Little White Chunk

 

I recently had the privilege of going out for a Christmas celebration with my fellow Apple Grove Veterinary Care team members and their spouses.  This year we went to Ukai; a Japanese restaurant that cooks food directly in front of you on a large grill.  Prior to the flaming cooking show we enjoyed some authentic soup and salad.  The soup was miso soup with tofu.  One of my best friends and coworkers is a very picky eater and was hesitant to try the soup.  I explained the majority of the soup was just a broth and the “little white chunks” in the bottom were pieces of tofu.  “Tofu?!”  she replied as if to say she was not eating that.  I explained that tofu usually takes on the flavor that you cook it in, and that it was a healthy protein.  In fact, I mentioned, some of Brad’s soybeans go to Japan to be made into tofu.  Everyone seemed surprised and impressed by that statement.  Questions like “you sell soybeans to Japan” and “tofu is made from soybeans” seemed to bubble up from all around our table.

Brad went on to explain that we personally don’t sell to Japan, but the grain elevators that we work with do.  Soybeans are grown to Japan’s specifications and are shipped there.  And yes, tofu is just one of the many foods that are made from soybeans.

We had a great time out with my Apple Grove Veterinary Care team; it’s nice to get out of the work setting to spend some relaxing time together!  It made me chuckle to think we were able to teach the small group we were seated with something they didn’t know about agriculture while enjoying authentic Japanese cuisine!

I bet you have driven past farm land before wondering “where do all of those crops go?  Why are so many crops grown around the world?”

Soybeans are grown for many reasons other than tofu.  Soybeans are in the legume family.  Soybeans are considered a healthy protein, and grow in a pod off a 3-4 foot standing stalk.  Soybeans are planted in the spring, grow all summer, dry down in the fall and then are harvested.  It is an edible bean that has many uses:

·         Entire soybean can be eaten (in soups or stews)

·         Soy Milk (i.e. Silk)

·         Soy Oil (i.e. Zoye)

·         Tofu

·         Soy Burgers(meat free burger like patty)

·         Soy Cheese (less fat and cholesterol than other cheese)

·         Soy Ice Cream (dairy free)

·         Soy Yogurt (dairy free, contains lacto bacteria for good digestion)

·         Many pre- packaged foods

Field corn is another crop we grow.  Field corn shouldn’t be confused with the sweet corn you enjoy during the summer months.  If you chewed on a piece of field corn thinking it was sweet corn you would be sadly mistaken.  Field corn looks similar to sweet corn; a tall leafy stalk that grows the large grain on a cob.  Corn has a similar growing season to soybeans.  Corn is also planted in the spring, grows all summer, and is harvested during the fall months.   Agricultural uses for field corn include:

·         Livestock feed from cobs or kernels

·         Livestock silage (feed produced from the entire above ground unripe plant)

·         Biofuel

Field corn is also found in many of the foods you consume on a regular basis, such as:

·         Breakfast Cereal

·         Corn Meal

·         Corn Syrup

·         Hominy

·         Grits

·         Corn Oil

·         Sweeteners

·         Alcohol and Corn Whiskey

·         Many pre- packaged foods

We also grow wheat.  Wheat is planted during the fall months, grows slightly before winter, then stays dorment all winter.  In the spring when everything else is turning green and growing, so is the wheat.  You have probably driven past wheat fields in the spring; they look like huge fields of lush green grass.  Wheat grows then dries down and turns a beautiful golden color before it is harvested in July.  Wheat is the grain that is the most widely grown commercially.  It has the highest percentage of protein in it when compared to other cereal grains. 

We enjoy wheat in foods such as:

·         Flour

·         Breads

·         Biscuits

·         Cookies

·         Cakes

·         Breakfast Cereals

·         Pasta

·         Beer or other alcoholic beverages (wheat used during fermentation)
 

Straw is simply the stalk of the wheat plant left over after harvesting.  Agriculture sometimes uses the straw for livestock bedding.   We choose to keep the straw on the fields as it acts as a natural fertilizer for the soil.

So next time you are in the grocery store take a look around at all of the products that stem from field crops.