NATIONAL AG DAY
10A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN TUESDAY, MARCH 15, 2016
NATIONAL AG DAY
Each American
farmer feeds more
than 144 people …
a dramatic increase
from 25 people in the
1960s. Quite simply,
American agriculture
is doing more — and
doing it better. As
the world population
soars, there is an
even greater demand
for the food and
fiber produced in the
United States.
National Ag Day
recognizes and
celebrates the abun-
dance provided by
American agricul-
ture. Every spring,
producers, agricultural associations, corporation, universities,
government agencies and others across the country join
together in recognition — and appreciation — of agriculture in
our country.
Information provided by: www.agday.org
DID YOU KNOW?
Carol Ryan Dumas/Capital Press
Randy MacMillan, vice president of research and environmental affairs for Clear Springs Foods, looks out over trout race-
ways at the company’s Snake River Farms in Buhl, Idaho, and talks about the company’s sustainable production system.
Certiiable ag
Farmers and processors
face more scrutiny as
customers demand to know
how food is produced
By JOHN O’CONNELL
Capital Press
R
Eric Mortenson/Capital Press
Perch pipes, nesting areas and the chickens’ ability to
walk about, scratch and socialize define their eggs as
“cage free” — although the hens never leave Willamette
Egg Farms’ henhouses. The farm’s cage-free eggs are cer-
tified by the American Humane Association.
#80 11th St.
Astoria, OR 97103
503-741-FISH(3474)
www.edisonbrosfish.com
andy MacMillan and
the employees at
Clear Springs Food
are preparing for the
latest in a growing list of audits.
The Buhl, Idaho, trout farm
is subjected to six annual third-
party audits of its environmen-
tal impact, food safety practices
and how socially responsible it
is. The audits, MacMillan said,
require mountains of paper-
work, and the company must
pay fees based on its annual
production.
The audits are on top of
some 1,300 regulations gener-
ated by 30 government agen-
cies that domestic aquacul-
ture operations must meet, said
MacMillan, the company’s vice
president.
But the certi¿cations assure
retailers — and their cus-
tomers — that Clear Springs
Food products meet their
expectations.
“Most customers don’t
understand the regulatory sys-
tem in the U.S.,” MacMillan
said. “They don’t understand
the federal Clean Water Act.
They don’t understand state
standards for clean water, so
we’re at a real disadvantage.”
In recent years, a rising tide
of audits and certi¿cations has
swamped many producers,
from those who raise trout to
those who raise cattle and other
crops. The audits and certi¿-
cations assure consumers that
no salmon were hurt in grow-
ing an apple, or that a cherry
meets Europe’s rigorous farm-
ing standards. They signify that
food has no genetically modi-
¿ed ingredients or that chickens
were well-treated. They even
certify that no slaves were used.
Worldwide, 463 labels in
199 nations certify that prod-
ucts — many relating to food
— meet ecological standards.
The best-known certi¿cations
cover whether food is raised
organically, but others cover a
wide range of issues, qualities
and concerns.
To keep up, companies have
hired employees, developed
new policies and cranked out
reams of reports demonstrating
their corporate social respon-
sibility in response to increas-
ing scrutiny by consumers and
advocacy organizations.
See SCRUTINY, Page 11A
• Honeybee workers must visit 2 million flowers to make one
pound of honey.
• Honey bees must tap two million flowers to make one pound
of honey. Each worker honey bee makes 1/12th teaspoon of
honey in its lifetime.
• An acre of trees can remove about 13 tons of dust and gas-
es every year from the surrounding environment.
• Almost a third of the world’s total land area is covered by
forests.
• Hamburger meat from a single steer will make about 720
quarter pound hamburger patties. That’s enough for a family
of 4 to enjoy hamburgers each day for nearly 6 months.
• Straight from the cow, the temperature of cow’s milk is about
97 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Farmers and ranchers provide food and habitat for 75% of
the nations wildlife.
• Americans eat about 125 pounds of potatoes a year, about
half from fresh potatoes and half in processed foods.
• Onions contain a mild antibiotic that fights infections,
soothes burns, tames bee stings and relieves the itch of
athletes foot.
• Products we use in our everyday lives come from plant
and animal byproducts produced by America’s farmers and
ranchers:
• Health care: Pharmaceuticals, surgical sutures, ointments,
latex gloves, x-ray film, gelatin for capsules and heart valves.
• Construction: Lumber, paints, brushes, tar paper, dry wall
and tool handles.
• Transportation: Fuel, lubricants, antifreeze, tires and uphol-
stery.
• Manufacturing: Adhesives, solvents and detergents. Printing:
Paper, ink and film.
• Personal Care Products: Shampoo, cosmetics, lotions, finger
nail polish and toothpaste. Education: Crayons, textbooks,
chalk, desks, pencils and paper.
• Sports: Uniforms, baseball bats, leather equipment and
shoes.
• Peanuts are not actually nuts. Peanuts, like soybeans, are
members of the legume family.
• One bushel of corn will sweeten more than 400 cans of pop.
• A family of four could live for 10 years off the bread produced
by one acre of wheat.
• Each American consumes, on average, 53 pounds of bread
per year.
• Pigs can’t sweat. Pigs have no sweat glands, which is why
they roll around in mud to cool off.
• Heart valves from hogs are used to replace damaged or
diseased human heart valves.
• One acre (43,560 square feet) of soybeans can produce
82,368 crayons.
• One bale of cotton can produce 1,217 men’s t-shirts or
313,600 one-hundred dollar ($100) bills.
• Cotton is a food crop. Almost 200 million gallons of cotton-
seed oil are used in food products such as margarine and
salad dressing. Cottonseed and cottonseed meal are used
in feed for livestock and poultry. And even products such as
toothpaste, ice cream, and the paper money used to buy
them contain by-products of the cotton seed.
• It takes just 40 days for most Americans to earn enough
money to pay for their food supply for the entire year. In
comparison with the 129 days it takes the average American
to earn enough money to pay federal, state and local taxes for
the year.
• More than 96 billion pounds of edible “surplus” food is
thrown away in the U.S. Each year. It is estimated that almost
27% of our food supply is wasted.
Information provided by: www.agday.org
––––
ORGANIC ƒ HANDCRAFTED ƒ LOCAL
L ongvi ew , W ashington
We began in the Pacific Northwest with a
single alder mill, and have steadily grown
to become the largest manufacturer and
global supplier of hardwood lumber. We
produce 14 species of domestic hardwood,
import and distribute over 45 species of
exotic hardwoods, and source both
appearance and structural plywood.
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Alder, Maple Saw Logs & Timber Wanted.
Contact Steve Axtell: (360)430-0885 or John Anderson: (360)269-2500
FISHHAWK
FISHERIES
100 4th Street | Astoria
BLUESCORCHER.COOP ඵ 503-3 3 8-7473 ඵ 1493 DUANE STREET
503-325-5252
ASTORIA, OREGON
Orga n ic
Veggie
S eed s
D R . E ARTH L IFE :
Feed your soil;
feed your
pla nts!
•
KENAI, ALASKA
Protect
your flock
w ith a
S O L AR
C H ICK E N
D OOR
Taste
of the Wild
Lim ited-in gredient pet foods
FEN CIN G :
Posts, w ire, pan els,
d og ken n els, gates
34963 Hw y 101 Bu s. | Asto ria
1m ile south of old Youngs Ba y Bridge
503-325-1562
b rim sfa rm n g a rd en .co m
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