Educational Ag Tours

Educational Biotech Ag Tours
April 1, 2008

Goal: To provide high school students with the opportunity to see and learn about multi-faceted careers that exist in agriculture by choosing a tour of businesses involved in agriculture and biotechnology.

Tour Coordinator:
Dr. Duane Bajema
712-722-6275
Fax: 712-722-1198
bajema@dordt.edu

Registration Secretary:
Donna De Vries
712-722-6293
Fax: 712-722-1198
ddevries@dordt.edu

Two tour packages have been planned for Tuesday, April 1. Each tour package is intended to be educational, informative, and helpful to people who want to see what developments are occurring in the area of biotechnology and related agricultural industries. The tours, which are sponsored by Dordt College, have been developed in cooperation with local community businesses.

The tours are scheduled to be approximately thirty minutes in length followed by a time for questions and discussion of approximately fifteen minutes. Visits to two facilities are scheduled for the morning, and visits to two other facilities are scheduled for the afternoon. An extended noon hour is planned with lunch being provided by Dordt College. Booths and educational displays will be set up providing specific business and career orientation information. Jim Wooster, a well-known and humorous farm broadcaster from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, will be the noon speaker.

Itinerary

Registration
Registration opens at 8:00 AM at the Dordt College Rec Center. Registrants will receive name tags and will be given subsequent instructions.

Tour Set #1
The vehicles will leave the Dordt College campus at 9:00 AM. The vehicles will go to the first tour location and should arrive at the first stop at 9:15 AM. The vehicles must leave the first location at 10:00 AM and arrive at the second location at 10:15 AM.

Return To Campus
All the participants should arrive back on campus at 11:15 AM. A noon meal will be served and participants will have the opportunity to visit booths, tour campus, relax, and visit.

Noon presentation
Jim Wooster will be the guest speaker.

Tour Set #2
The vehicles will leave the Dordt College campus promptly at 1:15 PM. The vehicles will go to the assigned tour locations and should arrive at the first stop at 1:30 PM. The vehicles must leave the first tour at 2:15 PM and arrive at the second tour at 2:30 PM. The final tour should conclude at 3:15 PM. Participants must return to campus at 3:30 PM so that everyone can catch their ride home.

Adjournment

Tour Choices

Tour #1

Sioux Biochemical, Inc.

Sioux Biochemical, Inc. produces purified proteins for the research community specializing in the large-scale isolation and purification of recombinant proteins from transgenic grains. The manufacturing capabilities are extensive, and the tour participants will be able to see part of the manufacturing process.

The presentation will be of interest to participants considering a career in chemistry, genetics, animal science, business, agri-business, technology, and other related disciplines.

Trans Ova Genetics

Trans Ova Genetics, the world-wide leader in bovine embryo transfer services will be offering tours of their facilities. The tour will include a look at the operations of a commercial embryo transfer and in-vitro fertilization laboratory. Participants will be given the opportunity to see bovine embryos along with watching a demonstration of the collection process using a female reproductive tract.

Tour #2

Dykstra Dairy

The Dykstra Dairy is a recently built 3,000-cow, family owned and run dairy operation that takes pride in its employees, takes excellent care of its cows, and takes pride in the quality of the product that it produces. The dairy has 3,000 milking cows, 400 dry cows, and 500 close-up heifers. The entrepreneurs promote and practice good stewardship of the land and the environment as they operate their dairy.

The presentation will be of interest to participants desiring information about dairy cow production and management, animal science, veterinary medicine, agri-business, land management, and the dairy support industry.

Sioux Preme Packing Company

Sioux Preme Packing Company is a hog harvesting plant that harvests 2,200-3,800 hogs a day with an average of about 2,800. The company serves niche markets in unique ways. Participants will have the opportunity to see a state-of-the-art design of humane animal receiving, a new carbon dioxide pre-harvesting room, and the processing of the carcass to achieve a final product. Some areas of the plant and the coolers used will also be shown.

The presentation will be of interest to participants considering a career in food safety and quality control, marketing, animal science, veterinary medicine, animal harvesting, business, agri-business, technology, and other related disciplines.