Agriculture and River Run

Today was our last full day in Brazil before we fly home tomorrow evening and return to Iowa on Sunday. We kicked off our day with a visit to a cotton processing facility. It is a family owned operation which grows and processes cotton so it can be shipped to clothing and material manufacturers in Brazil and around the world. We discussed the process from when it leaves the field to when it is shipped to manufacturers for production. After we learned about grading and all that goes into cotton production we made our way to the fields. We visited a cotton field that was planted in December and will be harvested in late May/early June. There was much discussion on production practices. Many were blown away be the intensive management of cotton which includes 26 passes of pesticides and 4 passes of fertilizers.

We enjoyed a traditional Brazilian lunch once again, which is a buffet style lunch with many options. Following lunch we visited Caramuru, a plant that processes soybeans and corn into many different products from corn meal to vegetable oil. The plant specializes in non-GMO soybean processing and sends a lot of that product to the Netherlands and Europe. The corn they work with is all GMO corn. They stated the premium for non-GMO soybeans is great and the reason for their procedures.

Following our hot day of touring we cooled off with boating and swimming in the river that separates the states of Goias and Minas Gerais. This was a relaxing way to end the day before enjoying a spectacular dinner with even better friends in Brazil! Tomorrow we will attend a field day in the morning before making our trek back home. There may not be another blog post until next week with two busy travel days ahead.

A Day of Dairy, Corn, and Soybeans

Today was a spectacular day of exploring agriculture in Brazil. We started off our day visiting the Piracanjuba dairy training center. Piracanjuba is a dairy company that produces and sells milk, cheese, and other dairy products. This center provides training for employees of dairy farms selling milk to Piracanjuba and also sends advisors out to farms to improve production. Students enjoyed comparing production practices in the USA to Brazil. One of the surprising challenges that Brazil is working to address is their high somatic cell count.

After lunch we visited a soybean and corn farm. The most common production practice is soybeans as a first crop followed by corn as a second crop. With irrigation they are starting to produce tomatoes, sweet corn, or edible beans as a third crop. This year they are going to follow the second crop with an African grass grazed with beef cattle in half of their fields. The grass helps reduce compaction in the fields. We were able to see harvest (soybeans) and planting (corn) within the same field in the same day. To end our time at the farm we visited second season corn crop that was 120 day maturity that was 7-8 feet tall after just 52 days of production.  It was an eye opening experience for all once again comparing production between our two countries.

We ended the evening at the hot springs pool at our hotel in Caldas Novas. We enjoyed an evening of conversation and reflection on the day at the pool and enjoyed dinner poolside. Unfortunately, our WiFi has not worked the best which is the reason for this late post. 

South America's Crop Production

South America's impact on agriculture is evident. The linked article below provides an insight to crop production in South America and it's potential impact around the globe. We encourage you to read the linked article and utilize the discussion points below to guide your conversations in your local communities and classrooms.

South America Will Continue To Pressure Grain Prices

Discussion Points

• What is the current outlook for crop production in South America?
• How do you see this outlook impacting prices and production in your home country?
• Besides the amount of crop being planted what other factors could affect global prices of corn and soybeans?
• In your opinion what does the future for crop production hold for South America? Explain.
• Explain how politics and policies can impact crop production and prices globaly?

Muito Quente

Mutio quente is a good description of today. Muito quente is Portuguese for "very hot." Today was in the mid 90's as we learned more about Brazilian agriculture. We started learning about cotton production. We were able to visit a cotton producer who works with Bayer Crop Science to produce cotton seed for future crops. He shared production practices, challenges, and some of the equipment used. Most of our group is familiar with corn and soybean production so a lot was learned.

From the farm we traveled to visit a cotton processing plant that is Japanese owned. They sell the cotton (60% exported, 40% domestic), keep seed for future crops, and then utilize the rest of the seeds for livestock feed. We were able to see the procedure of processing cotton including grading. The processing plant, also, had a large fruit and vegetable area so we were able to explore different fruits and vegetables produced in the region.

After lunch we traveled to Caramuru, a corn and soybean processing plant. We began with the corn plant where they were processing corn. A majority of the corn is processed into corn meal for cooking purposes and human consumption. The plant was "muito quente" with all the equipment running in the heat of the afternoon. Following our time in the corn processing area we made our way  to the oil extraction facility. They primarily produce soybean oil (90% of oil production), but also work with sunflower, canola, and corn oil. While there primary product is oil for cooking they use all parts of the crops in some way, shape, or form. Their packaging facility was impressive with all the robots. They are able to produce 700,000 liters of oil in one day.

