Prompt 1- Agricultural Preconceptions

Prompt 1- Agricultural Preconceptions

What do we think of when it comes to agriculture in Michigan? If you're like me, you can remember a time when you drove in the shotgun seat with your grandpa in his beat-up red pickup truck, driving through dirt roads past miles and miles of green corn and golden grain. If you can't remember a time like that, chances are, you don't know a lot about the agricultural economy. Regardless, I'm sure you have some ideas of what the ag industry in Michigan and the US looks like.

I grew up in a family that is very familiar with agriculture, although, before enrolling Michigan State, there were many things I didn't know. Because of my experiences, I assumed a few things. I thought Michigan was mildly diverse in terms of variety of crops. I never thought about how much of the US crop that is exported. And that Michigan grew mostly corn, wheat and soybeans.  Lastly, like most people, when I thought of farms, I thought of quiet family farms of only a few hundred acres.

Upon my first semester at MSU, I took Crop and Soil Science 100. This is the introductory class to CSS, which is the closest major there is to farming. In that class, we didn't have a textbook, rather we used a course pack with information that our professor seemed most important.

 At the very beginning of the class, we learned that the US exports the most amount of crops in the world. The US exports more than $100 billion dollars in agricultural goods. Many to Japan, Canada and China.

When Americans think of agriculture, usually the first crops that come to mind are corn, wheat and soybeans. Yes, Michigan does produce a lot of corn, wheat and soybeans, so you might have also known that Michigan produces more tart cherries than any other state in the country. But I did not know that Michigan ranks first in production of black and red beans, blueberries, cucumbers and Niagara grapes. Moreover, Michigan ranks second in all other dry beans, celery, squash and carrots and third in apples, asparagus and snap beans.

The classic image of the American farm generally contains a middle-aged man in blue collar clothes on his tractor or herding in his cows. But the real scope of Michigan farms is much different. In Michigan, women are involved in operating 42% of farms. 87% of Michigan farms have an individual owner, and the smaller percentage of corporations are producing much more of the overall agricultural output.

After my first ag related class at Michigan State, I did learn a lot of facts on the landscape of what Michigan farming looks like. Our course pack was a great way to correct a few of my preconceived notions and to reaffirm what I had already known.