7 Ways Science has Improved Food Variety

David Pinzon, Corteva Agriscience

Thanking farmers should be an everyday occurrence, and National Agriculture Day is yet another great opportunity to recognize the work being done throughout the agriculture industry to innovate and support the ever-changing needs of the consumer.

As parents, we sometimes tend to think about the good old days, when we played in the street all day and sat down on the curb with an ice cream purchased from the neighborhood truck. While I’m nostalgic for the past, from a food science point of view, what we have today far outpaces what was available even two decades ago.

During the past 100 years, the variety in food choices has gone from minimal and reserved for the wealthy to widespread and affordable. Even though this is not true everywhere in the world, agriculture innovation is helping ensure everyone has access to a variety of food options.

Feeding children the healthiest possible food is top-of-mind for all parents; however, it is often easier said than done. With my first daughter, who is now 4, I prioritized healthy food options when she started eating. I focused on just a few foods I knew were good for her that she liked. However, I missed a very important point: variety. My good intentions backfired, as she started hating her favorites, such as broccoli and spinach.

Luckily, scientists have created innovations that allow us to choose among a variety of foods while maintaining good eating habits. National Agriculture day marks a time when we thank producers, agricultural associations and others, for their commitment to agriculture and to supplying a growing world with a variety of healthy food options. Let’s take a look at several important advancements that have helped us have access to a variety of healthy food options at affordable prices.

• Breeding: Do your kids like kale but not cabbage? Or maybe broccoli but not cauliflower? No problem, they are all the same species, Brassica oleracea, for which breeders selected variants of the plants. This allows us to have a wider variety of options out of the same plant species, while benefiting from a similar nutritional profile when the same part of the plant is eaten (for example, broccoli versus cauliflower).

• Frozen food: Flash-freezing allows us to have meals that include nutrient-dense ingredients that may not be local or seasonal. This includes salmon that has been flown thousands of kilometers or ensuring there is enough turkey in stock for the holidays. Frozen foods also helped us to have the capacity to afford more healthy options. Cauliflower rice is a great example of something that has a longer shelf life when frozen.

• Food fortification: Not everyone has access to enough variety of foods. Fortifying staple foods allows us to supplement our diet. Great examples are iodine in salt, vitamins in milk and folic acid in multiple cereals, breads and pastas. Folic acid can help women get the correct nutrients in case of pregnancy, as it is critical in neural tube development in utero. It is also beneficial to men, supporting heart health.

• Pest management: Keeping plants healthy and growing to their maximum potential is crucial to producing more on the same amount of land. Protecting these plants from pests and diseases is crucial to maximizing growth potential. This translates to increased quantities of food, lower food prices and greater variety.

• Preservatives: While daily grocery shopping would be ideal, it often isn’t practical. Food preservatives allow us to keep food fresh longer, making it easier for that once-a-week grocery trip.

• Trait modification: Food variety is not always a matter of healthy options. Many times, it enables us to perfect the art of cooking. Think about apples. There are numerous options specific for snacking, salads, baking, juicing and cooking. And now we even have access to apples that don’t brown, the Arctic apple, a GMO variety that helps reduce food waste. Additionally, scientific advancements, like CRISPR-cas, a genetic-editing tool, are helping trait modifications become even more prominent and beneficial.

• Processing: Baby carrots aren’t harvested that way. They are created when normal carrots are cut to the perfect size and with rounded edges, making it a perfect snack for kids and adults.

Overall, we have plenty of choices, and as long as we keep trusting scientific advancements, food is just going to keep getting better. I can’t wait for 50 years from now, when our kids may think of how, in the old days, their food choices were limited.

I’m proud to play a role in helping advance food variety improvements and agricultural advancements by working for Corteva Agriscience. At Corteva, we’ve harnessed the best and brightest minds in agriculture to help enrich the lives of those who produce and those who consume, ensuring progress for generations to come. Join me in thanking and celebrating farmers and other agricultural professionals during National Agriculture Day. Their tireless work helps us make tomorrow a little brighter than today.

