Entry #7

1. It takes a lot to get agricultural products to your table. Between farming, transportation, and marketing, most people don't realize the amount of time, effort, and money that goes into this. Let's follow an agricultural product from the farm to the fridge:

Agricultural product (to farm a product, there is a lot of big machinary involved, which means lots of gasoline. Also, lets not forget about pesticides and chemicals used- to spread these, normally a small plane is used. That is more gas) --> Factories (Once the product makes it off the farm, it is sent to the factory to package it. This involves more machinary and more gas. On top of that, there is electricity needed to run the plant.) --> Transportation (After the product has been packaged, it has to be transported to the stores. This takes large semi's that have enormous gasoline bills; especially if they are travelling state to state. Also, some of the produce may need to be in refridgerated trucks. This consumes a lot more energy.) --> In the store (Once the produce FINALLY makes it to the store, it once again is kept in air conditioning [in some cases it is kept chilled] and electricity is being utilized.)

2. Technology has come a long way from the horse and buggy days. Agricultural products benefit from this technology every day. These products are harvested by a variety of machinary and technology, both advanced and simple. Tractors, semi's, planters, transplanters that plant the seeds (may be fully or partially automatic), seed drillers, mulch layers, irrigation systems, backhoes, rakers, mowers, balers, and combines are a list of some commonly used equipment. Not all of these are used in all circumstances, but they are very common. All of this machinary is powered by gasoline.

3. Another factor that plays a role in agriculture/business is climate and the environment. The weather and the environment are two huge factors that can make or break the business. If the soil is too hard, too dry, or too wet, the plants will not flourish like they should, putting a damper on business and the amount of money coming in. The same goes for weather conditions. If the weather is not favorable, crops will not grow.

4. Evironmental issues that may surround this particular location would be the amount of rainfall. In Florida during the summers, we experience a lot of rain, especially if there are hurricanes and tropical storms. The amount of rain could wash away crops, leaving the farmers with nothing. With respect to hurricanes and tropical storms, they not only bring rain, but winds and possible tornados. This could be a horrible fate for the crops if another hurricane like Charlie came through again.

5. I can become more thoughtful by buying local produce. I drive by local farmers markets on the side of the road daily; even on my way to buy the same product at Target or Publix. When buying local goods, it benefits the environment because the local growers and farmers don't use some of the massive heavy machinary that the big companies use, and the transportation is not nearly as far. Local farmers are more eco-friendly because they don't use near the same amount of gasoline and expendable resources as big companies.

6. In ways I do believe it is somewhat sustainable. Agriculture will always be a business as long as we have land to grow products in and water to feed them with. The machinary and transportation is not sustainable because gasoline is an expendable resource. As long as we find other ways to harvest products, the activity is sustainable.

7. Organic means natural. These are products that have not been defiled by pesticides, antibiotics and preservatives. Organic products are more expensive, which doesn't make sense to me because there aren't additives. These products don't go through what Targer and Publix veggies go through.

My Experience at ECHO...

My experience at ECHO was full of newly found knowledge. I knew about ECHO before I visited and toured, but I had no idea all of the things they did there. There are seven different areas of ECHO that harvest different plants, fruits, and veggies. My two favorites were the Hot Humid Lowlands and the Tropical Highlands.

Hot Humid Lowlands contains crops such as bamboo (see picture!), okra, rice,and tropical mushrooms. One crop that I found the most interesting was something called "neem." Our tour guide told us that neem is a huge part of Ayurvedic Medicine (Indian system of healing) and that it is used for several different ailments such as burns, sprains, bruises, headaches, psoriasis, and wrinkles. Another interesting fact about neem is that people in the tropical jungles of India rub the neem oil on themselves to repel mosquitos! Neem would definatly be useful here in Florida for mosquitos!

Bamboo was another plant I found interesting. Our guide told us that bamboo has over 1000 uses! It can be used in building houses, fences, PVC pipe for water flow, and weaving baskets and rugs. During the rainy seasons, bamboo has been known to grow a foot per day!

The Tropical Highlands consisted of crops such as avocados, cabbage, citrus (like mangos!), corn, and surprisingly, coffee. Our tour guide told us that the coffee beans are actually the seeds of berries ripened on a tree. These seeds are a bright red color; who would have thought? This was interesting for me...I always thought coffee beans would be brown.

We unfortunately got rained out (go figure) and had to go inside early. The guide presented us with a video (the photo above is of the video room after everyone had left) that explained ECHO's mission, values, and purpose of its existance. Overall, I had a very good experience at ECHO. In the future I may plan to complete some of my service learning hours there. Everyone was very knowledgable and friendly. I had a great time and left with a ton of interesting information!

The photos above are of myself in the giftshop buying okra seeds. I was inspired to try and grow my own okra (I LOVE okra) since it likes hot climates. I spotted the butterfly in the Tropical Highlands portion of ECHO; this represents just one of the animal species that enhabit ECHO. The bamboo was my favorite, so I took a picture with it :)