Shepherds Pie Burger Recipe
Monday, January 30, 2012
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
The Power of Media
This semester I am enrolled in a Mass Communications course. Although we have only had a couple of weeks of class, I have already learned and realized a lot about the media and how much power it has in society. The media is constantly creating fads telling us what things we should wear, who we should listen to, and even what we should eat. As an Agriculture major, of course my thoughts turned immediately to the recent surge in interest of foods with some of these now commonly seen labels:
Labels like these are not new to the grocery store shelves, but they are becoming more common because consumers are suddenly looking for these labels on the food they choose to buy. So what is behind this change in consumer's outlook on food products? Largely, I would say it is the media.
How often to you see a story on the news or on the internet about farming and what practices you should support when buying products at a grocery store? Agriculture has become the target of many organizations that have worked hard to shed a negative light on the industry in order to sway the public's opinion. We are seeing these labels more and more because the people selling that product know that the consumer is more likely to choose their product if a certain label is on it. What people don't realize is that these new labels don't necessarily mean that the producers have changed their production methods, it could simply be that they have decided to advertise the methods that they were already using.
I just found it interesting that the media has played such a huge role in the consumer's personal opinion and what decisions they make at the grocery store. One thing I would like to add is that as a consumer, you should not only be aware of why these labels are on the product, but what exactly they mean. Look into FDA regulations and what specific criteria a producer has to meet in order to have a certain label on their product. I think you will be suprised to find that labels don't always meet all of the criteria that you might assume.
Click here to read my blog about understanding food labels: Natural vs Organic: Know Your Labels
Friday, January 20, 2012
Useless Degree #1: Agriculture... I think not!
For the past few days, an article about the most useless college majors has been the talk of the town... at least for the Ag Department here on campus. If you haven't seen this article, go to the link below to see what everyone is talking about:
http://education.yahoo.net/articles/most_useless_degrees.htm?kid=1KWNU
The number one useless degree according to this article: agriculture. Coming in at numbers 4 and 5 are animal science and horticulture. Naturally, all of the agriculture students are outraged. After all, they are spending a pretty penny to get their college degree... and now this writer has the nerve to call it useless! According to Terence Loose, the author of this article, agriculture is a useless degree because farms today are becoming more efficient, so farms and ranches simply aren't hiring any more labor. Well, apparently Mr. Loose neglected to do his research. Agriculture majors are NOT limited to being hired as labor on a farm or ranch! As a matter of fact, I would say most agriculture majors are not looking to be hired by a farm. Agriculture majors move on to have careers at commodity organizations, banks, loan agencies, farm bureaus, grain elevators, fertilizer & seed companies... the list goes on! It is simply naive for the author of this article to make such a claim about majoring in agriculture for the reason of farms becoming more efficient.
One statement that I found particularly troubling in the article was as follows: "Still, if your idea of a good day is getting up with the sun and working till it sets as an agricultural manager, a degree in agriculture might be your calling." Is that supposed to be read as a bad thing? I think if nothing else, this statement proves the common work ethic that "farm kids" are often known for and hired for. Even if a job opening is not directly related to agriculture, employers like to hear that an applicant comes from a farm background. Plain and simple, farm kids do work from sun up to sun down and because of that they gain a work ethic that other kids often lack. If the author's intention was for that statement to be a slam of sorts on the agriculture industry, maybe he should have given a little bit more thought to what exactly he was saying. Talk about weakening your argument.
At the end of the day, it is difficult for ANY college graduate to find a job in the current job market. Agriculture, however, does have some guarantees that other industries lack. Everyone needs to eat, and what industry produces our nations food? Agriculture. What industry employs ever 21 million americans? Agriculture. What industry exported $108 billion dollars worth of goods in 2010, having a great impact on the US economy? Agriculture.
In the words of President Thomas Jefferson: "Agriculture... is our wisest pursuit, because it will in the end contribute most to real wealth, good morals, and happiness." I couldn't have said it better myself.
http://education.yahoo.net/articles/most_useless_degrees.htm?kid=1KWNU
The number one useless degree according to this article: agriculture. Coming in at numbers 4 and 5 are animal science and horticulture. Naturally, all of the agriculture students are outraged. After all, they are spending a pretty penny to get their college degree... and now this writer has the nerve to call it useless! According to Terence Loose, the author of this article, agriculture is a useless degree because farms today are becoming more efficient, so farms and ranches simply aren't hiring any more labor. Well, apparently Mr. Loose neglected to do his research. Agriculture majors are NOT limited to being hired as labor on a farm or ranch! As a matter of fact, I would say most agriculture majors are not looking to be hired by a farm. Agriculture majors move on to have careers at commodity organizations, banks, loan agencies, farm bureaus, grain elevators, fertilizer & seed companies... the list goes on! It is simply naive for the author of this article to make such a claim about majoring in agriculture for the reason of farms becoming more efficient.
