Our visit to the Ellsworth Community College in Iowa Falls proved to be a highly informative one.  In my opinion, the most interesting subject material covered by Professor Kevin Butt was precision agriculture, which involves the use of GPS as well as other tools to improve the efficiency of the farming operation.  This may include, but is not limited to, the collection of crop yields, the number of seeds being planted, the areas already planted, and the amount of pesticide required to get the maximum yield (based on soil composition).  Of course, the coolest thing is that the tractor drives itself based on GPS . . . some tractors even turn around by themselves and don’t require a driver!   I was really fascinated by the innovations that have been made by the companies involved in manufacturing farming equipment.  Especially interesting was the way that computer technology is being incorporated into the tractors, combines, etc.  The John Deere video that Professor Butt showed us about the future of farming and how Deere products are envisioned blew me away.  In the video, John Deere creates an image of farming in the future that is highly computerized and attempts to eliminate the factor of human error by it with the pinpoint accuracy of Deere’s computerized equipment.  It seems that the responsibility of the farmer is diminishing to that of a supervisor who oversees the operations of drone-like machines, which do the actual work.  Technology is leading the farming industry in a direction that is focused on eliminating the role of the farmer, and it makes me wonder, when will this technology reach a point at which essentially the entire human aspect is eliminated?  It’s almost like the movie Terminator, in which human innovation creates a society completely based on computer operations and results in a war between robots and humans over control of the planet.  I doubt that advanced tractors will start to attack their farmers, but if the farming industry is becoming this reliant on computer technology, where are other types of industries pushing their technology?  As impressive as the advances are that the farming industry is making, it does make me worry about society’s ability to use the technology it creates in a way that does not come back to haunt it it in the future.

This morning the group ventured to the Wallace Centers of Iowa’s Des Moines location, which functions in the former house of the famous Iowa family, the Wallaces.  Before today I had zero knowledge of who the Wallaces were or what their degree of importance was to the state of Iowa and the nation.  The family member that attracted the most attention was  Henry A. Wallace, who, as we learned, had a rather successful political career serving as the US Secretary of Agriculture, Secretary of Commerce, and as FDR’s Vice President.  After viewing the film about his life, I came away with an opinion that marked him as a sort of a role model.  From what I observed, he served the country with a deep sense of personal responsibility that emphasized a true commitment to the welfare of the common people.  This commitment to the common people served as one of the main highlights of the film, but from what I could tell, it was genuine.  Henry A. Wallace did not fit the mold of a standard politician, and I believe that’s what made him perfect for the jobs and tasks he pursued; he had no personal or behind-the-scenes-agendas, he only sought to use the powers of his positions to bring forth what he believed was positive change.  It is a shame that I had never known his name before today, but I have come to admire his efforts to promote peace as well as his character.

After supper this evening, we watched another film, Forks Over Knives.  It presented, at least to me, rather shocking findings about the effects of the Western diet on our society’s  health.  The film advocated for a “whole foods, plant-based diet” that eliminated dairy products and meat, claiming animal-based diets increased the rate of cancer, heart disease, and obesity.  From the data provided by the film, this conclusion seems well supported, and made me question my own diet.  I would like to try to implement a plant-based diet in my own life to witness the effects for myself.  I do not necessarily think that the diet is something that I absolutely need to immediately endorse and follow, but I am curious to see how the diet would affect my body.  One thing that stuck with me from the film was a comment that one of the doctors made about milk.  The film had referenced the national government’s support of milk as nature’s perfect food, but the doctor remarked that a cow’s milk may be the perfect food for a baby calf, but why would that translate to human beings?   Why would drinking the milk of another species be beneficial to us?  Humans have their own version of this perfect food; a mother’s breast milk is very important in the healthy development of her child, but when did it become logical to drink the milk of another animal, and especially why should we continue to drink milk long after we are babies?  I love milk, but I did think that this was an interesting point.

