Hosting a Field to Fork Farm Tour

Tuesday, 9/24 was a pretty special day. As part of CommonGround MidAtlantic, I hosted a Field to Fork Farm tour. Common Ground is a group of volunteer farm women who are "agvocating", in other words, sharing and talking about our family farms and agriculture so that people have a "real" view of farming. The program is self-funded by mine and other farmer's check off dollars. I blogged about check-off dollars earlier this year. You can read that post here.

Because I am a Registered Dietitian (RD) by training, I knew that I wanted to offer other dietitians the opportunity to do a farm tour. Dietitians are highly trained professionals knowledgeable about food and nutrition BUT the curriculum offers very little in the way of "food production", ie: farming. When I was in college, "food production" was a class you took to learn cooking in large quantities in a commercial food service operation, not how to grow food. We invited members of the Maryland Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics to attend and had 30 dietitians attend. It was super group of women who were very engaged with all the topics we covered. And we covered a lot of very hot topics! From biotechnology to precision agriculture, conservation and farming systems, antibiotics and animal welfare, water quality and soil erosion, diversification, market access, and preserving the farm and passing it along to the next generation all were discussed. My approach of the day was that there were no off limit topics. We as farmers have nothing to hide and nothing to be embarrassed about with our operations. We would be transparent and they could ask away. Here was the day in summary:

Field to Fork Farm Tour:

 We began at my farm where we talked about biotechnology. Here I am showing the difference between a tofu soybean plant and a Round Up (glyphosate) soybean plant.  The first question I got was if I was concerned about pollen drift. My reply - no, soybeans self-pollinate. Second question - So what makes the plant on the right GMO? Answer - herbicide resistance trait. If these were corn plants that open pollinate, then we would stagger the planting intervals so that they wouldn't pollinate at the same time.

Here you can see we are standing in the middle of the road, an advantage we have from being so rural. The field behind the group on the right side of the road are food grade or tofu soybeans we grow for a farmers cooperative we belong to. The field behind me on the left side of the road are glyphosate resistant soybeans. The two fields have similar yet different management strategies but do not require different equipment. Mainly in the food-grade soybeans, we try to control for "pokeweed" which has large purple berries and will stain the soybeans if the berries go through the combine. The end result would be purple tofu, which no one would likely buy...

We talked a lot about conservation, water quality, and precision agriculture. Due to the Chesapeake Bay, farmers in Maryland farm under an entirely different set of regulations that most farmers around the nation. Our farm has invested heavily in conservation tillage equipment, installed many, many best management practices on our farm, and have upgraded machinery to be able to do precision agriculture. Here I am explaining our GreenSeeker, which I blogged about in the spring. You can read that post here.

Some lucky ladies got to ride our combine as we are in the midst of corn harvest! Not something a lot of people get to do in their lives. One comment I heard from those who rode (besides how much fun it was): "I had no idea there was so much technology in those machines!"

Lunch was served by Sisters By Chance catering. These ladies did a superb job of serving the entire menu sourced from local farms.  They even made our machinery shop look welcoming and not so diesel smelling!

From our farm we went to Grand View Farm which is a grain and hog operation. My friend Jennifer is also a Common Ground volunteer and her farm provided the opportunity to talk about confinement operations, antibiotics and animal welfare. She shared with the RDs that they do not administer antibiotics unless animals are sick and for about 1 week when feeder pigs are first group housed. They do this because they have historical data showing that those animals routinely get sick when brought into pens for the first time, sort of like when kids first go to school and catch everything from each other.

We got to see the farrowing barn. Jennifer's farm does not use gestation stalls, the pregnant sows are grouped in large pens during their pregnancy. When they are ready to deliver, they are placed in farrowing stalls which you see above. Farrowing stalls are different from gestation crates. These farrowing stalls are designed to provide an "escape area" for piglets so that they are not laid or step on by the sow. It also provides a dry environment as the vented floor keeps the piglets dry allowing for waste to drain into the catch basin below. This reduces disease and provides more comfort. The piglets are weaned in 3 weeks and the sow returns to the group housing.

Holding a piglet was another highlight of the day. Those critters are cute when they are little, but 6 months later... not so much.

One lucky attendee even got baptized by piglet pee which I'm sure was her absolute favorite part of the tour (not)!

