “perfection” of each area of the operation so that their business is very successful as the result.
“Iowa is an agricultural force in the United States and the world” (Ed Kee). Mr. Ed Kee, former secretary of agriculture, informed the University of Delaware’s understanding today’s agriculture class about the agricultural industry in the states of Iowa and California, their contribution to the states economically as well as the U.S. in food production, the climate and soils, and the advantages each state has in production. Within the state of Iowa, there are 87,000 farmers that till 30.1 million acres throughout the state and 92% of the state’s cash income comes from their leading production in the crops of corn and soybeans and in the production of pork and beef; all of which contribute to the states exports of $11 billion in products annually. However, the state’s success in crop production is all due to the climate and soil fertility the land holds. Iowa, unlike many eastern and western states, has a climate with a consistent moderate temperature and a rainfall of only 24 to 36 inches per year; the region also has loess soil that is composed of windblown silt and clay particles that hold nutrients and moisture longer which allows the crops to grow and be produced at a better rate than most states. Although Iowa is one of the largest producers in the world, California also has a large production rate of specific crops for the state and the U.S. as well.
California is able to produce vegetables and fruits such as tomatoes that account for 95% of the U.S. tomatoes, strawberries and other known fruits and vegetables in a shorter time period that allows the world to have a constant supply of those products. Essentially, with California’s high production rates, California is able to make $47 million a year in ag sales and exports 26% of its products that make the states agricultural industry have a $21 billion-dollar value overall which makes the industry very important within the state and for other states across the U.S. From this presentation, many things about the agricultural industry in the Iowa and California can be learned, which can help the students and myself to develop a better understanding of the industry as well as develop a broader perspective of the industry as a whole.
Throughout this lecture, Mr. Kee discussed the agricultural industry within the state of Iowa and California and their uniqueness economically and in food production which led myself and other students to develop a further understanding of agriculture in those states, a broader perspective of the agricultural industry overall, and learn an interesting fact. The interesting fact I learned throughout Mr. Kee’s lecture was that Iowa and California are the largest producers of crops and other products such as beef, pork, and milk which makes it very important to sustain the agricultural industry in those states now and in the future time.
This morning on Wednesday September 25th Ed Kee came and spoke again on how Iowa and California are Agricultural giants. California is number one and Iowa is number two. Did you know that 85% of Iowa’s lands are farmlands? They also have 87,500 farmers to till 30.5 million acres. This year, Iowa ranked 1st in soybean production. They had 9.8 million of acres. They were also ranked first in hog production with 20.9 million hogs raised annually. Lastly, they are the nation’s leading producer of eggs.
Iowa has perfect conditions to crow crops in the agricultural industry. There is about 24-36 inches of rain a year, not super hot during growing season, and it is very fertile. They also have a quarter of the nations ethanol plants which is crazy.
California is number one in agricultural sales with 47 million dollars. California has many great spots for grow lettuce, strawberries, broccoli, and other such greens because of the Pacific Ocean. Close to the ocean gives off a nice breeze which helps the crops. A bad thing about growing crops in California is water demand. The cost is quite high because the state is so large. Lastly California is ranked first in 9 commodities! Ed Kee really knew his stuff and showed us a very interesting and engaging PowerPoint. The former UD Secretary of Agriculture did a great job.
On September 16, 2019 Mr. Ed KEE spoke to us on Delaware Agriculture and it’s importance as a feed shed. The talk began with a bit of bio provided by both Prof. ISAACS and Mr. KEE, who shared a brief synopsis of his education and his ties to the University of Delaware’s continued work in the advancement of modern agriculture. He stated that although UD became a land grant college in 1869, it wasn’t until the 1990s, when Dean Harry HAYWARD initiates the university’s purchase of $20, 000 worth of campus-adjacent farmland, that the Agricultural department started to make great strides- with the help of Dr. Bill MITCHELL, a WW2 veteran and extension agronomist.
Mr. KEE’s eight year tenure as Delaware’s Secretary of Agriculture, and two published works on the history of UD’s Agricultural Extension and Carvel Research Center, meant he had the background to give the class an in-depth picture of Delaware farming from the Colonial Days to today- including an interesting a related anecdote into Prof. ISAACS’ ancestry to illustrate the tenacity and determination required of farmers.
