Theme: Interdependence

I really enjoyed the farm visit that we had for this input. Coming from a farming background myself, it was nice to see a different way of doing things. I think it is very important that we know and understand where our food/milk comes from.

I found the whole process very interesting and was amazed when I discovered that the cows spent their whole lives in this giant barn, as opposed to grazing in the fields. At first, this fact bothered me and I thought it was cruel to keep them from roaming in the fields, but after the farmer further explained it to us, I understood that it was not cruel as cows do not need a large amount of space to exercise and the shed was able to adjust itself to the weather outside. We saw this firsthand towards the end of our visit, when the temperature dropped and so the shed accommodated this by having large ‘shutters’ that closed.

I also loved the modern aspect this farm had compared to others I have been to. There were robots cleaning the ground where the cows lived to keep it more hygienic as well as a very large robot that went in a loop around the barn to push the feed closer to the cows. It was a very fresh take on dairy farming that I loved to see.

I think it would be very beneficial to children to see and understand where their food and milk came from to have a greater understanding of the world that we live in. I would love to take a class to a farm in the future, Strandhead farm especially!