Then we were off to the Crow Farm, a farm that has really adapted itself in recent years to bring on the next generation and keep the farm forward-looking and profitable. From a history of dairy and grains, Crow Farm is now a grass-fed beef, vineyard and winery, with a B&B and a focus on agritourism.

t

The group got an overview of the beef operation followed by a tour of the winery facility. 

Followed by a wine tasting of Crow Farm's award winning wines with a fantastic view of the vineyard! Prior to boarding the bus to head back to Annapolis, the group was able to buy local and purchase for themselves Crow grass-fed beef and wine. 

To cap off the day, attendees received a copy of No More Food Fights, by Michelle Payn-Knoper to reinforce the importance of farm and food conversations

This Field to Fork Farm Tour was a productive conversation around food and farming and for me, one of the most enjoyable days I've had in a long time talking about some very hot topics. 

Maya Angelou once said "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”  My hope is, the dietitians who attended will have left this farm tour feeling positive about where their food is coming from and the authenticity of the family farms producing it.

Many thanks to the Maryland Soybean Board and the Maryland Grain Producers Utilization Board for providing the funding to make this farm tour a great 'agvocacy" day!

The Super Bowl NEEDS Agriculture!

There Would Be NO Super Bowl Without Agriculture! Huh? I’m guessing that is what your response may be. You're probably thinking “What on earth does agriculture have to do with football?” Well, think about the number of items used or consumed at a game that have to be grown by a farmer. There would literally be NO football game without AGRICULTURE!!

Here’s why –

1. The actual football is referred to as the “pigskin”. Why? Because originally, the ball was made from an inflated pig bladder then covered in leather. While the “bladder” is now synthetic, the football is still covered in leather. OK, football = pigs & cows = livestock = agriculture. Check.
2. Uniforms – While most of the actual uniforms worn on the field are synthetic fabric, many of the other articles of clothing utilize some percent cotton. Certainly a lot of our clothing is made in part from cotton. OK, so clothing = cotton = crop = agriculture. Check.
3. If Sunday’s game is cold, you’ll bet the players have nice wool hats to keep their heads warm when standing on the sidelines. OK, so hat = wool = sheep = agriculture. Check.
4. Shoes! Whether on your feet or the players’ feet, most likely are made from leather. OK, so shoes = leather = cows = agriculture. Check.
5. How about that beer? Whether you’re drinking it at home or at the game, beer is made from barley & hops. OK, so beer = barley & hops = crops = agriculture. Check.
6. How about that soda? Unless its diet, it’s sweetened with one thing – sugar, derived from either corn as syrup or sugar cane or sugar beets. OK, so soda = corn/sugar cane/ sugar beets = crops = agriculture. Check.

The Concessionaire is calling Popcorn! Peanuts! Hot Dogs! Can Any One Say Agriculture?

7. Are you munching on nachos or popcorn? Oh, well, they’re both made from different varieties of corn, but still, are corn. OK so nachos/popcorn = corn = crop = agriculture. Check.
8. Those yummy salted peanuts the concessionaire called out? OK, so peanuts = crop = agriculture. Check.
9. How about those hot dogs? Hot dogs are made from chicken, beef, or pork or combination thereof. How about the bun? The ketchup? The mustard? The relish?
1. OK, so hot dog = chicken/beef/pork = livestock = agriculture. Check.
2. OK, so buns = wheat = crop = agriculture. Check.
3. OK, so ketchup = tomatoes = crop = agriculture. Check.
4. OK, so mustard = crop (yes a real farmer grows mustard) = agriculture. Check.
5. OK, so relish = cucumbers = crop = agriculture. Check.
10. Umm, this is probably obvious but OK, so potato chips = potatoes = crop = agriculture. Check.
11. What about the program? I know you’re thinking I’ve lost it now but trust me, I have not. Many printers have converted to soy-based ink for printing. While I searched online and cannot confirm that the Super Bowl 46 programs are printed with soy-ink, there is a good chance they are. OK, so Ink = Soybeans = crop = agriculture. Check.
12. Unfortunately, the playing field at the home of the Indianapolis Colts is artificial turf, but 18 out of 31 NFL Stadiums still play on grass. Maybe you don’t think of turf grass as a “crop” but a farmer does grow it and care for it, harvests it, and sells it. It’s a crop, plain and simple. OK, so Professional turf grass = crop = agriculture. Check.