From the Revolutionary War to the early 1800s Delaware primarily exported wheat. After the completion of the DE Railroad in 1859 and the DuPont Highway in 1924 Delaware is able to improve the ways in which food is transported, shipping produce as canned goods in water or brine. Many canneries are built around Delaware to process vegetables and fruits like tomatoes, peaches, and strawberries, but also ‘fruits of the sea’ like oysters, employing many individuals to move shipments from one point to another. One cannery, the Stokely-Van Camp Cannery, was an early example of early agribusiness and the thought process behind environmental accountably. The cannery, and other processors like it, would discard bean husks and effluent directly into the canals and waterways they were built near, clogging and polluting the watershed with excess nutrients and detritus. This myriad number of canneries, mills, and factories would decrease from hundreds, to a mere two that remain today- PicSweet and Hanover- large companies that bought up smaller ones for better brand recognition.
The processors of the early 1900s did well, but the farms that provided them with product were rarely operating at peak efficiency. Mr. KEE, citing Prof. ISAACS family line as an example, stated that most small farmers before WW2 would barely eke out 30 bushels of corn year after year, only just making a profit, but continuing to grow anyway. It wasn’t until after WW2, when farmers embraced new technologies such as Henry WALLACE’s Pioneer Seed Co. seed stock and hybrid varieties, that they were able to increase their yield to 80 bushels. Similar scientific advancements occurred with poultry, dairy, and other forms of produce.
The increasingly high yields and technological advancements in agriculture have made the farming field one that requires a consistent, regulatory environment to turn a profit. Through increased education, business procedures and regulations, farming has improved not only for the farmer, but also the consumer.
As stated by former Guest Speaker Ms. Georgie CARTANZA and Professor ISAACS, Delaware’s unique geographic position places most of it’s farms within eight hours driving distance to 1.1 million people, or 1/3 of the U.S. population. 76% of the state is open space, with ≈2/3 of that amount dedicated to farmland- ≈800 farms. Of the 41% of the land area dedicated to farms- a total of 115, 000 acres- a total of ≈30% is permanently reserved through the AgLand Preservation Program, which was established in 1995. The AgLand Preservation Program is a core feature of Delaware’s Agricultural economy, providing a steady and reliable market for farmers. Through the AgLand program, land can be given to the state for preservation in perpetuity, or sold by the farmer to another farmer so the property remains apart of the Agricultural System.
Another program Mr. KEE shared with the class was the Young Farmers Program. Mr. KEE haunted earlier that many farms are small farms of about 30-50acres. Unable to compete with the ‘Big Ag’ industry for a larger share of the profits, about 40% of those farmers have off-farm income generated from other jobs such as teaching, factory work, or school bus driving. The Young Farmers Program provides $500, 000 for a qualified young farmer at 0% interest for 30years.
In order to help farmers young and old, make larger profits, many states have increased efforts to educate the public on farming as well. Unlike the post-WW2 farmers, many modern-day consumers tend to be resistant to the innovations made in farming. State Universities like UD try to educate to public on current farming practices. Such practices discussed in class included Integrated Pest Management, used to identify and target specific pest to employ a targeted and controlled response that generates as little perceived amount of environmental harm possible; the use of Center-Pivot Irrigation Systems, irrigation that can be moved and monitored remotely via a cell phone for the optimum application of water. Many more practices went unmentioned due to time constraints, but the need for greater public education regarding agriculture was greatly emphasized.
The lecture closed with a discussion on the cultivation of hemp and the controversies surrounding a potential future cash crop. Hemp might be harvested for CBD oil or fibers, though its legality is still not consistent across the U.S.- particularly by the FDA as food additive. With and uncertain future and an unidentified market, many farmers might embrace the crop from and ethical standpoint, but can’t financially absorb the costs to grow it without a guaranteed profit. Mr. KEE spoke of a group of Hollywood investors that approach a family farm of several generations to grow 1000 acres of hemp for them to process and ship. The farmers agree to take the risk, but only if they were paid upfront. The anecdote served to illustrate the balance between farmers and consumers, and how consumer demand and existing markets play a critical role is what is produced and how much.