About David:

David Pinzon

Regulatory Affairs Manager, Crop Protection and Seeds, Corteva Agriscience

David grew up in Bogota, Colombia, and moved to Canada in 2009 with his wife to study for a PhD at the University of Alberta. They had their second child in May 2018.
“It is a constant learning to find out what’s the best for them. That’s why being able to share my science knowledge and experience with other parents is gratifying.”
 
David dedicated 12 years of his life to become a scientist. “Learning science is probably simpler than knowing what’s best for my kids, so I understand how it feels being exposed to so much conflicting information.”
 
David’s priority is always to do what’s best for his daughters. “I have the pleasure to see the huge amount of scientific support needed to prove GMOs and pesticides are safe for humans and the environment, so I can pass along my knowledge to those that are eager to learn.”
 

 Why do farmers care about conservation?

Long-term farm success depends on sustainable practices

By Rachel Schutte, ASA, CSSA, and SSSA

 An American poet once said, “Nature is not a place to visit, it is home.” Many of us can relate to this quote, as self-proclaimed outdoor adventurists.

This quote especially rings true for farmers and ranchers. They rely on the land for a bountiful harvest, mother nature for her cooperation, and the outdoors for their lifestyle.

Over 90% of American farms are family owned. So, the preservation of natural resources will also likely determine the success of a farm as it’s handed down to the generations to come. Caring for these resources is also like an unwritten agreement between neighbors, as the resources, like water, are shared. Ultimately, farmers cannot afford to not take care of the land – it supplies their income, recreation and future dreams. 

Many farmers pay extra attention to the long-term balance of natural resources related to their farmland and adjacent land and water. This is known as “sustainability.” The success of their farm operations depends on maintaining this balance of resources including water, nutrients and soil.

It’s easy to find examples of public land being set aside for conservation efforts and wildlife habitat. The United States Bureau of Land Management even has a specific program called the National Conservation Lands protecting about 34 million acres of land. However, conservation on private lands makes up the majority of habitat for wildlife in the U.S. Private landowners, like farmers, play a vital role in the game of conservation.

Farmers and ranchers are looking into ways to protect the ecological balance on their land now more than ever. And, the public is paying attention.

 

Streams on farms are common. Edge-of-field practices like prairie strips help prevent erosion and keep nutrients from escaping into nearby water. Credit: R Leege   

Restoring ecological balance

One way farmers and ranchers are restoring ecological balance is by returning unproductive farmland back into prairie habitat. Why would farmers take land out of crop production when we have a growing population? Because the long-term effects of protecting the resources we need to grow our food outweigh the decrease in food production and on-farm income.

Areas of prairie habitat between farm fields, such as buffer strips or entire blocks of prairie, can provide many benefits. Prairie plants and grasses have huge root systems that keep fertile topsoil in place. When heavy rains or windy storms come, prairies prevent soil from washing away.  In turn, nutrients and soil stay in place in the field for the next year’s crop to grow.

Prairie habitats also add to ecological diversity. Agriculture is not natural. Fields of one crop are grown, which creates a “monoculture” system. Monocultures can disrupt the natural balance of a food chain. This can make the area prone to pests that eat crops and weeds that steal nutrients. Without a balanced food chain, there are not enough natural predators or competing plants around to keep them at bay. By planting areas of prairie, farmers can restore the food chain by giving native mammals, birds and insects a place to thrive. These native species can help keep agricultural pest populations in check.

Another undeniable benefit of natural prairies is their beauty. Prairies can create privacy, provide colorful flowers throughout the year, and give home to endless wildlife. Many of us enjoy these benefits through our hobbies – photography, hiking, wildlife watching, and more.

Large farm equipment – necessary for farm efficiency – take wide turns. This means that some natural areas were put into agricultural land. There is a movement to re-plant prairies for ecological conservation. Credit: R Schutte    

How were these natural systems broken?

Throughout history, some human practices unintentionally decreased natural habitats. This is quite evident in suburban areas where fields and forests are quickly turning into housing, schools, and stores. Urban areas aren’t the only culprit, though.

