From yesterdays post one thing led to another and found 3 factoids which further amazed me. Mayhaps they will you also.
1. Veterinarians: According to the Los Angeles Times 50% of all vets in the US are over 50 old. A third of the vets employed by the USDA are eligible for retirement in the next 3 years.
The American Veterinary Medical Association polled vet students from the class of 2010 to see where they hoped to take their careers. 91% planned to care for pets only, while 2% planned on working exclusively with livestock. Pet Drs earn more.
Imagine the implications for the US food supply since large animal vets are the nation's primary food inspectors.
2. Cotton Prices: Were you aware that cotton prices have risen 80% since July. Better stock up on your Lucky Brand jeans before the holiday rush. Accordingly, some denim manufacturers are beginning to add plastic to their fabric to lessen the blow of expected price increases.
3. Genetically Modified Grain: This is a moral as well as a political issue around the world, and I'm not going there. What struck me as noteworthy was a news item from Reuters yesterday which announced America's largest grain trading partner, China, refused a US shipment of genetically modified corn.
Clearly, Monsanto knows what GM crops China doesn't accept, and most dirt farmers have a handle on the geopolitics of their GM crops. This may be the canary in the mineshaft warning of how GM grains infiltrate neighboring crops, it may possibly have been a test to see how well China checks its imports, or it may simply have been a mistake.
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4 comments:
I know that we have too few vet schools and that it's almost harder to get into vet school than medical school. And since we are basically emptying out the middle of the country and relocating population to both coasts, it's not surprising that so few of the very few who actually get into vet school opt for pet care no matter what the potential payday may bring.
Interesting tidbit buried in the Chinese article, "China, the world's second largest consumer, has booked the largest volume of U.S. corn in a decade after tight supply drove up domestic prices higher than U.S. prices in the first half of the year."
That is one reason that cotton prices are high as well...US farmers are growing corn for ethanol, the demand of which is affecting all other ag prices.
Macroeconomics, supply and demand...
I read somewhere that at the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine the minority student is white male. . .
I have to say that after one semester doing large animal pre-vet at an Ag & Tech, the money wouldn't necessarily be the deciding factor.
Large animal is cold, dark, smelly and dangerous. But aside from that, it's great!
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