As I sat waiting for my flight departing from my home in Connecticut, I read Stephen G. Bloom’s article, “Observations From 20 Years of Iowa Life,” and thought to myself, why would anyone want to go to Iowa?  The article paints a bleak and depressing picture of a state that does not deserve to host the first-in-the-nation caucuses.  Bloom’s essay was published in Atlantic just before the 2012 Iowa caucuses.  But even after this read, I still had confidence that my experience in Iowa would be filled with interesting discoveries that would spur innovative thoughts and ideas.  I am truly interested in how the agricultural business operates and how new technologies are striving to make it better.  This is why I am going to Iowa: I view it as a chance to experience first hand the basic functions of the agricultural business.  And after reading Jim Offner’s article, “Field of Dreams,” which seems to describe a state completely different from that of Stephen Bloom’s observations, my confidence was reaffirmed.  I do not know much about the place to which I am going, but I am sure that the experiences I will have there will be unique and enriching; that is why I am spending my May in Iowa.

After landing at the airport and meeting up with some other members of the group, my excitement mounted as Dr.HN drove us closer and closer to our destination. I had limited expectations about what the farm itself would look like, mostly because I’ve never really been to functioning farm before.  What I was most surprised about was the condition of the basketball court located in the barn along with the very impressive movie screen.  These factors are fairly trivial when looking at what this trip is focused on but nonetheless it’s what has jumped out at me so far.  I look forward to further exploring the farm grounds and learning about the specific operations that go on here.  After dinner tonight, we had a chance to hear from “Denny,” HN and Nancy’s brother, who runs the farm.  Denny knows a lot about the agricultural industry and at times during his talk it was as if he was speaking a different language comprised of complicated farm lingo that I could only hope to come to understand.  He reminded me of my dad’s father, always able to tell a compelling story about a variety of topics.  I look forward to getting to better know the man and the rest of people who make the farm operations run smoothly.

Our first full day in Iowa was very eventful! We started off to Des Moines to see the Wallace house. Before this trip, I had no idea who the Wallace family was, much less that Henry A. Wallace was FDR’s very influential, but controversial Vice President. Henry A. Wallace spent a large amount of his career in political life, and brought attention to many ideas too innovative for his time. After the Wallace family discussion, we ventured to a very yummy lunch at Gateway Market. The food was so good and very healthy – geared towards the organic side of the experience. Afterwards we toured the “Pride of Iowa”. It was a nice little museum mostly about Iowa’s high school sports and a sprinkling of various facts about influential Iowans. My favorite part of the day was watching Kyle and Dr. HN duel at Dance Dance Revolution at the “Pride of Iowa” – I might have taken a video. We ended the day by watching Forks Over Knives. I have heard about this film before and have wanted to watch it for some time. This movie will make anyone want to convert to an all-plant, whole foods diet! I learned a lot and would like to put many of the film’s practices into place in my own life. 

Caroline Lepczyk

Monday May 20^th

Today was a very exciting day! In the morning we visited the seed company, Dupont Pioneer in Johnston before going to Iowa Corn Growers Association in the afternoon, and then later after dinner we watched a film called The World According to Monsanto. The day was very corn focused.

The tour of Dupont Pioneer in the morning was absolutely wonderful. We learned about the origins of genetic engineering and the process of hybridization. We may also have heard about feeding the world maybe once or twice. On the tour, we got to talk to one of the genetic engineers, see the labs where they tested genetically engineered and hybrid varieties of corn, soybeans and other crop seeds and the greenhouses and fields where they grew them out.

Through the tour, we were able to learn more about genetically modified seeds than we had previously known. Despite the many opponents of GMOs who believe that they are not properly tested before they reach the market, and that they may be dangerous for consumption, genetically engineered crops actually go through very strenuous testing for quite a while before they are ever sold to the public, including testing by the EPA, USDA and FDA. According to Robert Paarlberg, author of “Food Politics: What Everyone Needs to Know,” “The FDA is the agency that reviews genetically engineered crops for food safety, and it views genetically engineered varieties of familiar foods as no less safe than conventional varieties of the same foods unless the engineering process has introduced a new or unfamiliar toxicant, nutrient or allergenic protein into the food.”

Our tour guide explained that the testing process worked like a funnel; originally, there are hundreds and thousands of genetically engineered seed ideas but after going over the lot under intense scrutiny any ideas that could have negative health effects, would not grow well, would produce unintended side effects in the crops, or fail a plethora of other tests are immediately scrapped and sent back to the drawing board. Clearly, seed companies do not wish to harm their customers, after all, dead or vengeful consumers do not buy products, no matter how good they may seem.