For example, larger farm equipment has become much more prevalent in recent years. Larger equipment helps farmers save time with fewer trips around the field and allows them to care for more land in the same amount of time. However, larger equipment also made it more difficult to take care of smaller fields with less space to turn around. So, former natural areas between fields and along fence lines were removed to accommodate equipment.

Natural areas provide food and habitat to attract pollinators, which are needed to pollinate crops. Credit: Pete Leege

Challenges and solutions

Creating prairie habitat also presents farmers and ranchers with their fair share of challenges. The biggest is cost. Not only the costs of seed and equipment to start a prairie, but also the opportunity cost for not growing profitable crops on that land.

Luckily, with increased support for our environment and ecosystems, there are tools available to help farmers with these costs. The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service has conservation programs to help reduce soil erosion, protect water quality and increase wildlife habitat. Included with these programs are funding opportunities for farmers and other landowners. Financial and technical assistance can help some farmers start conservation planning, implement conservation practices in their operations, improve habitat, improve water quality and more. There are even innovation grants for innovative approaches for conservation on agricultural land.

It’s hard to find anyone who doesn’t love the outdoors. We care about the environment, and we want to protect our natural ecosystems. Farmers are right there with us!

Learn more about agriculture and the environment on the Sustainable, Secure Food Blog and the Soils Matter Blog

American Society of Agronomy, Soil Science Society of America, Crop Science Society of America: Collectively, these Societies represent more than 12,000 individual members around the world. Members are researchers and professionals in the areas of growing our world’s food supply while protecting our environment. Together we work toward solutions to advance scientific knowledge in the areas of agronomy, crop science, and soil science.

Twitter: @ASA_CSSA_SSSA & @SSSA_soils | Facebook: ASA, CSSA & SSSA | Instagram: @sustainablefoodsupply & @iheartsoil

Food Brings Everyone to the Table

Welcome to Ag Day 2021!  

There's never been a better time to celebrate American agriculture.  National Ag Day has many tools available to help you promote Ag Day and plan your Ag Day events--be it virtual or live. Tools on our web site include:

• Social media posts and graphics
• Ad Materials
• Radio & TV spots
• Social media videos
• Event planning tips
• Tips for recruiting volunteers
• and much much more

If you have a special request, please contact info@agday.org.

Using Technology to Agvocate for Farmers

It is easy to see where technology is advancing in everyday life. In your lifetime you have likely made the switch from a flip phone to a smart phone, or when you once consulted a dictionary to spell a word, you now say “Alexa, how do you spell…” and so on.

In some industries it is obvious where technology has made improvements, but it might come as a surprise just how far technology has advanced in the agricultural industry. Take CES for example. This show is a place for the unveiling of the latest and greatest technology that companies have to offer. At the show there is anything from cars, gaming devices, and virtual reality to smart appliances for your home and wearable tech. Oh yes, and a John Deere sprayer. A what? Yes – a sprayer.

For the second year, John Deere exhibited at CES in front of a crowd of more than 175,000 people. The exhibit was likely hard to miss with a R4038 sprayer sporting a 120-foot carbon fiber boom. Deere was in attendance to not only flex their ag muscle, but also their tech muscle to show how technology is changing the face of agriculture.

To John Deere there was no better way to showcase tech than to have those who uses it every day share their experience. Deere customers Jeremy and Elizabeth Jack of Silent Shade Planting Company were invited by Deere and their equipment dealer Wade Litton from Wade, Inc. to do just that. As people visited the booth, their curiosity was piqued. What was this thing and what is its purpose? As the Jacks would explain, technology within their equipment enables them to do more with less while being productive, profitable and sustainable for the future.

The Jacks farm 12,000 acres of corn, cotton, soybeans and rice in the Mississippi Delta, and they have the management of their operation down to a science – literally. With the use of technology and equipment, they can have more time for family activities while still knowing what is happening on the farm from their phone. They can also make more informed decisions for their operation and make adjustments without even sitting in the cab of a tractor. The Jacks know not every field can be treated the same, and not every acre in a given field is identical.

