Farm Photo Friday: Take 2

Today I thought I would share a photo of the swimming pond on my family's farm. This particular pond was landscaped by a class at our local community college, but we also have 6 more ponds on our farm that are there because of low ground left by a rail road that used to run through the property. While this pond is clearly for recreational purposes (complete with a floating dock, rope swing, and tin shack for storage), the other 6 ponds are inhabited by wildlife and not altered in any way by my family. Conservation of land and the environment is important farmers, after all, it is our home and work place. My experience growing up here has taught me the importance of being a successful farmer while maintaining a great respect for the environment, land, and wildlife on our farm.
What a great place to grow up, I feel very blessed!

Strawberry Frapp a la Bugs please.

Have you heard? In an attempt to minimize the use of artificial ingredients, Starbucks is using crushed up insects rather than dyes to give their Strawberry Frappuccino’s a pink color. What really "bugs" me about these articles isn't the idea of insects in my frapp, but the media's willingness to defend this method of coloring. I think it is great that they point out the already wide use of these insects in other food products and the FDA's approval of it. But why is the media suddenly so willing to defend bugs in our food when they have written countless articles vilifying agricultural products such as high fructose corn syrup, GMO's, and most recently lean finely textured beef?

Starbuggs? Strawberry Frappucino colored by insects

The article's statements about the current use of these insects and the FDA considering it safe were placed in the article to prevent Starbuck's customers from becoming alarmed and reducing their purchases of this product. Those two statements apply to all three of the previously mentioned agricultural products... so why isn't the media trying to protect the agriculture industry like they are Starbucks? In fact, without agriculture, Starbucks would have no ingredients to make their drinks and bakery items with.
The way the media chooses to report a story has a HUGE impact on consumer perception. Have we really become more willing to defend our caffine source than the food on our table? Comment with your thoughts, I am interested to hear what other's think about this.

Farm Photo Friday

Today I thought I would share a picture from my own farm. Readers, I would like you to meet Wise-Guy, my 14 year old cow. I got her when I was 7 years old and raised her from a bottle and a bucket. She was the first cow on our farm, and since then our herd has grown to approximately 50 cows. She is still my favorite... and loves getting treats and attention!

"Easy Button" for Calving Season?

Earlier this week, I came across this article suggesting a correlation between feeding time and the time of day a cow is more likely to calve.  You can find the article here:

Calving Tips: The secret to day time calving



Having spent 18 years growing up on a cattle farm and a few nights on calf watch at the university farm, I know personally why calving in the day-time is more desirable.

1)      Being able to avoid going out multiple times during the night to check on the cows is a big plus for the farmer.

2)      During the daytime, it is much easier to spot a cow going into labor, meaning a faster response to any problems and a higher probability of a healthy cow & calf.

3)      Cooler nighttime temperatures are a threat to new born calves as they try to dry off, warm up, and start nursing. It is crucial that newborn calves get to their mother’s milk as quickly as possible because for a short time, the mother’s milk contains colostrum that kick-starts the baby’s immune system.

 So, how do we get cows to cooperate with us and calve during the daytime? According to this article, the answer is feeding at night.

… Seriously? Could it be that simple? According to the article, in a group of cows that were fed between 4 and 6pm, 85% of the calves were born in the daytime the next day. Researchers aren’t entirely sure why feeding influences calving time, but some of their explanations include gut fill, metabolic temperature, and frequency of rumen contractions. It doesn’t look like this method is fool-proof, though. Studies conducted in Montana and Canada showed little difference in calving time between cows fed at different times throughout the day.

Regardless of those studies that showed little difference, I’d say this method is worth a shot! Considering the fact that there are no extra costs involved and assuming it won’t throw a wrench into your normal daily routine, you have nothing to lose. Unless you enjoy going out to the barn and pulling a calf at 3am- in that case, this calving method may not be for you.

Shout Out to a Fellow Ag Advocate! A job well done.

If you are reading this blog, you are already aware of how popular social media has gotten. Today, I just wanted to give a shoutout to Erin Ehnle and her facebook page Keeping it Real: through the Lens of a Farm Girl.
She started this page just a few months ago, and so far she has over 5,000 "likes" to show for all of her hard work. Here is one of my favorite photos from her page, it reminds me of something my dad always said to me: "Find a job that you love, and you'll never have to work a day in your life."

In order to be a farmer, you have to love what you do. You don't get holidays or weekends off, you work all day from sun-up to sun-down.. and sometimes even at night. But do you hear farmers complain about any of that? No, because they love what they do, and most would say they would never trade it for a 9-5 office job.

If you like what you see, check out her facebook page and "like" it! She is doing a great job of showing people what agriculture is really all about, great job Erin!

Pink Slime: It's What's for Dinner.

I can remember a time when "slime" was a cool thing on Nickelodean, ahhh the good ol' days. Today slime is back and bigger than ever in the news... only this time, it's pink. In the name of correctness, from here on out I will be referring to "pink slime" as lean finely textured beef (that is, after all, what the product was called before the media ran away with the more attention-grabbing designation).




So what is lean finely textured beef? Well, before you buy a steak or roast in the store, the fat around the edges is trimmed off. Rather than wasting these trimmings, technology allows processors to separate the fat from the muscle fibers that remain through heat and centrifusion. Those muscle fibers contain nutrients that are more useful to us in our food than in the waste-line at the processing plant.

Considering how important sustainability has become to our industry and consumers, this process should be praised, not detested! It saves those trimmings from being wasted. Would I want processors to grind all of that trimmed fat into my ground beef? Probably not, but that is why they separate the fat from the muscle fibers and use only what is nutritious to our bodies.

