Basic Ag Awareness
Agriscience Applications
By: Johnny M. Jessup
Agriculture Instructor/FFA Advisor
What is Agriscience?
The application of scientific principles
and new technologies to agriculture.
Agriscience is……
An applied science because it uses
principles learned in biology, chemistry,
and physics (the basic sciences) in a
practical way.
Examples of Agriscience
Agronomy
Uses biology and chemistry to discover
new ways to control weeds in crops.
Entomology
Uses biology and chemistry to study insect
life.
Agricultural Engineering
Uses physics to develop new machinery.
Agriscience employs…..
The scientific method to solve problems.
The steps to the scientific method are….
Identify the problem.
Review literature.
Form a hypothesis.
Prepare a project proposal.
Design the experiment.
Collect the data.
Draw conclusions.
Prepare a written report.
What is Agriculture?
Activities concerned
with the production of
plants and animals, and
related supplies,
services, mechanics,
products, processing,
processing, and
marketing.
USDA refers to agriculture as….
“Agriculture/
Agribusiness and
renewable natural
resources”.
Another definition is
food, fiber, and
environmental
systems.
Why is Agriculture/Agriscience Important?
Largest “employer” and the largest source of
income in the United States and North
Carolina.
Opportunities in Agriculture
Agricultural production is supported by many more
careers than actually exist in production.
Many careers in agriscience products & distribution
are needed to grade, transport, process, package, &
market agriculture commodities.
Many careers for agriculture supplies & services are also
important.
Projections show that the average size of farms in the
U.S. will increase while the number of farms will
decrease.
Opportunities in Agriculture
Twenty percent of all jobs in the U.S. are
agriscience related.
In addition to farming, agriscience jobs help
support farmers to meet the world’s food &
fiber needs.
Areas include:
Production
Processing, products, and distribution
Supplies and services.
World Outlook
The world population will grow as more
people beget more people.
More children are surviving to adulthood.
More adults are living longer.
Population growth will….
Add stress to environmental systems of air, water,
soil, and natural resources.
Create challenges to meet the demands for food
and fiber (clothing and shelter).
Trends for Agriculture/Agriscience
Agriculture will always be an
essential industry.
Increased commercialization
of agriculture will continue.
New types of farming such
as aquaculture (fish farming
and farming the sea) will be
used as well as traditional
farming methods.
Trends for Agriculture/Agriscience
An expanded view of agriculture is necessary.
Divisions of Agriculture
Agribusiness
Agriscience
Mechanics
Agronomy
Animal Science
Biotechnology
Horticulture
Natural Resources
What is Agribusiness?
Commercial firms that have developed with or
stem out of agriculture.
Agribusiness includes….
Farming
Chemical company
Fertilizer dealer
Seed store
Tractor dealer
Horticulture
Landscape nursery
Greenhouse dealer
Horticulture supply
company
What is Agriscience Mechanics?
The application of
engineering
principles in
agricultural settings.
Agriscience Mechanics includes….
The design, operation, maintenance, service,
selling, and use of power units, machinery,
equipment, structures, and utilities in
agriscience.
What is Agronomy?
The application of soil and plant sciences to
land management and crop production.
Agronomy includes….
Crop Science
Soil Science
Turfgrass
Management
Weed Science
Range Management
What is Animal Science?
The care, management, and production of
domestic animals.
Animal Science includes….
Livestock
Companion Animals
Specialty Animals
What is Biotechnology?
The application of
living processes to
technology.
The use of
microorganisms,
animal cells, plant
cells, or components
of cells to produce
products or carry
out processes.
Biotechnology includes….
Genetics
Biochemistry
Microbiology
Toxicology
Plant Pathology
What is Horticulture?
Involves the
producing,
marketing fruits,
vegetables, and
ornamental plants.
(Green Industry)
Continues to expand
as the standard of
living is raised.
Horticulture includes….
Greenhouse Management
Nursery Management
Landscape Architecture
Plant Physiology
Integrated Pest Management
What are Renewable Natural Resources?
Resources provided by nature that can
replace or renew themselves.
Important both economically and for
posterity’s sake to maintain life.
Agriculture & resources management
will include pollution control.
Natural Resources - Forestry
Timber management
for lumber, poles,
post, plywood, and
etc. is another part
of the agricultural
industry.
Other Examples include:
Wildlife
Water
Fish
Soils
Air
What are Commodities?
Agricultural products
which are sold.
