Field Trips-Tours, Livestock

Webb Farm Livestock Tour at UD

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On November 2nd, the class traveled up to Newark, Delaware to meet Scott Hopkins, a superintendent and crop manager of the researched-based Webb Farm on the UD campus. He introduced to us the importance of research done on the farm with livestock as well as crops. Currently, the farm contains Dorset sheep, an Angus cattle herd and equine herd with greenhouses and acreage used for leafy greens, tomatoes, okra, cabbage, sweet potatoes, and other produce. Large portions of the fresh fruit and vegetables grown there follow the Fresh to You segment which delivers organics to subscribing customer’s doorsteps. This farm also provides for farmers markets and shopping centers. Scott Hopkins works on and conducts research on cow milk, their feed, and sheep wool as shown in the photos below. He gave the class a tour of the areas where the livestock are kept and how they are taken care of. While showing us the farm on campus, he told us that his most favorite thing about working in his position is teaching students about the agricultural experience, because today, many people have become separated from knowing how their food made its way to their plate. He brought up the topic of agriculture and explained the scientific approach to it, which I think is very important to consumers to ensure the health of ourselves as well as the animals and plant products we consume every day.

 

Equine/Horse, Field Trips-Tours, Livestock

UD farm

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In November 2nd, 2019, my class took a field trip in webb farm and dairy farm of university of Delaware. I have been there several time in last semester, and the bad smell are so familiar. UD farm grows crops and vegetables in the field, but they didn’t serve for dining halls in main campus. The yield is not enough to satisfies the needs. But they do sell to the star campus. We saw several herds of sheep, dairy cattle and horses. UD farm even grows rice and raise bees for research. There are over 100 cows in dairy farm. They can produce 800 gallons of milk per day. Staffs use automatic milker machine to milk cows. Because of biosecurity and efficiency. And I noticed that some cows have weird “windows” in their side of body. It allows the researchers to reach inside the animal’s stomach and analyze the contents. If the cow was sick, researcher will take other healthy cow’s stomach contents and put into the sick cow’s stomach to see if it cures the cow. In the webb farm, we luckily saw 4 cute lambs. What a wonderful trip!

Field Trips-Tours, Livestock

UD Farm Tour

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This was the second time that I’ve taken a tour of the UD south campus farms, so I was pretty familiar with everything there. First we went to see the organic farm, which is used for classes and the produce is sold. We then saw the dairy cows and their milking facility. Dairy cows are my favorite farm animal because they are like large dogs, they just want to be loved. They seemed pretty relaxed and chill, and I appreciated that. We then saw a bit more of where they keep the dairy cows and saw the machines where they keep them in place when working on their feet or giving them any sort of treatments. 

Next we went past the chickens, though we didn’t go in, because we could track in viruses or diseases that could be harmful to the chickens. After that, we went past the bees and their hive as well has some other small farms used for classes and research. 

Once we crossed the road, we got to the sheep and horses stable. Sadly, they didn’t have any horses at the time, but our guide showed us some of the reasons why the stables were built in the specific way. For example, the sides of each enclosed stable is see through so that the horses can see each other. I also found out that horses are one of two mammals that can actually stop their labor and continue at another time. 

Next we saw the sheep and some lambs. I got to pet a lamb for the first time. There were also some older cows next to the sheep, who were also chilling much like the dairy cows. The sheep have access to the outside to roam around when they feel like it, but the one sheep and the two lambs did not have a very open space, because one had a medical problem, and it’s easier to get them for treatment in a smaller enclosement. I enjoyed our more in depth tour of the farm, but I wish it wasn’t so cold!

Extra Credit Assignment, Issues and Controversies

GMO Scandal

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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.

Field Trips-Tours, Livestock

Field Trip: Newark Farm

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On November 2nd, our agriculture class took a trip to the University of Delaware Research Farm in Newark. Scott Hopkins, the farm superintendent, gave us a tour of the farm and showed us the daily routines. We were able to see multiple kinds of livestock, including sheep and cows and the vegetables being grown like kale and cabbage. He showed us where the cows were milked everyday and the technology behind it. Cows aren’t milked by hand anymore, in order to control food safety, they are hooked up to a milker that does the work automatically  and is able to test the milk before putting it in the joint tank to be shipped off. He also showed how the research on what cows eat is controlled. A chip in there neck allows the animal to reach into a specific bin to eat. This allows them to track exactly how much and what the cow is eating and how it might affect the cow. I thought it was pretty cool how the cow is trained and know exactly where to go to eat when all of the bins look exactly the same. This field trip was probably my favorite because it was really hands on and i was able to learn alot.

