Category Archives: Field Trips-Tours

Getting to The Core of The Orchard Industry

This weekend was the second field trip of the semester! Fall is just getting started, and I couldn’t have picked a better place to go: an apple orchard! Fifers Orchard is a 4th generation, family-run farm in Camden-Wyoming, Delaware, and we were lucky enough to get a behind-the-scenes look at the entire operation.The tour was given by Bobby Fifer, and started at the heart of the business: the farm. We were able to see a portion of the land where they grow and harvest their fresh produce. With nearly 3,000 acres of farmland they grow many different crops, including kale, cauliflower, strawberries and of course apples! We learned that they grow cauliflower of unusual colors, including purple and orange, as well as over 20 different varieties of apples. But by far, their biggest money-maker is sweet corn; Fifer’s supplies corn to the entire east coast, and nearly every state east of the Mississippi! After seeing the farm, we were taken to the packaging and distribution center. We learned about some of the technology that is used for sorting fruits, tomatoes, and peaches, and talked with Curt Fifer, Bobby’s brother and the man behind the shipments/sales. After talking with us about some of the challenges that can be encountered during the shipping process we were taken to their brick and mortar store and introduced to their cousin, Michael. We discussed the marketing side of the business and their CSA program. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture, and it’s like a weekly subscription to fresh produce. Every week you receive a box of various fruits and vegetables that are currently in season, straight from the farm. CSAs are one of their most reliable ways of making sales, as well as great opportunities for advertisement and getting people to eat fresh.

At the end of the day we raided the store for all sorts of goodies – delicious baked goods, fresh ciders, and much, much more. Everyone went home with their hands full and pockets empty from this one-of-a-kind field trip.

Produce: From Delaware to Florida

September 23rd, “Understanding Today’s Agriculture” Class enjoyed a field trip to Fifer’s Orchard in Camden-Wyoming, Delaware. This fourth-generation family farm tills 2,800 acres, producing a variety of produce and field crops. They have 160 people on payroll, benefitting the area with jobs.

On our field trip we were able to see a field with a variety of cauliflower and kale as well as Apple Trees. On the farm they also have high tunnel, which is where they grow tomatoes, start to finish. Growing tomatoes in high tunnel, allowed for a controlled environment. It was really interesting to not only see a center pivot irrigation system in the grains fields, but they also have a drip irrigation system for other products. They also have a store, where they can sell to local consumers. Every Saturday until Halloween, they have a Fall Fest on Saturday’s, be sure to check out their social media and join the numerous activities and venders.

Without today’s technology Fifers Orchard would not be able to have grown as they have today. They are thankful for the science and technology they have available to keep their business running. They are looking forward to what the future has to offer. Yet, they face a challenge with labor-intensive jobs. Most of their produce is hand picked and packaged.

Fifer’s Orchard works with a Community Supported Agriculture club (CSA) that provides a variety of produce weekly to locations throughout Delaware. They also sell locally at their country store, to schools and to restaurants. Not only does their produce travel locally, it travels all the way to Florida because it is too hot in the summer for Florida to grow produce, we supply Southern States with produce and in the winter they provide us with produce.

Be sure to check Fifer’s out located in Camden-Wyoming Delaware.

Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/fiferorchards/

Fifer Orchards Visit

Fifer Orchards is a local farm and country store located in Camden-Wyoming, DE.  Tilling over 2800 acres Fifers produces a diverse amount of crops along with their biggest profit sweet corn. This past summer I was fortunate enough to work at Fifer Orchards and after the field trip I gained even more respect for the farm and the things they do to benefit the community and the agriculture industry. Throughout the field trip we were taken to several fields and shown many different crops, one of the most interesting was kale which is hand harvested. We were then given a tour of the packing house and cooler and shown the behind the scenes that goes into getting Fifer Orchards produce out to the public. We were lucky enough to visit on the first day of the fall fest so it was a busy Saturday for the Fifer Orchards staff. The farm puts on many events for the community throughout the year such as the strawberry festival, customer appreciation day and the fall fest. Apple cider slushes couldn’t be handed out fast enough to the customers. After working at Fifers over the summer and the field trip I have really seen the hard work that goes into the family business and how hard the family strives to serve the community.