This past week former Delaware secretary of agriculture came and spoke to us about the state of Delaware and how it is one of the most popular states for agriculture. Though I was not able to make it due to an ankle injury, the power point that he presented was very engaging and informative. Delaware grew all different foods and shipped them off to other places. Delaware farmlands and acres have been decreasing ever since the 50’s. Though it isn’t too popular it is still a great field and it is needed for food. Billions of dollars are spent on agriculture and growing food to help us survive. Going into the agricultural firm isn’t all about farming. There are many other things involving advertising and building new pieces of technology to help farmers. Delaware has always been successful with agriculture and they are still going strong to this day.
Ed Kee, the former Delaware Secretary of Ag, came to talk to our class on September 16th. He talked about agriculture and its history. As I am new to the agriculture industry I was surprised to hear that 30% of the farming land in Delaware is permanently protected, but the actual amount of farms we have has decreased. In 1950, we had 8,300 farms and in 2007, we had 3,546. A unique thing that the Delaware has is the Young Farmers Program. It gives money to young farmers so that they can start their own farm. It allows for more farmers to emerge so that the business isn’t dying.
Ed talked about the history of agriculture. It started with hunters and gatherers and expanded. With new technologies like the railroad system and then the Dupont highway made for easier transport to largely populated areas in the east coast. Ed’s talk was very insightful and helped reinforce some topics that I knew a little bit about previously.
“The Delmarva is the main food provider for the eastern states” (Ed Kee). Mr. Ed Kee, former secretary of agriculture, educated students of the university of Delaware’s, understanding todays ag class, about the importance of agriculture in Delaware, the history, and the factor it plays in feeding the east coast and the surrounding population. Delaware’s agriculture, unlike many states, feeds 1/3 of the U.S. population due to its close proximity to the large cities on the east coast. Delaware has over 2,500 farms which makes up 40% of the land in the state and 30% of that land is permanently reserved so the industry stays within Delaware and further contributes to the U.S. population. With agricultures major production to nearby states, the agricultural industry is able to make 1.2 billion in ag sales and 7.9 million in production and agricultural sales in total which allows the economy for Delaware to further drive in success. However, this was only possible due to the improvements in technology and the family and individual run farms that have been added and continue to grow over many years.
During the past centuries, railroads developed and eventually water transportation and local highways opened up which allowed food to be easily transported throughout the neighboring states; eventually leading to the improvement in the technology of equipment and process in crop production to occur as well. Improvements in tractors, genetics of plants, water production (irrigation), soil fertility, pest management, weed control and other production processes has allowed farmers to produce more food more efficiently with fewer problems throughout the plants growth which has allowed for better production and better food to be grown overall. Although agriculture is a striving industry in the state of Delaware, many challenges are faced in order to keep agriculture striving in the state. Before the presentation came to a close, Mr. Kee informed the students that within the agricultural industry, farming and agriculture as a whole must remain profitable, maintain a consistent and fair regulatory environment that is also effective, promote the best technology practices that are most efficient in production for farmers and safe for the environment, connect farmers with market opportunity and have connections with state and federal organizations in order to keep the industry striving and profitable enough for the farmers and others working in the industry to keep their businesses and production running. From this presentation, many things about the agricultural industry in the past and current day time can be learned, which can help the students and myself to develop a better understanding of the industry, especially the agricultural industry in Delaware.
Throughout this lecture, Mr. Ed Kee stressed the importance of Delaware’s agricultural industry and the history that led the industry to success today which led myself and other students to develop a further understanding of agriculture within the state of Delaware and discover an interesting fact which was that Delaware, on its own, feeds one third of the U.S. population making the agricultural industry very important to sustain now and for the future day time.