In Silent Shade’s quarterly newsletter, Jeremy Jack said CES provided their farm with a huge opportunity to share their story with a megaphone to a large non-agricultural audience. Until then their main source of communicating was through their newsletter and social media channels. With the display of a sprayer, the Jacks said they were a little nervous CES attendees would focus on chemical use on farms. To their surprise, that was not the case. Instead, people were genuinely curious how the technology was improving agriculture.

The Jacks were excited to be a part of CES 2020, and John Deere was happy to have them share their story and advocate for technology in ag. Like Deere and the Jacks, Ag Day also advocates on behalf of agriculture and educates people on how the advancements in farming will enable farmers to provide more food and fiber to a growing population while practicing sustainability for the future of farming.

African Swine Fever Prevention in the U.S.

Growing up in a small town in Iowa, agriculture was all around me. My family raises cattle, has 300 acres of row crop and shows pigs. Agriculture is part of our livelihood and I saw, first-hand, the time, commitment and care that my family and so many others in our community put into growing food and raising healthy animals. That’s why it’s so important we continue to ensure our U.S. hog herd remains safe, for the livelihood of farmers and consumers around the globe.

African swine fever (ASF), a disease affecting only pigs with no human or food safety risks, is spreading throughout China, Southeast Asia and Europe. The most likely path for ASF or other foreign animal diseases (FADs) to enter the country would be through the importation of infected animals or contaminated, contraband products. An outbreak of certain FADs would immediately close U.S. pork export markets, with significant harm to our farmers, consumers and overall economy.

While the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.S. Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are doing an excellent job of protecting America’s borders and ports, we must continuously strive to strengthen biosecurity. For more than a year, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) has led efforts to boost biosecurity at our borders, working with lawmakers and administration officials on funding for additional agricultural inspectors. In an important milestone in NPPC’s efforts, Congress recently passed legislation (S. 2107), which authorizes funding for 720 new agricultural inspectors at land, air and sea ports to prevent ASF and other FADs from entering the United States. That will help protect the U.S. swine herd and ensure that the farms in my community and around the country are able to continue to provide healthy, safe pork to consumers domestically and around the world.

USDA and CBP agricultural inspectors are our first line of defense against ASF and other FADs. Hog farmers across this country, in communities just like mine, are producing safe, nutritious and affordable pork. On this National Agriculture Day—and every day—let’s continue to remain vigilant to ensure the number one preferred protein in the world remains plentiful and safe.

5 Facts about Farming That Americans Need to Know

 

Many Paulsen employees grew up on farms or live on farms today. And while our office is much like other marketing agencies, our water cooler talk is a bit different.  In honor of National Ag Day, we asked a couple of our farmer-staff members what they’d like consumers to know.

1. If you want to know something about farming, ask a farmer.

If you drive past a farm and don’t recognize what you’re seeing, you’re not alone.

“I would encourage consumers to approach farmers with their questions,” says Brittany Lessman, account specialist and farmer. “We’re happy to answer their questions. I’d also want consumers to keep an open mind and trust that farmers are the right folks to ask.”

Account Coordinator Alix Pearson is active in her family’s sheep operation in Hettinger, N.D. “We shear some of our sheep in mid-November,” she says. “That’s because we lamb from the end of November through the beginning of March, and the wool prevents us from seeing if they’re about to give birth, so it’s a necessity.”

“During winter, someone driving by might think the sheep look cold,” Alix says. “But actually, we have a heated, insulated, well-bedded barn that they can enter at any time. And before it even gets dark, we bring them into the barn.”

2. Consider the expertise of your sources.

When you do find information, check to see where it’s coming from. Is the source a scientist? A veterinarian? An agronomist? An animal nutritionist? It might seem obvious, but the experts on farming are farmers and the people that work in the industry.

3. Farmers care about their land and animals.

A farmer’s land or animals is literally his or her livelihood. That’s why stories about farmers misusing land or mistreating animals are often untrue. Today’s farmers have excellent resources for maintaining and improving soil health. Livestock are raised with great care; several years ago Brittany laughed about how her dairy cows’ waterbeds were more comfortable than her own bed.