Fifer Orchard’s Field Trip

My experience at Fifer Orchards was superb! From the minute I gazed upon the farm I knew I was in for a treat! The diversity of crops of fruits, vegetables, and how they’re treated was simply impressive, in today’s era Fifer Orchard’s harvest has produced strawberries, 27 varieties of apples, 36 varieties of peach, blueberries, nectarines, plums, cherries, sweet corn, asparagus, etc. Sweet corn has been the most dominant production, and can either be harvested or machine harvested. Sweet corn is the only crop that is machine harvested on the farm! The most intriguing part about this farm is it’s not just a farm, but a fantastic fresh market with an unbelievable amount of different kinds of foods for the customers. The market has anything from fresh hand- picked apples to hand dipped ice cream and apple cider slushies. What also separates this farm from many others on Delmarva is the Community Supported Agriculture Club, also called the Delmarva box. This club consists of a weekly box with a variety of fruits and vegetables for 18 weeks straight. This helps reach the attainable goal of no waste from any of the produce! So clearly Fifer orchards is a top tier produce farm, and I really am intrigued and look forward to visiting again as there is much more to learn!

Fifer’s Orchard Field Trip Adventure

On the 23rd of September, we went to have a tour of Fifer Orchards located in Camden-Wyoming, Delaware. This +2,500 acre farm is a fourth generation family run farm. Bobby Fifer gave us a tour of the farm along with going out in the fields to look at the  different types of irrigation systems they have in the fields ( center pivot irrigation and drip irrigation) As well as being showed the fields and where the fruit and produce was being grown we got a chance to look in the packaging and distribution center and how each of the items is processed to enter our local stores and businesses. One extremely interesting thing that I found out while on the farm was that the orchard ships all up and down the east coast and east of the Mississippi River! This is beyond incredible especially for us being such a small state.  Another thing that I found to be interesting was that there is a program called the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) this is where the farm puts together pre-paid boxes of produce and have drop-off locations for families to pick up produce. This is more effective that farmers market because there is little to no product waste. Whereas at farmers markets you can run out of produce and make the customer upset or you can bring to much of a certain product and then have leftovers which would have to be thrown away. Fifer’s Orchard always has events and activities going on each weekend. This week was the kick off to their fall fest and there were so many games for kids and vendors for shopping. They also had their shop open which had the BEST Apple CIder Slushies! This was by far one of my favorite field trips and will definitely be visiting them soon again

Touring Georgie’s Organic Poultry Operation

This past Saturday, I had the opportunity to tour an organic poultry operation and to learn all about the ins and outs of it. Georgie Cartanza, the owner and operator of this organic poultry farm, was full of not only knowledge about the industry, but as well as wisdom that I will hold onto as I go throughout my life. I found this field trip especially valuable since I was able to apply what I have learned about the poultry industry, its management and the ever-changing market demands to a real life operation. Georgie explained to us that being an organic farm is a lot more work to keep up to standards as well as costs. The average cost of organic feed is 3x the amount of conventional chicken feed – she attributed this to the fact that organic feed has to be shipped to the United States from other countries due to the lack of profitability for farmers to grow organic feed in the states. Georgie also mentioned that with the ever-changing consumer and market, in a few years, she will have to implement more windows, more shade cloths and more enrichments to each house to satisfy the “organic” standards put in place. The poultry industry is always changing and advancing as technology increases and I’m excited to see where it shifts next. This field trip was a great learning experience and I throughly got a lot out of it.  Ms. Cartanza is a very knowledgable woman and I hope I get to encounter with her again.

Organic Poultry Farm

Although I was unable to attend this field trip, hearing the lecture and observing a classmates notes gave me insight into this industry. Learning the background of this industry was very interesting, especially how it all originated from a mess up in an order bringing 10X the amount of chickens was so facilitating to hear. The most fascinating part of this was learning more about organic chicken. Personally , I always would buy organic chicken because I thought it was better for me as a consumer, as well as the welfare of that chicken. But after hearing from someone who has been in this industry for over 10 years really opened my eyes to some of the misconception. The main thing that stuck out for me was how in order to be classified as organic, they need to allow the chickens access outside. At first, this thought seemed great to me and that it really would be a benefit to the animal. But after hearing how few chickens on Ms. Georgie’s own farm actually go outside, I started thinking differently. Also, these chickens are not allowed to receive antibiotics. So when they are sick and medically require antibiotics, they are not allowed to get them. Even if this doesn’t result in a death, to me, not administering these needed drugs is inhumane. Lastly, another thing that surprised me is how the “wellness” of the chicken is determined by the chicken paw and how that is the most expensive part of the chicken. Overall I enjoyed learning more about this industry and intend to do more research to distinguish my knowledge from the previous misconceptions I may have had.