After the amazing and very informative field trip to Georgie Cartanza’s organic poultry farm, our class was able to further understand the past and present aspects of the chicken industry the following Monday. Miss Georgie gave us a historical timeline of the chicken industry and explained Delmarva’s immense contribution to the nationwide industry. She also went in depth on the economic impact that the poultry industry has on Delmarva’s society. For every 1 job in the poultry industry, 7 are made in the community. Advances in technology have exponentially increased efficiency and productivity over the years and have proven to be a great success for those in the industry. Of course, with success comes people that question the source of it. Miss Georgie explained the difficulties many people in the poultry business face and how that affects their jobs. There are people that make up stories of animal abuse and neglect out of ignorance that directly impact those in the food industry. Miss Georgie explained and proved how all of those claims were untrue and biased.
On Monday, September 8th, Georgie Cortanza came to our class to give a guest lecture. The Saturday before, our class had visited her poultry farm to learn a bit more about the organic poultry industry. She came to our class to give a more in depth lecture about the organic poultry industry. She went over the history of the poultry industry. In 1862 the Morrell Act was formed to establish land grant colleges. In the 1850s railroads were built in Delmarva to transport crops and animals around the northern east coast, and in 1916, the Dupont highway was built to make it even easier to transport goods.
In Delmarva, there are 3 states, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia, made up of 3 counties in Delaware, 8 in Maryland, and 1 in Virginia. There are 9,000,000,000 chickens produced in the US each year, and 825,000,000 of those are produced in Delmarva. That’s a lot of chicken. Georgie also talked about how many processing plants there are in Delmarva and how Perdue was the first family to ever brand their chicken. Now all we see in grocery stores is branded chicken. Georgie emphasized that when you have opinions, you should always look deeper into why you have those opinions and you should keep an open mind to other opinions.
On Monday, September 9th, Mrs. Cartanza, a producer of organic poultry, came to present her views and knowledge about the poultry industry in class. Her decision to produce organically was a financial one, and some of her main talking points were about dispelling myths about the inorganic poultry industry.
Firstly, she addressed the topic of the substantially larger size of the chickens now compared with those of the past. Many believe that this is due to putting hormones and steroids into them. However, according to Mrs. Cartanza, this is not the case. She assured us that the size of the chickens is due to years of selective breeding, and steroids/hormones are not involved in the process.
She then stressed the point that, people should not vilify the farmer who adopts new technology into his or her farming routine. She pointed out that many times farmers face scorn just for using new technology because people often view it as unnatural or inhumane for the livestock, while oftentimes this is not the case, and the technology actually just helps the farmer while not affection or improving the health of the the livestock.
On September 7, 2019 the entire class took a trip to Dover, Delaware to visit a poultry farm. Though I grew up not too far from this farm, I never new of it’s existence. The farm is owned by a Ms. Georgie Cartanza, a Nuffield Scholar and the current University of DE Poultry Extension Agent. Ms. Cartanza began the trip by introducing herself and sharing a bit of backstory. She told this to us while we sat on a makeshift amphitheater of sorts made up of packages of pine shavings set up on the concrete heavy-use pad in the shadow of a barn used for storage.
The ‘amphitheatre’…
After the presentation, we were presented with Personal Protective Equipment- intended more for the chickens safety than our own- in the form of rubber booties, coveralls, and hairnets.
PPE in blue…A ‘cute’ outfit…
Looking quite stylish and now rendered unable to sneak-up on anyone, we loudly rustled and awkwardly shuffled around the other side of the barn where we saw the EcoDrum and the product of it’s ‘in-vessel composting process’.
The EcoDrum!Some compost remnants…
Opposite the barn, we could see behind up an identical structure with a manual composting drum.
The manual method…
After marveling at the innovative composting technology we walked over to the actual chicken houses themselves. We got to hear about the technology used to run the chicken houses, namely the Environmental Controller- revolutionary device that allows a single farm to take care of 37, 000 chickens. A prominent part of that technology, displayed broadly on the sides of all the houses, are the large fans to bring the temperature of the chicken house down when necessary.
Heading over to the poultry houses…Two poultry houses
Large Fans!
We also learned about the pasture areas between the houses and the advantages and disadvantages of allowing chickens to roam in the yard. Not yet in use with the young chickens were ramps, hanging water dispensers, bully boxes, ramps, and shade structures. Along with the man-made shade structures were natural shade structures of cattails running down the center.
