Low-tech biotech: Mushrooms engineered into eco-friendly packing material

Here at FFA, we continue to be amazed by the creativity and innovation we see in the world of agriculture.

Mike Groll | associated press
Gavin McIntyre, left, and Eben Bayer, co-founders of Ecovative Design, demonstrate some of their eco-friendly packaging forms made from mushrooms at their company in Green Island, N.Y.

Recently, The Columbus Dispatch (Ohio) featured two young entrepreneurs who figured out how to make eco-friendly material from mycelium – the hidden “roots” of the mushroom that thread beneath dirt and wood.  Their company Ecovative Design, is growing rapidly inking deals with companies such as Sealed Air Corp. which is famous for Bubble Wrap.

And, where did the inspiration for their ground-breaking product come from? The farm, of course:

Bayer noticed mycelium’s “stretchy” properties as a kid growing up on a Vermont farm. As students, he and McIntyre started with mushroom-based insulation, but they switched to packaging material because it seemed a better business bet.

So, FFA members, as your working on your Supervised Agricultural Experiences on farms and in gardens, laboratories and classrooms everywhere, remember that you may be the one to discover the next great agricultural product!

Read the full article:

Mushrooms engineered into eco-friendly packing material

FFA comes to Iowa with NASCAR driver Justin Allgaier

NASCAR driver Justin Allgaier will race in the heart of the midwest Sunday, in a state known for its agriculture. It’s fitting, perhaps, that FFA will be racing right alongside him.

Riding along on the right rear trunk panel of his No. 31 BRANDT Racing Chevrolet — just as it has since February — will be the FFA emblem thanks to a relationship that the National FFA Organization has bridged with his sponsor, BRANDT Consolidated, Inc. The car is a hard one to miss with a bright red-orange paint scheme.

BRANDT President and CEO Rick Brandt has directed his company to put an all-agriculture car on track in 2012 with goals to spotlight the hard work and dedication that powers agriculture.

“At Brandt, we are deeply committed to the future of agriculture. And, I am thrilled to have such an iconic, like-minded organization join our team for the 2012 season,” said Brandt. “Simply put, through its long history the FFA has shaped the future of agriculture: They transform students into industry leaders.”

Robots are Future Farmers of America?

MIT professor Mary “Missy” Cummings says that robots may begin playing a more significant role in the agriculture industry. According the CNBC report:

Another area primed for robotics is the farming industry. Farmers cannot find enough people to do the the field work, so crop dusting has become and up and coming technologies.

There are currently robot tractors and robot helicopters that exist that can coordinate and perform harvesting and crop dusting without humans, and this technology is ready to be adopted whenever a business model is figured out, Cummings said.

“The technology is pretty much ready to go. … I think it’s just making the connection to the business model. … I think we are there, we are on the cusp of that, but we just need the business model,” Cummings said.

Cummings estimates though that it will be about one to three years when these types of robotic farming equipment will be in use.

Many people fear that the use of robotics will lead to fewer jobs for humans. But, we see this as a potential opportunity for FFA members.  The agriculture industry of future may need engineers who can design these robots and people with enough skill and knowledge to operate them on the farm. So, if you’re someone who likes math, mechanics and/or computer technology, now is a great time to be planning a future career in agriculture!

For a more detailed explanation of the types of robotics currently in development for agriculture check out the article titled “These May be the Droids Farmers are Looking for” on Wired.com.

Protecting our Ground Water

National FFA joins people across the country in celebrating National Ground Water Awareness Week, March 11-17, 2012.

Ground water flows slowly underground through pore spaces between sand, gravel, and cracks in rock, in underground formations called aquifers.  These aquifers supply water that is used for sources for drinking water, agriculture, feeds our lakes, and recharges our streams and rivers.

Tennessee FFA member presents science project to President Obama

This week, Tennessee FFA member Maryanna McClure joined 100 students from across the nation at the White House science fair. She was one of only 10 students out of the 100 to present her project to President Obama himself.

Happy Chocolate Day!

Did you know that chocolate grows on trees?

Cacao trees, to be exact! Cocoa beans are actually fermented seeds of the cacao tree.

New Century Farmer Conference – Day Three

Day Three (July 27) of the 2011 New Century Farmer Conference began with a group discussion of several questions regarding our vision, ag policy, and the upcoming revision of the Farm Bill.  Each group shared ideas and lessons learned over the past two days for the development of vision statements. We then listened to Neil Mylet, the inventor of an innovation called Loadout, a technology that uses smartphones as the central point of command and control for large scale production operations like a farm.  He shared with us several tools and ideas for the use of smart phones in agriculture, such as the application called MINT.  The MINT application centralizes financial information in one program.  We also discussed an application called Tank Mix that provides chemical mixing instructions.

New Century Farmer Conference – Day Two

Day two (July 26, 2011) of the 2011 New Century Farmer Conference  proved to be another jam packed day of interesting speakers and tours. We began the day by breaking up into our track groups.  The two tracks are row crop and animal production which allow us to focus on what relates most to our operations.  The students interested in row crop production made stops at the Iowa Soybean Association and the Iowa Corn Growers Association meeting with industry leaders who focus on the issues facing the commodities industries today.  We rounded out the tour at Iowa Farm Bureau learning about the programs they have implemented to help farmers. 

New Century Farmer Conference – Day One

Today, we officially kicked off the 2011 New Century Farmer Conference.  Forty-nine of the top college students with aspirations in production agriculture arrived in Des Moines, Iowa, traveling from 24 different states.  The morning began at the Pioneer Hi-Bred headquarters with greetings from Brian Buckallew, Key Account Manager for Pioneer.  After introductions of each participant we played some ice breaker games and then settled in to listen to our first speaker.  Dr. Lowell Catlett of New Mexico State University shared his unique perspective on the current and future economics of agriculture.  He challenged each of us to “Do what we love”.  He went on to explain that when we love what we do, we can do so much more because it doesn’t seem like work.

The Kudzu Kid

17-year-old Jacob Schindler, an FFA member from Georgia, invented a device that uses helium to slow the rampant growth of kudzu.

His invention was recently featured on CNN!

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2011/07/18/kudzu.killer.teen.inventor.cnn?hpt=hp_c2

In many southern U.S. states, Kudzu grows at the rate of a foot a day during the summer, and 60 feet each season. If it’s not controlled, it covers and destroys anything in its path.

Last year, Jacob participated in the National FFA Agriscience Fair.

You can follow him on Twitter @jthekudzukid.