Poultry Farm Tour

Initially, when Dr. Isaacs informed my class about our field trip to the poultry farm I was a bit apprehensive about it.  Being that I’m a vegetarian, I was afraid I’d be exposed to conditions that I wouldn’t be emotionally ready for.  Aside from that, I’ve seen cruel documentaries of how chickens are mistreated. But after our class lecture about the evolution of the poultry industry and the farm we would be visiting, I was less anxious about the field trip.

To my surprise, the farm was nothing that I expected it to be.  The farm is run by a woman named Georgie Cartanza.  Ms. Cartanza is a very hardworking woman who has dedicated most of her work life to the poultry industry.  She is extremely passionate and well-informed about the chickens she raises.  I was shocked when she told us that she has approximately 148,000 chickens and only has two other people help her maintain and care for the chickens.  I was under the impression that she would have many more people helping her.  She was very welcoming and allowed us into one of the chicken houses.  Although I contemplated if I wanted to go into one, I’m glad that I decided to.  The house was very well kept and the chickens seemed to be content in their environment. The chickens are provided with ample food and water through rows of dispensers.  After seeing all the technology used to run the houses, I understood why Ms. Cartanza doesn’t need much additional help.  I was pleased to hear that her chickens are organically grown meaning they aren’t given any antibiotics and are provided with natural light.

This field trip allowed me to see a side of the poultry farm I most likely wouldn’t have known about. Due to all that I’ve seen and heard about animal farms, I found it difficult to see around the negative associations.  However, I can say that Georgie’s farm has skewed my perception.

Organic Poultry Farm 9/9/2017

On Saturday September 9, our class visited the Organic Poultry Farm of Georgie Cartanza. Upon arrival, we were greeted with excitement and given a little presentation about her farm and other poultry farms in Delaware in general. I always knew that Delaware was huge on chickens, but it was really put into perspective for us. It was very interesting to hear how Georgie worked for more than one industry throughout her career for her own personal reasons, especially since I had never even heard of Mountaire and always heard about Tyson and Perdue. Along with information about Delaware poultry, Georgie provided us with advice for ourselves and our future, and I appreciated that a lot. We then got suited up and headed to the houses (37,000 chickens per house by the way)!

It was amazing to see how different it was inside there than it has been portrayed in the media. I expected lots of noise, chaos, wings flapping, etc. Instead, the chickens were eating, drinking walking around, and it smelled worse outside the houses than it did inside! It was also very funny to see that free range chickens do not even go outside, what with all the fuss over it.

Field Trip to Georgie’s Poultry Farm

 Georgie Cartanza’s poultry farm was a such a great experience for my classmates and I. We couldn’t have picked a better day to learn and explore her 4 chicken houses. I have been in a big chicken house like the one we saw on Saturday just one other time, but to see another one like it with over 37,000 chickens in one house was incredible.  Georgie told us some interesting facts like how she produces over 5 million pounds of chicken per year to letting us know that she makes money off of her chicken’s manure. One other piece of information that I took from Georgie’s presentation on Saturday was how you get what you give. She talked about how whenever you get the chance, you should help out someone that needs it because one day, when you may need that help, those people that you gave to, will give back. Thanks Georgie for an awesome day on your farm and educating us more on the poultry world!

Cartanzas Organic Poultry Farm

On September 9th the Understanding Today’s Agriculture Class visited Cartanza Farms in Dover, Delaware. This is an organic farm which is run by Georgie Cartanza. On her farm, she has a total of four houses and holds approximately  37,000 birds per house. With her being an organic farm she has certain regulations to follow in order to make the consumers happy along with the chickens.  Georgie has given her bird’s access to food, outdoor areas with toys and water whenever they please; in their food, there are no steroids or hormones to please the consumers who do not want anything to help “enhance”  the growth and development of the chicken. On the other hand with Georgie not being able to feed her flocks the proper medicines (Antibiotics). Since that technically is a steroid she can not help her birds fight off sickness.  This is the one major problem with having the birds on no enhancements. Despite the birds being “natural” or “healthier” with the medicines given to them, they will have to be kept extra healthy. This can be a challenge for Georgie and her farm because if one flock get sick or begins an illness this can damage the incoming flocks along with her profit. Consumers, who want their birds to be steroid/antibiotic free,  in the case that the bird does end up being sick, is it truly the proper thing to let the suffer  Along with infecting the rest of the flock? Georgie has gone above and beyond for supporting her family and farm. I find this to be inspirational and such a strong role model in the Agricultural Field.  She has definitely influenced me and my perspective on organic farms!