Today after dinner we went out to the barn to watch “Ocean Frontiers; The Dawn of A new Era in Ocean Stewardship” and receive input from both Denny Friest and Dean Lemke. Denny, was included in the documentary because he was one of the first Iowa farmers to start using significantly less nitrogen fertilizer in his fields. This discussion of the value of nitrogen and phosphorous to farmers as a fertilizer versus the detriment that the nitrogen and phosphorous cause downstream of the Mississippi river in the Gulf of Mexico led me to an interesting query.  In Des Moines and Iowa City, the city water which is taken from the Mississippi, is filtered to remove the dissolved nitrogen to prevent the health problems that over-consumption can causes, such as ‘blue baby,’ which can interfere with the oxygen-carrying ability of infants blood. Yet, despite our evident ability to remove dissolved nitrogen from water, we have elected to use wetlands and natural borders on croplands in order to naturally filter it, and insist on the use of less nitrogen fertilizer in the first place. Why though, are we doing this? These natural acres, man-made wetlands, and natural borders on cropland take up the precious fertile and expensive Iowa land so necessary for crop growth. As our population ever increases simultaneously with our appreciation for nature and our dislike of its destruction, surely we will be required to produce as many bushels of seed crops and as many lbs of meat as possible on as few acres as we have now. With this lack of available land for expansion, why are we giving cropland ‘back to nature,’ when we have so little of it to begin with? Why have we not placed these nitrogen filters sporadically throughout the Mississippi River? Or at least at the places where the tiles join the creeks? Is it because a cost efficient filtering unit has not been brought forward to individual farmers? Is it because states along the Mississippi don’t want to work together? No matter the reason, the solution seems simple and I hope that we can work towards fixing it, if even with the introduction of a smaller filtration unit produced by a university such as ours.

What was I expecting Iowa to be like? I had heard from my mother that it was a grid work of fields on the flattest land you’d ever see. HN had informed us that Garden City would be a tiny, farming town, miles away from any substantial businesses or populations. ‘Iowa in Your Pocket’ showed pictures of wind mills, barns, corn, silos and tractors, and the articles on moodle talked about the mass production of corn and soy beans. However, what did I really expect May in Garden City Iowa, to be like? Why, I expected it to be like Tolu, Kentucky in July. ‘Why?’ You might ask. ‘That would be silly, clearly it is much earlier in the season, and you are going to a different part of the country!’  Of Course, you would be right. May, in Garden City, Iowa, is not in any way reminiscent of the minuscule Kentucky town where I spent summer weeks as a child, visiting the farm of my late grandmother. While the farms in Tolu may grow corn and soy beans, the main production is cows, an animal I have seen very little of, apart from in the USDA Veterinary Labs pasture at Ames.

What has struck me most about Iowa during this first day, is how incredibly brown the landscape is. During an after-dinner talk in the barn, we learned that only a few famers had managed to lay down any seeds before the big snow last week. This lack of seedlings and plants immediately explains the lack of green across the land, but does not take away from the bleak lifeless feeling that it provides. Without plants growing, or animals grazing in the fields, Iowa appears as a brown, barren wasteland from horizon to horizon, broken only by graph-paper roads, silos and towering windmills, however, there is hope. Sprinkled around the house and in the pamphlet are pictures of the farm in its full green splendor. Knowing that the fields will soon be filled fast-growing and economy, if-not-life, sustaining crops is an encouragement. The dark brown soil of the plains is not barren, but full of nutrients. The fields are not lifeless, but fertile, and prepared for the exciting season ahead, and so am I. I cannot wait to learn everything I can through this trip.

