A look into my family’s past shows a long history heavily
involved in agriculture. To name a few
of the most recent generations, my father and mother’s grandparents were
ranchers on both sides of their family. My mother’s parents followed suit by
ranching in northern Idaho and my grandpa on my father’s side was a soil
consultant to farmers in Washington. My own dad came here, to Utah State
University and later Washington State University to become a veterinarian. He
followed up with earning a PhD in animal nutrition at Texas A&M. He now
works as a feed yard consultant and a director of research (testing drugs for
large animals for various companies).
Due to his fond memories of working with my great grandfather on his
ranch in Bear Lake, Idaho, my dad bought a ranch about ten years ago and runs
more than 400 beef cows. This has given me the same opportunity to have those
memories of the joys of agriculture and this is the reason for my interest in
the industry.
This brief
summary of my family’s role in agriculture is one that many would have in earlier
days. Unfortunately, most past generations have had to leave the farm and seek
work else ware. This is largely a result
of the industry rapidly evolving to meet the needs of a growing world
population and the many challenges it has faced in America, such as climate
change. To better meet these needs, biotechnology became increasingly available
throughout the 1980’s to improve the practice and produce more, and arguably
better, crop and livestock yields. The ability to adapt to, and apply this
biotechnology became a deciding factor in the farmer or rancher’s success and
whether or not they could "stay on the farm.”
Fortunately,
I come from a family, which was able to adapt to, and successfully apply these
new technologies to their beloved field. I remember flying in my grandfather’s
little Cessna airplane as he took pictures of his neighbors’ farms. He told me
how he would then use those pictures to find areas of the farm that needed
further testing on the soil. The pictures told him this by the color and size
of the crops. After taking sample cores from those spots, he returned to his
lab to test the soil for nutrients, water levels, and the overall production
health of the ground. He could then provide the farmers with the incredibly
accurate needs of their produce, such as more or less water, fertilizer, or
topsoil. The farmers of the area looked to him for instruction on how they
could better utilize the biotechnologies of the day. My dad continues to
develop other biotechnologies today for the use in livestock. He does this
through his research and then helps his clients keep informed and apply them
through consultations. Both have succeeded in maintaining the long legacy in
our family.
I love
agriculture. It is deep I my roots. Hopefully I can be equally successful in "staying on the farm.”
Sources:
Spielmaker,
Debra. Growing a Nation: The Story of
American Agriculture. United States Department of Agriculture, 2014. Web. 18
Jan. 2015.