Poultry Farm Visit

When I first heard that we were going to be taking a field trip to an organic poultry farm I was very standoff-ish. Personally I do not agree with organic for many reasons. However when listening to Ms. Cartanza I was pleasantly surprised. She explained that the practices outlined in the organic guidelines are basically unnecessary because for the most part the chickens do not take advantage of theses organic specific practices. Which furthered my opinion on the nature of organic operations. Furthermore I was surprised by the condition of the chicken houses, they were very pleasant. The temperature was very comfortable, the noise level was low, and the smell was more then bearable; the chickens seemed to be very content with their living conditions. Which is why I was a little bothered by the fact that she cannot allow anyone to take pictures while in the chicken house for fear that they’ll negatively misconstrue what are actually very nice living conditions, in order to further their own agenda.

Georgie Cartanza’s Poultry Farm

In this picture, Georgie can be seen sharing information about her farm and Delawares poultry industry to students.

Georgie Cartanza is a great example of a dedicated poultry farmer who is willing to go beyond expectations in her field. I admire her work ethic and thoroughly enjoyed touring her farm. Georgie is now an organic chicken farmer and her operation can house 148,000 chickens. Before she switched to organic chickens she grew roasters. The chickens on Georgie’s farm produce about 80 tons of manure each year, which is then sold as fertilizer. I found it very interesting that Georgie would have never expected herself to have her own poultry operation. While she was always involved in the poultry industry she didn’t start running her own chicken houses until 11 years ago. Her hardworking attitude lead her to be very successful. However, she does see some challenges coming her way such as organic consumers changing requirements based on how the chickens are raised. I believe Georgie to be a great role model for anyone going into the poultry industry or any branch of the agriculture industry. Poultry is a huge part of a Delaware and Georgie has stood herself out from the rest.

 

An Egg-cellent Field Trip

On September 9th, the class took an exciting trip to Miss Georgie Cartanza’s poultry farm! After working in the poultry industry for nearly 20 years, with eleven years owning her own poultry farm, she had a wealth of knowledge to share with us. She owns four different chicken houses, with about 37,000 chickens in each house (almost 150,000 total chickens!)! On top of that, there is only one other worker who occasionally helps with the farm operations, so she’s raising that many chickens practically on her own!

Luckily the chicken houses are top-of-the-line, with an assortment of computers, machines, and equipment that makes her life much easier. Nowadays, almost everything is automated: there are computer systems to regulate the temperature, humidity, food, water, and practically everything else you could imagine within the house! This allows her to check in on her chickens from anywhere via her smart phone, and helps diagnose any potential problems there may be. We were lucky enough to get a tour of one of the chicken houses so we could get a firsthand look at the computers, feed systems, and a whole lot of chickens.

One thing that I found most fascinating was the inside of the chicken houses. I always imagined a chicken house would be loud with the clucking of the chickens, flapping of wings, and movement of equipment; and most of all I was expecting it to be smelly. But it was honestly the opposite! The chickens were very relaxed, it was surprisingly quiet (almost peaceful), and the airflow provided by the large fans made it so the smell was not an issue!

Ms. Cartanza ended the tour with some words of wisdom about the real world: being a good worker, having good communication skills, and always keeping a positive attitude will get you far in life!

Poultry Farm Fun

It was an interesting experience to go to Georgie’s poultry farm. Over the course of two years, I have learned about poultry, poultry farms, poultry anatomy, and poultry nutrition, but I had yet to experience poultry in a farm setting. I was not sure what to expect when entering the barns. I had learned about biosecurity and learned as how to properly keep animals safe. This was my first time fully suiting up and practicing such methods on a farm. Once in the barn, I was surprised as to the actual look of the barn. I had never been inside one and was amazed. Thanks to taking all of my ANFS classes, I understood most of what I was informed about, but was still impressed by the new knowledge. Did you know Sussex county is the largest poultry producer in the US? And that just one farm can produce almost 150,000 chickens per year? I didn’t but it will be become one of my new fun facts.