Examples:
Milk
Corn
Wheat
Beef
Cotton
U.S. Agricultural Commodities
#1 State Rankings
Beef
Dairy
Broilers
Eggs
Turkeys
Texas
California
Georgia
Iowa
Minnesota
U.S. Agricultural Commodities
#1 State Rankings
Swine
Horses
Sheep
Fruit
Vegetables
Iowa
Texas
Texas
California
California
U.S. Agricultural Commodities
#1 State Rankings
Cotton
Wheat
Corn
Soybeans
Peanuts
Texas
Kansas
Iowa
Illinois
Georgia
U.S. Agricultural Commodities
(Market Value of Products Sold)
Total Crops
California
Total Livestock
Texas
Total Ag Income
California
Top 10 U.S. Ag Commodity Exports
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
Soybeans
Corn*
Wheat
Cotton
Misc. Hort Products
#6
#7
#8
#9
#10
Poultry Meat**
Feed
Edible Tree Nuts
Pork
Feed Grain
*Consistently ranks in top 5 in U.S. grain exports year after year.
**Number 1 meat export as far as tonnage shipped from the U.S.
Top 10 Importers of U.S. Ag Commodities
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
Canada
Mexico
Japan
China
South Korea
#6
#7
#8
#9
#10
Taiwan
United Kingdom
Germany
The Netherlands
Turkey
U.S. Dept of Agriculture
Secretary
Mike Johanns
Nebraska
U.S. Dept of Agriculture
Oversees the
following:
Food Safety
Inspection
Commodity Grading
•
•
•
•
Meat
Fruit
Vegetables
Eggs
U.S. Dept of Agriculture
Oversees the following:
School Lunch Program
Food Stamps
Agricultural Cooperatives
U.S. Forest Service
Cooperative Extension
Agricultural Marketing
North Carolina Agriculture
North Carolina is #1
in the following
commodities.
Tobacco
Sweetpotatoes
North Carolina Agriculture
North Carolina is #2
in the following
commodities.
Hogs
Christmas Trees
Turkeys
North Carolina Agriculture
North Carolina is #3
in the following
commodities.
Pickles
Trout
Total Poultry & Eggs
North Carolina Agriculture
North Carolina is #4
in the following
commodities.
Blueberries
Broilers
Greenhouse/Nursery
Strawberries
North Carolina Agriculture
North Carolina is #5
in the following
commodities.
Catfish
Peanuts
Snap Beans
North Carolina Agriculture
North Carolina is ranked in the top 10
nationally in the following commodities.
Apples
Cotton
Grapes
Tomatoes
Watermelons
Total Cash Receipts
North Carolina Agriculture
Ranking in Agricultural Income
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
–
–
–
–
–
Hogs
Broilers
Greenhouse & Nursery***
Tobacco
Turkeys
***Recently passed tobacco to crack the top 3.
SOURCE OF FARM CASH RECEIPTS, NORTH CAROLINA, 2003
$6,916,349,000
North Carolina Agriculture
#1 County by Commodity
Hogs
Broilers
Greenhouse/Nursery
Tobacco
Turkeys
Duplin
Wilkes
Mecklenburg
Pitt
Sampson
North Carolina Agriculture
#1 County by Commodity
Cotton
Eggs
Cattle
Milk
Soybeans
Northhampton
Iredell
Iredell
Iredell
Robeson
North Carolina Agriculture
#1 County by Commodity
Corn
Christmas Trees
Peanuts
Sweetpotatoes
Wheat
Beaufort
Ashe
Martin
Nash
Robeson
North Carolina Agriculture
Top Ten Counties in Farm Cash Receipts, North Carolina, 2003
North Carolina Agriculture
North Carolina Agriculture
Agricultural Research
North Carolina has two land grant
universities.
North Carolina State University (1887)
North Carolina A&T State University (1891)
NC Dept of Agriculture
Steve Troxler
Current
Commissioner
Guilford County
NC Dept of Agriculture
Oversees the
following:
All agricultural issues
Weights & Standards
Food & Drugs in
North Carolina
NC State Fair
NC Dept of Agriculture
Oversees the
following:
Marketing
• Farmer’s Markets
• Goodness Grows
Program
Research Stations
Structural Pests
Veterinarian Program
Professional Agricultural Organizations
Allow professionals the opportunity to
network, learn, and communicate.
Provide trade shows and journals to update
members on new methods, products, and
technology.
Use membership dues to finance commodity
advertisement, trade journals, and
educational programs for members.
Cooperative Extension Service
Located in all 100
counties and the
Cherokee Indian
Reservation.
Provides information for
those working in
agriculture.
Best free source of
information for small
agricultural businesses.
Administers the 4H
program.
Professional Agricultural Associations
Progress in Agriculture
Mechanization helps 2% of America’s
work force to meet the food & fiber
needs of our nation.
There has been a reduction from 90%
of the nation’s populace involved in
farming 200 years ago.
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
George Washington
In 1785, he became
the first American to
own mules.