So you see this Sunday’s game is brought to you NOT by all those corporate sponsors running really funny and amusing advertisements between downs. It’s brought to you by the American Farmer, who grew all the crops that made all the products that players, sports fans, and those who only want to watch the commercials will be using and consuming.

Thank you American Farmer for bringing us the Super Bowl!

Egg Freshness? Read the Carton!

I grew up in Western Massachusetts and have a distinct memory of an egg advertisement whose "jingle" always sang “brown eggs are local eggs, and local eggs are fresh.”  Now, you probably know that the color of the egg shell is entirely dependent on the breed of hen and not the location where the eggs were laid. But have you ever wondered when you’re shopping for eggs just how fresh those eggs are at the grocery store? Today, you will learn how to find out! For this blog, you either need to grab an empty egg carton or read post this in your kitchen! J Today, we are going to learn about the freshness of your eggs, using the information that can be found on the egg carton. I’m not talking about the nutrition label but am talking about the printed codes on the end of your egg carton. Short of buying your eggs directly from a farmer, you will never know the exact date the eggs at the grocery store were laid, but you can come pretty close by reading the packing code on an egg carton.

All egg cartons have a printed code on the short side of the carton that reflects a “Julian Date”. The Julian calendar is a numerical calendar numbering the days of the year in sequence from 1 to 365. So January 1^st is always day 1 and December 31^st is day 365, except in the instance of leap years, like 2012, there are 366 days. January is easy because today, January 20^th, is always day 20 on the Julian calendar. It’s when you get into the middle of August that you start to lose count. Google “Julian calendar 2012” and you can easily print out a PDF file to make it easier if you are really into this assignment!

So look at your egg carton. What number do you see? Mine says 315, which means the eggs were packed on November 11, 2011. Then there is a number preceded by a “P”. This is the assigned USDA plant number of the egg packing plant where the eggs were packed. After that you will probably see a “use by” date. Hang on - We’ll get to that one later.

OK, so you’ve found the Julian date on your egg carton. Although there is no way to know for sure, it’s likely that the eggs in that carton were either laid the day before it was packed or the day of the actual packing. So the eggs in my carton were probably laid on November 10^th or possibly November 11^th.  How do I know this? Once upon a time, I worked for the “Maryland Ag in the Classroom”, a program that trains teachers to incorporate agriculture into their classrooms, and went on a field trip with a bunch of teachers to an egg packing plant. We watched as area farmers delivered eggs to the plant and then followed those eggs through the washing process, to candling, to grading & sizing, and finally to packing. It was a fascinating process and reassured me that when I am at the grocery store, each and every egg has been inspected and I am buying quality eggs. It also taught me how to determine the freshness of my eggs using the Julian date.

Now you’re asking yourself under your breath – “It’s January and she has eggs from November in her refrigerator?” YIKES! My goodness NO! I buy eggs from a friend whose son has a 4H laying hen project. I know my eggs are not that old, they are in fact, quite fresh. I return my cartons to make his 4H project more cost effective and so my egg carton dates never accurately reflect how fresh they are. But on the occasion that I run out of eggs, I read the Julian date on the carton so I can mentally calculate how old the eggs are.

So now the “use by’ date: A “use by” date on the carton is not required but many egg packers use them. It is not an expiration date. USDA says these dates are “the recommended maximum length of time that the consumer can expect eggs to maintain their quality when stored under ideal conditions”. Typically it is within 30-45 days of being packed. They don’t “expire” after that date, but are probably better for baked goods than they are for breakfast. They probably won’t whisk up a very nice meringue.

Keep in mind that eggs are a perishable food item. How they are handled and stored by also affects their quality and safety. If you go to the grocery on a warm day, buy eggs, put your eggs in the car, do a couple “quick” errands on the way home that turn out to be not so quick, you’ve reduced their shelf life regardless of the date on the egg carton.  Eggs should not go un-refrigerated for more than 2 hours, less if they are in a warm car. Storing eggs properly helps maintain their quality and safety. I always do my grocery shopping last on a list of errands so that my perishables get home quickly and put away.

Hopefully, you found this blog useful. I remember being so tickled after my egg packing field trip to be able to use the Julian date to figure out within 24-48 hours of when my eggs were laid and to meet the farmers who raised the hens.

Also, If you have never heard of “Ag in the Classroom”, I encourage you to Google it for your state and find out more about a very important agricultural training program for teachers.