Thinking back on all the vital information that we soaked in today, I realized that I learned more about agricultural production in one day than I had expected to learn in our entire trip. Today we made the trek over to Iowa Falls to meet with Mr. Kevin Butt, a professor at the Ellsworth Community College. He gave us amazing advice and instruction on behavior and safety requirements in and around farming industry and livestock holdings. Being a horseback rider, the animal safety tips weren’t entirely new to me, but I found the other advice regarding tractor and equipment safety to be very useful. His explanations of the evolution of farming equipment was so interesting, as I can honestly say before today I couldn’t tell you the difference between using John Deere (green) versus Case IH (red). Now I can tell you it’s just as controversial as donning Houndstooth in Tigertown, Al. BAD IDEA. Those of y’all from above the Mason-Dixon, just look up “Auburn v Alabama” and “football.” From planters to combines, I feel I grasped the gist of modern farming technology. And modern it most certainly is. Any tractor that is connected to a GPS system and a satellite allowing it to drive itself, measure the topography of the land, know what land has already been planted, and stop itself on a dime is fairly modern in my book. But this comes from the girl that when handed the basic handheld video camera this morning, stared blankly for a few moments and asked how to turn it on…let’s just say that even after leaving it in the van twice and forgetting to video even whilst in my possession, Ryan somehow became the new videographer. To say that I am anti-technology would be a slight understatement. This trip to Ellsworth was supplemented by another documentary tonight by the name of Ocean Frontiers. I don’t have much experience with oceanography or ocean sustainability, but I am eager to learn more. I definitely have seen the ramifications of a lack of careful precautions taken to protect our oceans. I can still see litigation in my hometown from the oil spill in the Gulf. Today was quite the productive day, so I definitely look forward to a day of reflection and contemplation over our past few busy days.

While on the flight to Iowa, I slowly start to wonder what will happen my first day of FARM. All I know about Iowa is what I have heard: black dirt and flat land with lots of agriculture. I start to ponder how the city and towns will compare to my childhood in central Florida: smaller and more widespread or larger with more people? Moreover, I am incredibly excited about finally getting to the farmhouse! I have no idea what the house, barn, or land will look like and I am curious to see a real farming community.

Upon arriving in the state of Iowa, I found the rich soil and flat land and so much more! The capital city of Des Moines is a beautiful, thriving city and small towns really are small towns.  However, I noticed when flying over the state how much farmland was being taken over by urban sprawl. Farmers are losing valuable land to developers who find expanding the city sideways to be more profitable than upwards. It is good logic for a businessman, but not for a farmer who needs the land for their livelihood. Moreover, I thoroughly enjoyed the arrival to the farm. All of the farmland was very interesting to see for the first time, including the wind turbines spotted throughout the landscape – they are so much bigger in person! I loved touring the farmhouse because of the historic significance to the family and the renovated barn is beyond amazing. So much hard work has been put into our arrival! The night ended with a discussion with the oldest brother, Denny Neubauer. It was very interesting to hear the point of view from a farmer who has worked the land for many years and his experiences with the transitions of new technology. On the Neubauer farm, they are renting a tractor worth a quarter of a million dollars! The new technology has GPS that tells the tractor exactly where to go without human control – unfathomable to me! I have already learned so many interesting things about farm life and am very excited for what is to come!

The airline pretzels contained soybean oil.  And the cookies had soybean oil and soybean flour. Shocking? Not to me really. I’ve been aware of the corn and soybean infiltration into the food system for some time now. But before that? Absolutely not. Before watching Food Inc. for the first time, little more than a year ago, I was happily content to eat my food, buy my produce, and select my meat with little thought process beyond how good it was about to taste. I had no concept of seasonality or locality. As cliché as it may be, Food Inc. really opened my eyes and ears to the issues surrounding and within our food production system. I personally am not sure I agree with having 70% of the products in our grocery store containing corn and/or soybean components. Furthermore, when I personally think of the meat that I’m about to eat, I don’t think of chickens and cows fed unnatural feed shoved into tiny scantily lit dungeon-like warehouses. I’m no impassioned animal activist, honestly raging PETA activists bother me, I just like to enjoy my food. And honestly, how much of what were eating these days is food?

Each time I would tell people where I was going to “study away” on my May Experience, they always looked confused when I said “Iowa, to study on the Farm.” And when I mentioned farm politics, they almost always would reply back with “foreign politics?” Nope, and after some explaining, they stopped asking questions, and yet still looked pretty confused as to why anyone would want to know about all this. I, however, find it endlessly fascinating. From the hog barns down the road, to learning about the differences between the methods of GPS satellite tractor systems, I want to learn about it all. I look forward to the many seasoned experts that live this life and those that study those that do. Farmers and lawyers alike, I yearn to pick their brains and take a peek inside Iowa farm life and all that revolves around it.