4. Many farmers are generous and caring.

While farmers often pride themselves on being self-sufficient, people in rural communities have traditionally depended on one another. Paulsen President and farmer Sara Steever has seen this first-hand.

“One of our neighbors who was only in his fifties passed away suddenly,” Sara says.  He had been getting ready for harvest—his equipment was out and ready to go.

“A few weeks after his funeral, on a beautiful fall day, I saw five combines and probably as many grain trucks on his land, and they took out his harvest all in one day. Then all the women in the community got together and made a big meal.”

“I think that's just so integral to rural communities,” says Sara. “They understand the power of getting together to accomplish something and just stepping up and helping a family when things go south.”

5. When it comes to food, having multiple choices benefits everyone.

Americans have a huge variety of food options to choose from. Farmers and folks in agriculture generally support this system, because everyone benefits.

“That’s the beauty of our food system,” says Brittany. “Everyone gets to choose what they want because there are so many options.”

Whether your diet is traditional, fusion, organic, vegan, paleo, keto, Mediterranean or any other type, U.S. farmers have your back.

“If everyone ate the same way, we’d have a catastrophe on our hands,” Brittany says. “Farmers and food systems wouldn’t be able to keep up with demand, and it would be damaging—socially, culturally and economically.”

“It would also create monopolies. And that would mean higher food prices across the board, which nobody wants.”

In conclusion, don’t be afraid to talk to farmers if you have the opportunity. They’ll more than likely be delighted to answer your questions and satisfy your curiosity.

About Paulsen
At Paulsen, we help brands reach the nearly 46 million people who proudly call themselves rural Americans. We know how to connect with the people who live and work in this part of the country, because we live and work here, too. Paulsen understands the challenges—and we see the incredible potential. www.paulsen.ag.

Ag is for Everyone

 

At times in life it can be easy to lose perspective. You get in a routine with work and life and forget to take time to look and appreciate the world around us. Sometimes you wonder if what you do even matters or makes a difference to anyone else. As individuals who make up an entire industry, what you do does matter to someone or some group of people.

If you think about it, each day would consist of major inconveniences if one entire industry decided to totally stop functioning. Eventually, society would lose some kind of product, skill or service which could ultimately impact a wide variety of other industries. Society takes all kinds of people doing all kinds of jobs to operate. In agriculture, it’s no different.

At Sage, a creative marketing agency, we work with other creative thinkers and our ag clients to see firsthand what it takes to tell the story of agriculture and make the industry work. On the surface level, it can be obvious who the contributors are of the agricultural industry – the farmers and ranchers. However, like billions of people rely on farmers and ranchers every day, these professionals also rely on thousands of others to make their jobs possible.

For example, farmers and ranchers need equipment manufacturers, mechanics, software developers, veterinarians, animal health experts, agronomists, financial advisors, economists and legal professionals (just to name a few) to operate.

Agricultural youth programs rely on teachers, extension specialists and agents, parents, volunteers and support from a variety of local businesses to ensure agriculture has a place in future generations.

In our world at Sage, we see many other roles being played to advocate and share the story of agriculture. We communicate regularly with writers, editors, designers, data analysts, photographers and videographers to deliver messages for the industry. Working with the media, we are encouraged when we see agriculture being talked about in print, online, through social media, TV and radio.

Agriculture not only produces food and fiber, but also medicine, household products, personal care items, fuel and entertainment. To make these items, agriculture and society also rely on processors, manufacturers, transportation, retailers and food services. Without agriculture and its related industries more than 21 million jobs or 11% of U.S. employment would be effected. However, the number is likely higher and does not include the number of people who use food and fiber products each day.

Agriculture truly has a place in everyone’s day-to-day activities, whether it’s part of your career or not. National Ag Day is one way you can educate and advocate for an industry everyone relies on. Perhaps this Ag Day you should take the time to find out where your relationship with ag fits into your life. Chances are, if you eat you need agriculture, but agriculture just might need you, too.