Field Trips-Tours, Livestock

UD Farm

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We visited the UD farm on Saturday, a 350 acre farm dedicated to various research. The farm has crop fields, pastures, wetland areas, and forests. We saw cows and sheep, though they also have chickens, bees, and horses. I found the feeding system of the cows to be interesting. Each cow has their own radio collar that, when they stick their head in their bin, sends a signal to the gate blocking it and opens only for that particular cow. No other cow can get to a different cows feed. The cows, of course, must be trained to go to their spot and that spot never changes. We didn’t see the chickens due to biosecurity reasons. We pose a big problem to the health of the chickens, so we only drove by.

The farm does sell some of the food it produces on Star campus, but it does not go to the dining hall. The fields grow organic produce such as leafy greens, tomatoes, potatoes, and pumpkins. In their high tunnels, the farm can be growing plants 9-10 months in the year, which is important considering the length of time it takes some plants to grow and when students are typically on campus.

Field Trips-Tours

Our Last Field Trip: The Newark Farm

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This was definitely my favorite trip of them all and between seeing all the animals, the research they were doing throughout the farm, getting to hear about everything they do on the farm, oh and I can’t forget about that ice cream. I got a pint of cinnamon crunch ice cream and it was just about the best ice cream I’ve ever had. Maybe seeing all the behind the scenes of the milking process and the cows themselves made it better. But, I’ve had the tour of Hopkins Dairy farm and there ice cream didn’t get any better so I’ll have to take another trip up to Newark and get some more to experiment. My favorite thing about this field trip was the feeding process they had for the cows. It just amazed me and I almost didn’t believe him till 3 or 4 cows came up and scanned their necklace and started eating. I also thought it was cool that they were experimenting with rice patties on campus I never thought that we would be in the right climate for that but it definitely makes sense. Another, bonus was getting to see all the different bee hives scattered around the farm.

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Newark Farm

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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!

Agriculture Careers, Field Trips-Tours, Livestock, Vegetables

Universitys of Delawares Farm Field Trip

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“It all is kind of interesting, we have a lot of interesting projects not just one” (Scott Hopkins). Scott Hopkins, farm superintendent of the University of Delaware’s farm, informed the University of Delaware’s students about the farm through giving the students of the understanding todays ag class a tour of each livestock as well as the organic farm and wetlands the university offers. UD’s farm is composed of 350 acres in which stretches part of the south campus, starting from the side of Townsend, with the organic farm, which is composed of 2 acres and grows the produce of kale, cabbage, and other vegetables that is grown and later sold to the star lab across the street, to the university’s livestock farm. With the university’s organic farm producing vegetables for food for the star lab, the university also has few acres of field corn and other crops such as rice for research and to feed the livestock it has which allows the university to feed and supply the livestock grown on the farm that consists of sheep, equine, dairy and beef cattle and poultry.

On the livestock farm, Mr. Hopkins explained that each of the livestock has different feeding and housing requirements and overall health requirements which makes it very crucial to understand each for efficient production of that specific species. Essentially, with these operations on the farm on campus, the need of students and faculty in certain areas has arisen which Mr. Hopkins explains leads to many opportunities for the University of Delaware’s student to gain experience in different fields. Additionally, the University of Delaware’s farm is a large operation that needs many people to make this operation successful as the years continue forward and with this trip, it provides an insight for the students about the plant and livestock industry which can help us further understand those two industries as a whole; as well as gain an interest which is that the organic farms produce is supplied to the star campus and local farmers markets.

Livestock

Livestock in DE

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Dan Steverson came to class to talk about the livestock industry in Delaware. He told us that 40% of Delaware’s land area is in farms, which is a large percentage for just one general type of land use. 29% is dedicated to growing corn and soybeans. 98% of the farms are family owned. I was very surprised when he said that 9.7% of a person’s income is spent on food, I expected that number to be higher actually. But I guess with increase of cheap foods and big stores like Walmart, it is easy to get deals. It made sense, however, when he said that family farms have smaller herd sizes compared to commercial farms. Family farms tend to have family labor, while commercial farms can have tons of hired labor and can manage large herds of animals. Commercial farms also tend to be more profitable as you need less input per unit. If both a family farm and a commercial farm need barns, fields, and feeders, it takes less per unit to build one giant barn as opposed to a smaller one.

Delaware Agriculture, Extra Credit Assignment

Misleading Labels

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Dan Severson wanted us to find a product that had misleading advertising on the package of a food product. I found Popcorners, which is a snack that I often enjoy but have found that it has some unnecessary labeling. It is advertised as non-GMO, gluten free, and nut free. While labeling of non-GMO and nut free provide information to the buyer, gluten free is not necessary. It is made of corn, which is naturally gluten free, so labeling it as such is just to get another “buzz word” on the package. If someone has a gluten allergy or sensitivity, you would think they would know that corn does not contain gluten.

