CALS Connection---Agricultural innovations, fall issue of Grow magazine, turkey sale and more

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November 2017

Gerry Weiss charts own path - with a little help from scientist colleagues

In a state proud of the connections between the UW-Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences and the linked industries of farming and food processing (which employed 413,500 and created more than $88 billion in economic activity in 2012), Gerry Weiss (BS'67) stands as a key conduit between academic experts -- many with roots in the soil -- and those who make a living growing crops and animals.

Among many formal relationships with CALS, Weiss worked with soil science faculty to develop nutrient management plans to help reduce costs and constrain water pollution.

Learn more about Weiss's three-decade impact on agriculture in Wisconsin.

Fall issue of Grow magazine features Mendota mysteries, PEOPLE program, and more

The fall issue of Grow magazine is out -- and it's also available online. Check it out for exciting features, including:

Wading through Mendota's Mysteries -- Lake Mendota is called the most studied lake in the world, but we still don't have a clue. Katherine (Trina) McMahon and her team explore its microbial dark matter for answers.
Hands-on with Food and Farming -- How UW's PEOPLE program is planting the seeds of careers in the agricultural and food sciences.
Beyond Antiobiotics -- The slumping performance of our "wonder drugs" is spurring new treatment innovations at CALS.

And, as always, if you ace our Final Exam, you might win a box of cheese from Babcock Hall.

Protecting the environment and empowering communities

When faced with the environmental implications of overflowing landfills and the social impacts of gender inequality in the workforce, what's a community to do?

For recent Nelson Institute graduate Maria Castillo (BS'17) and the rural region of Perez Zeledon, Costa Rica, the answer was: start a business that turns trash into treasure.

Learn more about how Castillo and two of her fellow students tackled a pressing problem.

Order your Thanksgiving turkey by Nov. 6

For more than 50 years, the UW Poultry Club has sold Thanksgiving turkeys as a fundraiser.

Please order your turkey by Nov. 6 by emailing uwpoultryscienceclub@gmail.com (preferred) or by calling Ron Kean at (608) 262-8807. Turkeys range from 11-26+ pounds and cost $2.50 per pound. There are a limited number of turkeys, so orders will be taken on a first-come, first-served basis.

Payment will be received upon pick-up (cash or check) on Monday, Nov. 20 and Tuesday, Nov. 21, from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the Poultry Research Laboratory (1925 Observatory Drive).

Boundless Together: Wallace Jerome, Turkey Tycoon

This month's Boundless Together entry features the story of Wallace Jerome (FISC'28, '41). From childhood, Jerome was interested in eggs. Between his 14th birthday and the time he completed high school in 1928, he had hatched a flock of 200 turkeys.

Jerome then came to Madison to take the UW's Farm and Industry Short Course, and after completing it, he became an egg inspector for the state's Department of Agriculture. That egg interest hatched into an idea: Jerome came to believe that turkey farming could become a full-fledged big business.

He purchased an abandoned pea cannery in Barron, Wis., and converted it into a processing plant for turkey meat. Eventually he launched Jerome Foods, which later became the Turkey Store and ultimately merged with Hormel Foods to become the Jennie-O Turkey Store.

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