Green Academy and Custom Farming

We kicked off our final day in Denmark by learning more about the activities at Green Academy, who have hosted us since Tuesday. They are a vocational school and have strong agriculture, horticulture, forestry, zoo keeper and a variety of other programs. We look forward to building future programming with Green Academy. We were able to explore their horticulture campus this morning. Following lunch we visited a family that farms their own land, custom farms for others, and provides construction projects assistance with their tractors and heavy machinery. This provided a great opportunity to explore their equipment and have a discussion on crop production in Denmark.

For the evening we explored the city of Aarhus. We visited the Queen's summer home, found time to shop, explored the Salling Rooftop, and enjoyed dinner at Aarhus Street Food. Thank you to Karolina, Peder, Julie, Niels, and all at Green Academy for their hospitality.

Soon we will be headed to the airport to start our trek home. Catch up on today's happening with our video recap linked here. 

Sunshine and Soccer

Today was a spectacular day weather wise and educationally. We started our day by visiting Viking Genetics. They handle dairy and beef collection and sale of semen with most of their business in the dairy sector. They have 90% of the market in Denmark and send semen all over the world. We had great discussions on genetics and the future of the industry. From Viking Genetics we visited an organic agriculture school. We were able to see crop and animal production. They teach the same curriculum as other agriculture schools in Denmark, but from the organic angle.

When we returned to campus we met up with Karolina at Green Academy and enjoyed a spectacular dinner. To wrap up our evening we played a little soccer on campus. Linked is a video recap of our day. 

Research and Rain

We had a little bit of rain today as we visited the research area for Aarhus University near Foulum. Due to the rain we started with dairy research where they were measuring methane output from cattle and working to bring the levels down. They were running different feed trials as well. We then learned about the process of protein extraction from grasses and other crops. Following lunch we headed to the fields to learn about different grasses, clover, and crops being grown in Denmark for biomass production. We were, also, able to analyze the equipment used at the research facility.

We returned to campus for another great dinner and headed into town via train to explore the city of Aarhus. Catch up on our busy day with today's video recap linked here!

Transparency in Agriculture

Today we trekked out and started our day touring the Danish Crown Beef Slaughterhouse. The Danish Crown facility was built to welcome visitors. Every stage of the process has a viewing window so visitors can learn about the entire process from start to finish. Danish Crown kept mentioning they have no problem showing the entire process to visitors as they have nothing to hide. After grabbing lunch we traveled up to the Aarhus area and visited a robotic dairy where transparency was emphasized just as it was at Danish Crown. The public is welcomed at the farm anytime. Robots are used to milk, push feed, clean manure, and refresh bedding. It is one of the most modern dairies in all of Denmark.

For our remaining days in Denmark we will be hosted by Green Academy near Aarhus. We were able to tour their school farm where they had everything from hogs to reptiles. We enjoyed dinner on campus followed by a soccer game for a little exercise and are hoping to catch the United States Women's National Team compete in the Women's World Cup later tonight. Catch up on our busy Tuesday with today's video recap!

Museum and Vineyard Time

We kicked off the last day of our holiday weekend in Denmark by visiting a museum highlighting nature in Denmark from bird migrations, storm surges, wildlife, and the ecosystem. After an engaging morning we visited a local winery for lunch. All food and products served were locally grown and sourced. While at the winery we were able to visit the vineyard to learn about grape production and then made our way to the winery where wine is produced. We concluded a great day with dinner near the beach and a walk along the shoreline. Tomorrow we move back to the mainland and the Aarhus area. Catch up on today's happenings with the linked video recap!

Sunday Exploring in Denmark

Today and tomorrow things are slow in Denmark as there is a national holiday. This will slow agriculture activities down and allow us time to explore some unique areas of Denmark. Today we traveled to Ribe, the oldest city in Denmark (over 1,000 years old). We had the opportunity to attend a church service for those interested, visit shops, enjoy a delicious lunch, climb to the top of the church tower to view the city, and explore a viking celebration.

After returning to the island of Fanoe by ferry we enjoyed an ice cream treat and made our way to watch seals who were sun bathing. After another spectacular meal we explored a local school and had great conversations with our hosts Ove and Else Marie. Catch up on our Sunday in Denmark by clicking on this link to view our video recap of the day!

Island Life

Today we explored the island of Fanoe in Denmark. While the weather hasn't cooperated to let us truly enjoy island life we have still had a great day. We started off with a visit to a farm where they sell meat and products they produce. We were able to learn about many of their production practises with livestock. We, also, visited a church before taking a drive on the beach along the ocean. It was going very well until we found some sand dunes on our way to exit the beach. It provided a great morning workout as we dug the van out.

For lunch we enjoyed a variety of Danish pancakes before exploring more of the island. We were able to visit a museum that showcased what it was like to live on the island over 300 years ago, as well, as explore bunkers that dot the coastline from World War II.

This evening involved a nice dinner and social time to reflect on our experience to this time. We look forward to what the next week has in store. Click here for a video recap of the day.

Getting Rural in Denmark

Today we kicked off our day visiting a dairy milking 500 head of cows. The farmer actually removed robots from his operation in order to expand with future growth potential yet to come. Everyone was impressed with the cleanliness and efficiency of the dairy operation. From the farm we enjoyed a nice picnic lunch before visiting AgroLab which tests chemicals for outside companies and helps them get their products approved for the market. We learned about the process, checked out the equipment used, and looked at some test plots. We also discovered that 85% of the land in Denmark is utilized for agriculture.

We enjoyed a relaxing evening and dinner at Ove and Else Marie's home on the island of Fanoe. Fanoe will be our home base over the next couple days as we enjoy our weekend in Denmark. Check out this YouTube link for a recap of our day!

Hit the Ground Running in Denmark

We have arrived! After a long day of travel we arrived in Copenhagen where we took a boat tour of the city and visited many landmarks, including buildings well over 400 years old. After a relaxing lunch water side we headed out on a couple hour drive to Odense where the Dalum Agriculture College is located. We enjoyed dinner and a tour of campus. Great discussion was had on education delivery and agriculture training in Denmark. We look forward to tomorrow as we make our way to a dairy farm and AgroLab. Here is a video recap of our first day in Denmark!

Discovering Denmark

Today a group of us head to Denmark to learn about innovative methods in agriculture! It will be 10 days packed with analyzing and learning about agricultural  methods to improve agriculture at home and abroad. We encourage you to watch our blog and social media platforms over the coming days and join us on our journey!