20 I The Lovell Chronicle I March 8, 2012
American agriculture" feeding Fun facts: flora, fauna and
• food for thought
the future, filling the gaps
crease safety and efficiency is abso-
lutely necessary. More food will have
to be produced in the next 50 years
than the last 10,000 years combined,
if we are going to accomplish our goal
of feeding the world.
Secondly, we must be proactive
when it comes to showing others that
we care about the well being of our
animals. Being willing to share our
story and listen to others' concerns
is very important. When we are open
minded and willing to cooperate,
we discover solutions to problems
instead of magnifying them. I am a
beef and pork producer that under-
stands how transparent I need to
be with my quality assurance pro-
grams. People don't care what you
have to say until they know that you
care. Caring means staying informed
about the safest handling techniques,
giving tours of your operation to the
public, and being involved in social
media. We must consider our envi-
ronmental impact and be stewards of
the land.
In order to succeed we must per-
severe. American agriculture cannot
be focused on simply feeding our-
selves; that would be selfish. We are
striving to feed the future, and that
means thinking and educating glob-
ally. When we work with scientifically
advanced countries, it ensures consis-
tency and predictability. This requires
perseverance to work with different
cultures, values, and standards.
As William Jennings Bryan said,
we are given a choice. We have the
option of stepping up to the chal-
lenge or shying away. My plea is that
America cares enough about the fact
that someone dies every 2.43 seconds
of starvation, to do something about
it. This will take the determination
to prepare, courage to be proactive
and conviction to persevere. I believe
American agriculture has the power
to feed the future and fill the gaps.
Written by Agriculture Council
of America A Day Essay Winner
Miriam Martin of Bucklin, Mo.,
Meadville R-IV High School.
"Destiny is not a matter of chance.
It is a matter of choice. It is not a
thing to be waited for, it is a thing to
be achieved." When William Jennings
Bryan made this statement in his fa-
mous speech titled "America's Mis-
sion" in 1899, he had no idea that the
world's population was projected to
exceed nine billion by 2050. However,
he did realize that if America was go-
ing to succeed in future generations,
we had to be prepared, proactive, and
persevering. The responsibility to
sustain America and the potential to
feed the world is within American ag-
riculture.
The first step in feeding the fu-
ture is being prepared. This requires
educating American consumers, con-
stant innovation within biotechnol-
ogy, and a clear vision for the future.
Opportunities range from teaching
elementary students where their food
comes from, to speaking with legis-
lators about how regulations affect
production agriculture's livelihood.
Taking advantage of international
markets and funding research to in-
by agriculture. Every yei
corporations,
scale effort:
economy.
abundant and
reb
is
agriculture.
IT'S THE BEES KNEES
A hive of bees flies over 55,000 miles to bring you one
pound of honey. A honey bee can fly 15 miles per hour.
Honey bees must tap two million flowers to make
one pound of honey. Each worker honey bee makes
1/12th teaspoon of honey in its lifetime.
Honey bees visit 50-100 flowers during one honey
collecting trip.
Bees have been producing honey from flowering
plants for at least 10 million years! And maybe even as
long as 20 million years!
Flowers and other blossoming plants have nectarines
that produce sugary nectar. Worker bees suck up the
nectar and water and store it in a special honey stomach.
When the stomach is full the bee returns to the hive and
puts the nectar in an empty honeycomb. Natural chemi-
cals from the bee's head glands and the evaporation of
the water from the nectar change the nectar into honey.
In one day a honey bee can fly 12 miles and pollinate
up to 10,000 flowers.
Honeybee workers must visit 2 million flowers to
make one pound of honey.
UDDERLY AMAZING
In a yea£s time a dairy cow produces 1,500 gallons
or 6,000 quarts of milk. A Jersey cow will give as much
as 3 to 4 gallons or around 16 quarts of milk each day.
Dairy cows provide us with milk and milk by-prod-
ucts like cheese, butter and ice cream. In addition, milk
is also used to manufacture glue, paint and plastics.
Straight from the cow, the temperature of cow's milk
is about 97 degrees Fahrenheit.
The average U.S. dairy cow produces 22.5 quarts of
milk each day. That's about 16,000 glasses of milk per
year enough for about 40 people. One cow can give
200,000 glasses of milk in a lifetime.
It takes approximately 1.4 gallons of milk to make 1
gallon of ice cream.
Cheese was first made over 4,000 years ago in Asia.
A cow has four stomachs. They are: the rumen,
where the food is first stored, the reticulum where food
that has been more thoroughly chewed is stored once the
cow has chewed the cud and has swallowed it; the oma-
sum where extra water is squeezed out, and finally the
food goes to the abomasum. Some of the digested food
is then stored in the cow's udder where it is made into
milk.
Cows are ruminants or cud-chewing ap_imals eating
hay, corn, soybeans, grass, wheat and ensilage. Each cow
eats 20 to 25 pounds of grain, 40 to 60 pounds of ensi-
lage, 30 pounds of hay and drinks about 15 to 25 gallons
of water a day.
Cows are sedentary animals spending up to 8 hours
a day chewing the cud while standing still or lying down
to rest after grazing, when going to be milked, a certain
cow in an established herd always leads the others with
the weaker and older cattle trailing behind the group.
A typical, full grown Holstein cow weighs about
1,400 pounds and produces 60 pounds of milk per day.
One day's production is 2.6 pounds of butter or 7 gal-
lons of milk or 6 pounds of cheese.
A dairy cow consumes 35 gallons of water, 20 pounds
of grain and concentrated feed and 35 pounds of hay or
silage (a mixture of corn and grass) in just one day.
It usually takes about 20 minutes for a cow to be
milked. On average a cow is milked 2 to 3 times a day.
Hamburger meat from a single steer will make about
720 quarter pound hamburger patties. That's enough for
a family of 4 to enjoy hamburgers each day for nearly 6
months.
NEW WAYS TO HELP THE PLANET
Farmers and ranchers provide food and habitat for
75 percent of the nations wildlife.
Plant and animal biotechnology have resulted in
new antibodies for immunizations. Agriculture has also
contributed to research that has helped develop surgical
techniques and pharmaceuticals that help save lives.
Ethanol and new bio-diesel fuels made from corn,
soybeans and other grains are beneficial to the environ-
ment and helps contribute to energy independence for
the U.S.
Information provided by the Agriculture Council of
America and www.agday.org
f
Proud sponsors of the American farmer and Ag Day
5] Contracting Inc.
American Colloid
(ACC/CETCO)
Bank of Lovell
Best Buy Auto Sales
Better Body Fitness
Big Horn Dispatch
Big Horn Engraving
Big Horn Federal
Big Horn Rural Electric
Cowley Lumber
Family Vision Clinic
First Bank of voming
Frannie Tack Shop
Fremont Motors-Porvell
GK Construction
Georgia-Pacific Gypsum
Corporation
Haskell Funeral Home
Horseshoe Bend Motel
Hyart Theatre
Johnson Home and Land
Lovell Chronicle
Lovell Drug
Mayes Brothers Body Shop
MidwaF Auto Sales
Miller's Fabrication
Minchorv's Service/
Food Court
Mountain Construction
NEPECO
North Big Horn .--.
Hospital District
Nordenstam Masonry
Pryor Mountain Engineerin
Queen Bee Gardens
Red Apple Supermarket
SE Inc.
Switchback Grill
TCT West
The Ink Spot
Walker's Servicenter
Western Sugar Cooperative
Wilson Brothers Construction
Wyo-Ben, Inc.