Pasture Area
The culmination of the trip was the experience of holding baby chickens- these particular chicks were a mere two days old, still bearing the pink streaks of the tinted spray vaccine they received before arriving.
Toys in the yardCattailsSmile everyone!…
The class, joined by Ms. Cartanza, didn’t leave Dover before stopping for lunch at Chik-fil-A- paid for by the Professor. We parted ways with our host after lunch to return to the Newark campus.
Hello there…Awww…
The Newark class section would see Ms. Cartanza again, albeit remotely, for Monday’s first class guest lecture.
Graced by Ms. CARTANZA’s presence yet again, she both repeated and elaborated on some of the finer points she had made on the field trip.
Having had extensive experience in the poultry industry as a field supervisor, waking up anywhere from 4-7am and working 50 hours a week minimum, to working as an employee at Mountaire teaching people how to build two times bigger, better chicken houses, Ms. Cartanza still had a wealth of knowledge to impart.
Working as an organic poultry contract farmer, for Perdue’s organic Division Coleman, Ms. Cartanza shared some of the logistic and political issues surrounding the operation of her farm and organic poultry farms in general.
Because contract farmers compete for their contracts with different companies, growing their chicken competitively. Ms. Cartanza’s in a smaller 20acre farm, one of many strewn about the state and the peninsula, but with ¼ of the U.S. population within eight hours of her location, she maintains an edge on the competition. Delaware is not the leader in broiler production, but it does have the most broilers per square mile, with the largest organic processing plant in the country.
The poultry not only has to generate income for the company, but also pay for the capital involved in producing it- the cost of four chicken houses is much more expensive that the land they’re placed on, coming in at over $1.5mil whereas the acreage was just $20, 000. The biggest expense Ms. Cartanza said she faced after chicken feed was her mortgage and electric.
She, as a Nuffield scholar having spent time in Brazil as well as Mexico, Cornell, Ireland, & France, had not just a local Delmarva or U.S. perspective on poultry farming, but a global one.
Ms. Cartanza said a lot of the expenses and adjustments she must make around her farm don’t necessarily come from government agencies as a result of scientific study, but from the uniformed masses and their personal feelings on what makes chickens, ‘happy’.
For example, Ms. Cartanza said she has a manual composter that’s worth $12, 000 and is capable of processing 1.5 flocks, while her Canada-made EcoDrum, with it’s inverse-composting can process 5 flocks with less time and effort from the farmer. The new equipment isn’t really necessary, but it looked good to environmentalists. Chickens purportedly need 4-8hrs of darkness for melatonin production, but that may not actually help the birds at all.
Another example would be the way chicken houses have been restructured over the years. Ms. Cartanza pointed out while we were at her farm, that the window sizes on the building had to be upped due to evolving public sentiment around the amount of light chickens require to be, ‘happy’, but not necessarily healthier. The larger windows decrease the R-value of the overall house, while the transition from curtain-sided to solid-sidewall houses increase the R-value.
Outside the houses, in the pasture area, Ms. Cartanza must provide shade-areas, buffers, and enrichments that can take the form of patches of warm season grasses, like cattails and miscanthus, trees, like hybrid willows, and toys, like ‘bully boxes’ and ramps. Some of these additions, like the buffers, can help remove harmful particulates from the air, appeasing nearby neighbors, but the grasses can also add to the difficult of managing the chickens environment, creating dense growth that chickens can hide and be lost to the farmer in.
Once the 2-day-old chicks we interacted with reach three weeks old, they will have the option to go outside the chicken house. Allowing chickens to go outside makes them more at risk for predation and contamination from other birds and their droppings in the pasture that could carry Avian Flu virus. The chickens will instinctively stay inside at high noon when they are most visible from overhead, but they also seem to be most comfortable in the artificial, but regulated environment of the houses. The houses are kept at 92degrees F° via large tunnel ventilators that suck out the 8btus of heat that each chicken produces and also blows cool air through the chicken houses, protecting the birds from heat exhaustion by extracting body heat
The organic process also has restrictions on how it maintains the physical health and the environment of the chickens. Ms. Cartanza is permitted to use substances such as oregano, apple cider vinegar, copper sulfate, boric acid, and liquefied citric acid to care for the chickens.