One statement that I found particularly troubling in the article was as follows: "Still, if your idea of a good day is getting up with the sun and working till it sets as an agricultural manager, a degree in agriculture might be your calling." Is that supposed to be read as a bad thing? I think if nothing else, this statement proves the common work ethic that "farm kids" are often known for and hired for. Even if a job opening is not directly related to agriculture, employers like to hear that an applicant comes from a farm background. Plain and simple, farm kids do work from sun up to sun down and because of that they gain a work ethic that other kids often lack. If the author's intention was for that statement to be a slam of sorts on the agriculture industry, maybe he should have given a little bit more thought to what exactly he was saying. Talk about weakening your argument.
At the end of the day, it is difficult for ANY college graduate to find a job in the current job market. Agriculture, however, does have some guarantees that other industries lack. Everyone needs to eat, and what industry produces our nations food? Agriculture. What industry employs ever 21 million americans? Agriculture. What industry exported $108 billion dollars worth of goods in 2010, having a great impact on the US economy? Agriculture.
In the words of President Thomas Jefferson: "Agriculture... is our wisest pursuit, because it will in the end contribute most to real wealth, good morals, and happiness." I couldn't have said it better myself.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Home for the Holidays
Now that the holidays are over, like many other students, I am headed back to college with a few more pounds and a few more miles on my car. For a lot of farm kids, living in town on a college campus is a big change and takes some adjusting. I have lived on campus for 3 and 1/2 years now, so I think it is safe to say I have adjusted to the lifestyle. From time to time, however, the hustle and bustle of the city starts to drive me insane and I need to go back home to the farm for a weekend to gather my sanity. If you have ever lived on a farm, I'm sure you know what I am talking about.
For the past month back home, I didn't hear one siren or college party. It was a month filled with bon fires, family, and playing with my dog in the snow. If nothing else, it was just plain refreshing to be able to see for miles without any tall buildings blocking my view. There is something so special about land that has yet to be touched by urbanization, and until you leave the farm and live in town for a while, it is hard to appreciate the wide-open space for how truly rare it seems to be today. I feel so lucky to have grown up on my family's farm. It is an experience that many of my friends never had, which makes it even more special to me.
When I get to go home for semester breaks, I get to go back to the place where I grew up and had so much opportunity as a kid. We learned how to work hard and play harder. Summers were filled with bonfires and diving off the rope swing into the pond, and winters were filled with making sled hills and pulling each other on sleds behind the 4-wheeler. Not every kid gets to grow up the way I did, and going to college and meeting all sorts of different people has given me a new appreciation for my childhood growing up on a farm.
I only have one more semester of college left, after which I hope to be able to have my own farm someday so that everyday I can come home to a farm and all that living on a farm has to offer. Don't get me wrong, I love my college and would not change the last 4 years for anything... but getting back to the farm could not come fast enough!!
For the past month back home, I didn't hear one siren or college party. It was a month filled with bon fires, family, and playing with my dog in the snow. If nothing else, it was just plain refreshing to be able to see for miles without any tall buildings blocking my view. There is something so special about land that has yet to be touched by urbanization, and until you leave the farm and live in town for a while, it is hard to appreciate the wide-open space for how truly rare it seems to be today. I feel so lucky to have grown up on my family's farm. It is an experience that many of my friends never had, which makes it even more special to me.
When I get to go home for semester breaks, I get to go back to the place where I grew up and had so much opportunity as a kid. We learned how to work hard and play harder. Summers were filled with bonfires and diving off the rope swing into the pond, and winters were filled with making sled hills and pulling each other on sleds behind the 4-wheeler. Not every kid gets to grow up the way I did, and going to college and meeting all sorts of different people has given me a new appreciation for my childhood growing up on a farm.
I only have one more semester of college left, after which I hope to be able to have my own farm someday so that everyday I can come home to a farm and all that living on a farm has to offer. Don't get me wrong, I love my college and would not change the last 4 years for anything... but getting back to the farm could not come fast enough!!
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