Also introduced
agricultural concepts
such as terracing,
crop rotation, and
the use of cover
crops.
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
Eli Whitney
Invented the cotton
gin in 1793.
Turned cotton into
an usable product by
removing cottonseed
from the cotton fiber.
Eli Whitney’s Cotton Gin
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
Thomas Jefferson
In 1814, Jefferson
had his moldboard
plow cast in iron.
Was a marked
improvement over
the inefficient
European plow.
Thomas Jefferson’s Plow
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
Cyrus McCormick
Invented the grain
reaper in 1834 to save
labor in cutting wheat,
oats, and similar crops.
Later a threshing
machine was added and
it became known as a
combine.
Cyrus McCormick’s Reaper
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
John Deere
In 1837, improved
the iron plow by
inventing the steel
moldboard plow.
Need caused by
tough prairie soils.
John Deere’s Plow
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
Edmund W. Quincy
Invented the mechanical corn picker
in 1850.
Anna Baldwin
Changed the dairy industry in 1878 by
inventing a milking machine to replace
hand milking.
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
Joseph Glidden
Invented barbed wire
in 1874.
Used for livestock
fencing.
Tamed the west by
allowing ranches
with fixed boundaries
to be established.
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
Booker T. Washington
Founded the Tuskegee
Institute in Alabama.
Advocate of vocational
education/skills
development.
The school was later
given land-grant status.
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
George Washington Carver
Director of agricultural
research at Tuskegee
Institute in early 1900’s.
Found new uses for
soybeans, peanuts, and
sweetpotatoes.
Diversified southern
agriculture.
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
John Froelich
Invented the 1st
gasoline powered
tractor that could go
forwards and
backwards in 1892.
His Waterloo Tractor
Company was later
bought out by the
John Deere Co. in
1918.
John Froelich’s Tractor
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
Benjamin Holt
Invented the traction
system found on
modern day tanks and
bulldozers.
Company went one to
become Caterpillar Inc.
This is where tractors
get their name.
Benjamin Holt’s Tractor
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
Harry Ferguson
Invented the 3 point
hitching system on
tractors.
Met with Henry Ford
in 1938 and had the
famous “Handshake
Agreement”.
“The Handshake Agreement”
Ferguson Insignia on a Ford Tractor
Progress in Agriculture: Historical Events
In 1954, the tractor finally surpasses the mule
as the main source of agricultural power.
Improving Life through Agriscience
Soybeans
Known as the “Yellow
Jewell” to the Chinese.
World’s most important
source for vegetable oil.
Provide basic materials
for hundreds of
products.
Used as major food
source in China in the
form of tofu.
Improving Life through Agriscience
Baked Potatoes
USDA developed the
pest resistant variety
of potato called the
BelRus.
A superior baking
variety.
Bred to grow well in
New England.
Improving Life through Agriscience
Aerosols
Developed by the U.S.
military to create a “bug
bomb” to combat malaria.
Present day pressurized
cans originated from that
early research.
Improving Life through Agriscience
Beltsville Small
White Turkey
A 8-10 lb. turkey
developed by USDA
researchers.
Need arose when
American families
decreased in size
and 30lb. turkeys
became too much.
Improving Life through Agriscience
The Green Revolution
Process whereby many
countries became self
sufficient in food
production in the 1960s
by using improved crop
varieties and practices.
Improving Life through Agriscience
The Green Industry
The modern horticulture industry with emphasis
on turf and landscape plants.
Improving Life through Agriscience
Cultivated Blueberries
Blueberry industry
launched when highquality, large-fruited
blueberries were
developed.
Blueberries had to be
picked from the wild
before this
development.
Improving Life through Agriscience
Nutritional Values
Detergent chemical
methods were
developed to analyze
nutritional value of
feed stuffs.
Procedures now
widely used in both
human & animal
nutrition.
Improving Life through Agriscience
Biological Attractants
Chemicals only produce
short term results.
Traps created to capture
large numbers of insect
populations for integrated
pest management
programs.
Recent Breakthroughs in Agriscience
Mastitis Reduced
Human Nutrition
Fire-Ant Control
Coccidiosis Control
Exotic Flowers
Satellites &
Nitrogen-Gas Lasers
Sugar Beet & Rice
Hybrids
Agriscience and the Future
The average American farmer produces
enough food and fiber for 128 people.
As the world’s population increases, it
will require a more sophisticated
agriscience industry to keep
pace with demand.
Agriscience and the Future
The science of food production,
processing, and distribution will require:
College graduates to fill roles as scientists,
engineers, and other professionals.
USDA reported an
increased demand for graduates from
agricultural colleges in the 90s.
Designed By:
Johnny M. Jessup, FFA Advisor
Hobbton High School