Technology allows Ms. Cartanza to care for 37, 000 chickens more or less independently, but years ago that would have been impossible. That relative ease allows Ms. Cartanza to theoretically fed 780, 000 families from the output of her farm.
People who don’t like the poultry industry might be hard-pressed to find fault with the jobs it creates or how it helps the local economy- for every 1 jobs in poultry, 7 are created in the wider community. Labels in marketing are also used to sway public opinion- ABF or ‘Antibiotic Free’ chickens applies to any U.S. chicken, as the chickens must be cut off of any antibiotics 2 weeks before processing; NAE or ‘No Antibiotics Ever’ sounds good in theory and may appease animal welfare groups, but allowing chickens to potentially suffer for the sake of the label is debatable; and Organic chicken means a chicken is free-range and feed only GMO free feed from organic certified ground, which means additional organic corn and soybeans must be sourced from foreign countries like Argentina and Turkey, increasing the carbon footprint of the organic. The Global Animal Partnership (GAP), a coalition of vegetarians formed by Whole Foods that can threaten chain restaurants and businesses that don’t sell the type of meat they sign-off on, and other political figures with specifics leanings
Genetics, nutrition, housing, and technology have contributed to increasingly larger chickens. In 1957 chickens took 56 days to grow 2lbs,- today a modern chicken can reach 9lbs in the same amount of time. No steroids used- selective breeding makes larger chickens. Maturing in about 20 days, they are able to evolve faster.
Hello
Ms. Cartanza stresses the importance of environmental stewardship, saying poultry farmers don’t want their farms to be unhealthy or toxic places- they raise their families on the farm. They also don’t want suffering or dying birds- lost birds means a loss of money. At the sound of an alarm, a farmer may have to wake up very early, climb a grain bin, run to restore power, or confront a predator or pest- they may have as little as 20minutes to save a flock in the wake of natural disaster of power failure. She mentioned CO2stunning used in a Milford poultry plant to put chickens to sleep before processing- must be alive to process.
Naptime…
Ms. Cartanza says the next big issue facing poultry farmers after the nutrient pollution of waterways will be air quality, though the sustainably of poultry farming itself, whether from an economic or environmental standpoint will be debated as well. A big part of farming in general is the effect it has on the environment. Farmers can be easy targets, when only 2% of the U.S. voters farm and of that number most face more strict regulations on how they farm than a golf course owner or someone with a residential property applying a myriad of various chemicals to their properties.
It’s a girl!…
For Ms. Cartanza herself and her farm, her next big challenge might just be eliminating some of her power costs, one of her biggest expenses as previously mentioned, at $5, 000 a month. With a housing unit for an off-grid 20,000V power generator, Ms. Cartanza may consider going solar next. A solar power system would take 15 years to pay off an might last for 25-35years. A part of the farming process is weigh risks, and Ms. Cartanza deemed the risk too great.
Asking questions
Regardless of an individuals approach to poultry farming, or working in general, Ms. Cartanza reminds the class of the importance of maintaining humility and, ‘doing little things well’. She also reiterates the importance of vetting the news and the science and not discounting another person’s views. Even though she grows organic, she did it to follow the market and industry’s trajectory towards increasingly organic foods. Ms. Cartanza did say she will buy and eat conventional chicken and has noticed no difference in quality. She also states it is impossible to feed the world organically- in 2050, 9bilion people are projected to inhabit the world.
A few items before we leave..
Overall, I enjoyed the trip and the lecture. Some memorable events include:
One chick slated to be euthanized later by ethical/humane cervical dislocation, i.e., ‘wringing it’s neck’, possibly due to an error in the in-egg fertilization process where a needle is placed through the egg shell 3days before the chicks birth which may have caused ‘Star-gaze syndrome’, piercing the birds’ spinal cord
Holding a 2 day old chick in my bare hands that could barely stay awake
Learning that, contrary to what I had read previously, chickens are still caught by hand and live-hungèmachines were not as successful as hoped
Perdue tried for 1yr, but the results still were not as good as the 7man team that can take up to 4 6.5lb birds in each hand & can earn up to $30,00 a year catching poultry 6days a weekèEurope is often a few years ahead of the U.S. as far as tech
The Chik-fil-A lunch that followed where I saw a WW2 vet
On Saturday, September 7th, our class went on a field trip to a poultry farm run by Georgie Cortanza in Kent County, Delaware. She has 4 chicken houses which hold 37,000 chickens a house and 148,000 chickens in total. They weigh 913,900 pounds a flock. A flock is a certain number of birds in one group. She has 5.5 flocks in one year and makes 5,000,000 pounds a year. In total, she feeds 59,808 people a year. Georgies runs an organic farm, meaning that all the chickens there are free range. This means that they get to go outside for a period of time each day.