This is a perfect example of the power that the media has over an under-informed consumer. They slap a more alarming name on a product to get the attention of millions of people- once that is accomplished, they will present information in whatever way they see fit. Lean finely textured beef is not the villain that the media is making it out to be, but it is up to you to do the research, find the truth, and make your own informed decision.

Facebook Parenting: too far or just right?

In case you haven't seen it, watch this video of a dad teaching his daughter a lesson about disrespectful facebook posts:


This video has gone absolutely viral, over 31 million views and it has been shown on numerous news channels. This father/daughter duo was being interviewed on a TV program I watched last night and the main question was, "Do you think you took it too far by publicly humuliating your daughter?"

I couldn't help but feel sorry for this dad. Over and over again the interviewer tried to get him to say that he was wrong by posting this video, but I don't see why he is getting such negative feedback. Anyone that I have shown this video to has had the reaction of "good for him" or "she clearly needed an attitude adjustment, and she got it." The overwhelming support I have seen viewers have for him and this video makes it hard for me to believe that there are a large number of adults out there who are so against this video. Teenage girls, on the other hand, probably don't enjoy this video quite as much.

In my personal opinion, this father was disrespected and reacted accordingly. One argument against this video is that he is setting a bad example by posting publicly on the internet (the very thing he was punishing his daughter for). But let's think about this... what is the most effective way for kids to learn lessons growing up? Hearing lectures from their parents, or making a mistake and learning from it through their own personal experiences? If nothing else, I think this dad showed his daughter just how dangerous it can be to post such things publicly. You could argue that this "tit for tat" response was immature of the father, but if it is an effective way to teach his daughter, in this case, I can't help but to support his actions.

Is organic really a safer choice??

As I am sure you have read or seen on the news, recent studies have discovered some levels of arsenic in food products with "organic brown rice syrup" listed as an ingredient. It has been long known that rice absorbs more arsenic (which is naturally found in the soil) than other plants. This is because rice requires higher amounts of silica which is chemically very similar to arsenic, so the plant is more likely to absorb the arsenic "on accident" you could say.

This is becoming a more wide-spread issue because organic brown rice syrup has been used to replace High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) in foods labeled "natural" or "organic." So my question is:

Is choosing to eat foods with organic ingredients really a safer/healthier choice?

I don't oppose eating organic foods, but do I agree that organic foods are more nutritious for me? No. There simply isn't enough supporting research to convince me of that. Do I think organic products are safer for me because of the production methods used? No. One fun fact that many people seem to overlook is that organic producers are allowed to use a certain amount of herbicides on their product, so you are not avoiding these chemicals by choosing to eat organic. Methods used in food production today are used because they allow farmers to be more efficient and because they help to ensure a SAFE product for you as a consumer.

The purpose of this blog is not to convince you that organic food is bad, I am simply questioning the faith that many consumers have in the safety of organic products. HFCS has been given quite the bad reputation because it is a processed product, but is replacing it with organic brown rice syrup really a healthier alternative if it means you are consuming high levels of arsenic? Food for thought.

One man's burger is another man's... Stem Cell???

I have known for quite some time that researchers have been working on growing meat from the stem cells of animals, but I recently found this article suggesting that they have made some serious progress. You can find the article here:

One stem cell burger: $330,000



I have to admit, the idea of eating a stem cell burger kind of makes me cringe. But then again, technology has brought us so far in the agriculture industry, so I hesitate to criticize this idea. I think it is exciting that technology is allowing us to explore options such as these, but are stem cell burgers really going to be successful? I am thinking that if people have a problem with eating a GMO (genetically modified organism) crop, there is no way they are going to accept a piece of "pinkish-yellowish" meat that was grown in a petri dish.

Another question I have is about the claim that this is an alternative for people who are "concerned about the ethics of livestock production but don't want to be come a vegetarian." The article clearly states that making these stem cell burgers in the future would use animals that were killed so that the stem cells could be harvested. Maybe it's just me... but I don't quite understand how that solves any ethical issues concerned with livestock production.

It is exciting that today's advanced technology is allowing us to research avenues such as this one, but as for stem cell burgers, I think we have a long way to go before they are an economical choice (after all, the funding for the research to produce this 1/2 gram burger was $330,000). Even then, I wonder how consumers will react to seeing a stem cell burger on the grocery store shelf? Only time will tell... until then, I'll stick to my conventional home-grown burgers!

"We all know our beliefs, but we need to know our facts."

Last week I was given the opportunity to attend the Agricultural Communications Symposium in Champaign, IL.  It was a great opportunity for a college student such as myself, because I got to hear numerous professionals speak about ag communications and what they have learned in their years of experience. While I learned a lot at the event, there was one statement that I thought was a great take-home message from the day. During the last panel, Kristina Boone from Kansas State University made a great point:

We all know our beliefs, but we need to know our facts.

What a short but noteworthy point! How many times have I tried to make the point that everyone is entitled to their opinion or beliefs, but before forming said beliefs people need to do some research? Her statement really hit home for me and I thought it was worth sharing.

No matter how opinionated people are… you can’t argue the facts. Even when researching information on a topic, people often disregard facts that disagree with their current opinion. The fact of the matter is that there are facts out there that can support almost any argument, but we must take ALL of the facts into consideration in order to be making an informed judgment. Especially when it comes to the food we are choosing to buy, it is incredibly important to be an informed consumer!
So I encourage you to form your own opinions and stick to your beliefs... but know your facts first.