Back home many of our students head to the river on a very hot day. In Brazil things are no different. One of the agribusiness that is hosting us in this area offered to meet us as the river to cool off. We enjoyed conversations while swimming and boating. Today concluded with dinner where we enjoyed great food and live Brazilian pop music. Tomorrow we make a long trek back to Brasilia before catching our flight back to the states tomorrow night.

Farmers Push Trans-Pacific Partnership

This week we take a look at an article that highlights corn producers efforts to push the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) through congress. It shares where things stand with the TPP, why there is the push, and what challenges lie ahead. Read the linked article and then utilize the discussion questions to guide your conversations.

Corn Farmers Push Congress to Pass TPP

Discussion Points

• Why is the TPP a positive thing for American farmers?
• Why are farmers so concerned with getting the passage of the TPP now rather than later?
• What could the passage of the TPP mean to the rest of the world?
• Do some additional research. Where do the current presidential candidates stand in regards to the TPP?

Reform Needed for China Agriculture

China is facing many challenges in agriculture and the agriculture minister in China is calling for some needed reform. One major issue that the agriculture minister is wanting to address is the supply of corn and policies that are in place. Linked below is an article that takes a closer look at this issue along with others. We encourage you to read through the linked article and then utilize the discussion points below to jump start conversation in your classrooms, coffee shops, and communities around the world!

China Farm Sector Needs Supply-Side Reform

Discussion Points

• Why is the agriculture minister calling for "supply-side" reform? How could this reform affect prices and supply globally and in your local communities?
• Explain the corn production in China and policies surrounding production over the last couple of years? What are your thoughts on what has been happening? Explain.
• What recommendation is the agriculture minister making to increase farmers profitability while calling for reform at the same time? Does his recommendation apply to farmers around the world?
• There are two other areas that the government is stepping in and creating law/policy for that are mentioned towards the end of the article. What are these two recommendations? Why are these recommendations important?

Sunday Fun Day Haiti Style

Today was our first full day in Haiti. We started off this morning by attending a church service here on campus and seeing the traditions of the Haitian culture. On Sunday our cooks have the day off so Craig and Julie prepared a spectacular lunch for us.

After lunch we traveled to one of the eight feeding centers that UCI supports. Upon arrival we had the opportunity to distribute Christmas gifts to the children at the feeding center sent from sponsors all over the United States. These feeding centers provide much needed food and nutrition to youth in Haiti. JeanJean stated that they want the food at these centers to be grown in Haiti and be self sustaining if possible. Now much of the food is donated and imported in. Students at UCCC are working with the feeding center to start a garden and produce much of the food needed. This project is just in it's beginning stages and will be expanding. The picture below shows the start of the garden and the area it will expand to reaching the back tree line. 

Next we visited several irrigated fields/gardens. Currently we are experiencing the dry season in Haiti so if you want to see much success irrigation is needed. We first visited a garden growing black beans under the shade of papayas due to the heat. Papayas can be a fruit or vegetable. If harvested before they have ripened they are considered a vegetable and if harvested after they have ripened they are considered a fruit. Below you will find a picture of this garden. 

Following inspection of the papaya and black bean garden we made our way to a farmers field where he was growing black beans following corn. This farmer used to have to split his time between Haiti and the Dominican Republic in order to support his family, but since UCCC has stepped in and shared production practices he has improved production greatly! This has allowed him to stop traveling to the DR and spend the entire year in Haiti with his family farming. With the increased production the family is supported and they even have product left over to sell to others. He grows corn, black beans, plantains, millet, etc. While we were there we were able to witness millet being ground to be turned into mush for human consumption and explore his black beans that were growing with irrigation following his corn crop. He has to irrigate the beans about every eight days and the plantains about every 15 days. Below is a picture of JeanJean explaining this farmers practice. 

After our time in the fields we made our way back to campus and enjoyed a spectacular chicken BBQ. After dinner we gathered around the tree out front and got to hear a story from a former witch doctor who has since converted to Christianity. He shared the struggles he had faced in his previous life and the negative affects that voodoo had on his family, community, and country.