Chickens are one of the animals that have a lower carbon footprint. The only one lower is fish! The carbon index for chicken is 6.2 versus cows which is 16.2. A chicken also requires less feed for an outcome, which makes it better economically for the farmer. For every 1 job in the poultry industry, it creates 7 more jobs.
My favorite part of the field trip was seeing the baby chicks of course. They are very soft and fun to hold.
Ms. Georgie Cartanza, a organic poultry farmer, presented and informed students of the Understanding Todays Agriculture class about the evolution of the poultry industry on the Delmarva and how it is managed today. On the Delmarva, there are ten processing plants, thirteen hatcheries, and ten feed mills each of which allow there to be many poultry houses on the Delmarva that are accounting for ten percent of the nations production. With these houses, many jobs are created as for every one job in the industry, it creates seven in the community which overall helps the economy of the state of Delaware. However, the poultry industry was only able to become this efficient and profitable because of the technology that has developed over time; that allows producers to have better structured houses, thermostatic heating, good ventilation inside the houses, feed access such as drips and troughs, and overall a better living environment for the birds which has made the industry very successful in producing poultry. While, in past years, the poultry industry had very little access to technology which limited the producer in the number of birds they could produce and how the producers could tend to the various health needs that are associated with these birds. Over time, the industry has also changed by becoming virtually integrated, which has caused Ms. Cartanza and other poultry producers to grow and produce poultry more based off of the control of the consumer; such as objects like enrichments and outdoor access, like in Ms. Cartanzas organic poultry house, to be placed. Essentially, throughout this presentation many things about the poultry industry in the past and current day time can be learned, which can help the students and myself to develop a better understanding of the industry and develop certain interest with it as well.
Throughout this presentation, I learned many things, the evolution of poultry production, its contribution to the local economy, and how the industry markets there product today. With marketing and production, the industry has become more integrated to the consumers desire for the industry, causing the consumer to become more in control; which I found very interesting because I’ve never heard of it and didn’t think that the consumer would have control of the industry let alone what occurs in the chicken house as well. With the information learned, I now have a better understanding of the industry and how it has become the industry it is today which can allow me to educate others about the poultry industry as well as develop a factual opinion about poultry farms in Delmarva and in other states of the United States.
Dave Mayonado gave a guest lecture on Industry and Academia in Agriculture. He began with the history of technology in Agriculture. The glory days of technology in agriculture was when farmers used animal labor and relied heavily on family involvement. Most farms were small intimate farms that fed the immediate family tending to the farms. Food production was limited in the late 1800s because the technology was not there. The Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890 established raising funds by granting federally controlled lands to the states to establish land-grant colleges. The purpose was to focus on the teaching of practical agriculture, science, military science, and engineering. Science-based research and development by government, academia, and private industry over the past 100 years have aided the increase in US crop production via improved agronomic practices and the adoption of new tools. By applying rigorous scientific principles to the development of agricultural technologies and techniques has allowed Mid-Atlantic farmers to grow larger crops while improving soil quality and fostering an environment for wildlife. Some examples of biological tools are CRISPR, GMOs, and GWS. CRISPR is a gene editing tool that allows us to change the genes of a crop plant to be more drought or pest resistant. This allows for the crop to have a higher yield when faced with a drought since it can tolerate less rainfall.
David has an incredible background in the industry as he has worked for Monsanto. Monsanto was founded in 1901. Then cell biology research began in 1972. Monsanto has been a leader in putting out genetically modified plants commercially.