Extra Credit Assignment, Topics for Discussion

Misleading Marketing in the Food Industry

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Dan Severson gave us a quick homework assignment. We were told to provide pictures of misleading advertising of food products. These are a few examples I have found:

The Beyond Meat “Burgers” are a great example of misleading advertising. These patties are not burger patties, they are simply plant-based patties. To consider this a burger is incorrect, provided with the information that a burger is made with beef, not plant products.

Another important example that children and adults alike love is Welch’s fruit snacks. You can see that the entire box is covered with the phrases “real fruit” or “fruit is out 1st ingredient!” Fruit puree is the first ingredient, and there is fruit in these gummies. However, these are not healthy, they are actually quite comparable to candy. Over 40% of the contents in each bag are made with sugar and corn syrup. Which in large amounts is not healthy at all. The information is in a tiny format on the nutrition facts while the phrases about fruit are in larger format to reel in customers. Welch’s has deceptive advertising.

Lastly, there is the PowerBar. This brand is claiming it is packed with protein for “performance energy” but in reality, this product contains high amounts of sugar and fructose, which eaten continuously can produce visceral fat in the human body. This is definitely not something you’d want to be eating if that information was in bold on the front of the bar.

These examples provide proof that many companies will do almost anything, even if that means false or misleading advertising, to interest customers and basically fool them into wanting to purchase their product. This is a way that these brands make money, by hoodwinking the general population.

 

 

Extra Credit Assignment, Topics for Discussion

Extra Credit

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Why do food products come mislabeled? For the longest time, I’ve wanted to know why a bag of popcorn said Gluten Free, when popcorn is simply made of corn and could not contain gluten. When I was in high school, I had a friend who couldn’t eat gluten. We were in the same advisory group and our group would get together once a week. We would always bring a snack, but because he was in our group, there would always be some sort of gluten free snack in the bunch. There was the occasional pretzel, which was always marked gluten free, but there was also the potato chips. They were also marketed as gluten free. I didn’t know why, because if you made them correctly, there should only be potatoes, salt, and some sort of oil in the chip. Maybe it was a sort of branding to get the gluten free people to buy it, but I always found it odd. I find that with many corn-based food products, they typically will say gluten free on the packaging. I don’t know if it’s unnecessary in this case, because if you are allergic, you’d want to know. I am allergic to certain food colors and I always like to know if it is dye free. So when something says dye free, I know I’m okay.

Ag Literacy & Social Media, Extra Credit Assignment, Issues and Controversies, Topics for Discussion

Non-GMO Labeling Extra Credit

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Within the united states, GMOs, a genetically modified organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques for the benefit of the crops growth and the people, has become a controversial debate in the aspect of if a food should contain the GMO label which is beginning to effect the way food is being produced and purchased across the United States and the world. With the topic of GMOs, many consumers have developed little knowledge about the process in growing them and what they contain which has caused many to publish false information and consumers to become to believe that GMOs are bad. Essentially, with this developed belief, food companies have begun to take this as an advertising advantage and strategy to get consumers to purchase their product even though the product may not even contain genetics such as the product of Pink Himalayan Salt.

Pink Himalayan Salt, a product made of 98% of sodium chloride and contains other minerals such as potassium, magnesium, and calcium that is mined from the rocks of the Punjab region of modern Pakistan, has no genes. However, because much of the public lacks education and knowledge of GMOs and the health of it, the public has come to believe that GMO free products are healthier, thus, causing many food companies to use this as an advantage to label products as GMO free so that the consumer will be more likely to purchase the product even though the salt contains no genes to be altered. Essentially, with labeling, a relationship of trust has been created between the producer and consumer because food labeling allows the consumer to know what’s in the product and purchase it based off of beliefs and individual desires which allows the consumer to know that the company is producing safe products based off of their beliefs; which can be an advantage to the food industry but it can also lead to focused markets and affect the products that are being labeled as GMO.

Livestock, Poultry

Guest Lecture: Dan Severson

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On October 21st, Dan Severson came into our class to talk about an overview of livestock. I found Dan’s humour to be really great and I think it helped drive his lecture. I found that a lot of what Dan talked about I had already known about, mainly from studying for the first exam. Dan has a lot of small ruminant animals such as goats and he also has pigs. 

First, he talked about Delaware’s farms. Delaware has 2,500 farms, 500,000 acres of farmland, and $8 million of product. The biggest expense for farms, specifically animal related farms, spend most of their money on feed for the animals. Delaware is the largest producer in lima beans but 29% of the farmland in Delaware is for corn and soybeans. 

Next, he talked about US history and how it relates to US agriculture both back then and today. After World War 1, the number of farms went down because a lot of children who worked on farms went to war instead. Yet after World War 2, the number of farms went up, but many of those children, now young adults, returned to work in the assembly line. Although we have fewer farms, we still grow a lot. With newer innovations, we can now grow more with less. 

A Class Journal for UDel CANR AGRI 130