| Term | Definition |
| Opening/closing ceremony | a traditional contest designed to emphasize the purpose of meetings and duties of officers |
| Processing | turning raw agricultural products into consumable food |
| Biosecurity | analyzing and managing risk in the areas of food safety, animal life & health, and plant life & health |
| Evergreen | plants that do not lose their leaves on a yearly basis |
| Renewable natural resource | a resource provided by nature that can replace itself |
| Supervised agriculture experinece (SAE) | a project done by students with help from their agricultural instructor in which they learn by doing |
| FSIS | health agency of the federal government responsible for ensuring that the nations' commercial supply of meat, poultry and egg products
are safe |
| Agriculture | activities concerned with the production of plants and animals and the related supplies, services, mechanics, products, processing and marketing |
| Electricity | a form of energy that can produce light, heat, magnetic force and chemical changes |
| Photosynthesis | the food-making process of plants |
| Extemporaneous speech | a type of speech in which the speaker prepares ideas but does not memorize exact words |
| Natural resource | a naturally occuring material or organism that supports life, provides fuels or is used in other ways by humans |
| Plant systems | industries including agronomics, horticulture, forestry, turf, viticulture and soils |
| Composting | a technique of placing organic matter in a favorable environment for its partial decomposition |
| Finishing | applying a chemical layer that protects the surface of a material |
| Career development event (CDE) | a hands-on team competition designed for FFA members to develop career-related skills |
| Painting | process of coating a surface in order to improve aesthetics and protect from environmental factors |
| Clone | exact duplicate, producing an organism through asexual means with the exact genetic make-up as another organism |
| Wildlife | animals that have not been domesticated and live and survive in a natural environment |
| Income | the amount of money received from selling a product or poviding a service |
| Point source pollution | a specific place where pollution originated |
| Preservation | the process of treating and handling food to stop or slow down spoilage and thus allow for longer storage |
| Agribusiness systems | industries including sales, services, farm & ranch management, entrepreneurship and economics |
| Parliamentary procedure | uses parliamentary law to conduct all types of orderly meetings |
| Biennial | a plant that needs two years to complete its life cycle |
| Monogastric | literally means "one stomach"; a simple stomached animal |
| Ore | a metal bearing mineral or rock or native metal that can be mined at a profit |
| Geospatial technology | three technologies of global positioning systems, geographical information systems and remote sensing that are all related to mapping features on earth |
| Profit | the excess of receipts over payments for all factors of production |
| Compost | a soil additive derived from organic matter to promote plant growth |
| Respiration | the process by which plants break down stored food for plant use |
| Genetic engineering | movement of genes from one cell to another |
| Annual | a plant that completes its life cycle in one year or less |
| Animal rights | line of thinking that proposed that animals have the same rights as people |
| Department of Homeland Security | department of the federal government with the primary responsibility of protecting the U.S. from terrorist attacks and responding to natural
disasters |
| Land capability classes | a system of classifying land based on its highest potential use |
| Placement | work for a business or individual, either for pay or for the experience |
| Leadership | the ability to move and influence others toward achieving individual or group goals |
| Fabrication | to construct by combining or assembling diverse and standardized parts |
| Biotechnology systems | the management of biological systems for the benefit of humans, including cloning, gene transfer and other technologies |
| Alternative energy | energy as solar, wind, or nuclear energy that can replace or supplement traditional fossil fuel sources such as coal, oil, or natural gas |
| Pneumatics | use of air to transfer force |
| Food products & processing systems | industries including food processing, preserving, packaging, distribution, government monitoring and regulation |
| Proficiency award | FFA award that recognizes members that have developed specialized skills that they can apply to their future careers. |
| Animal systems | industries including production animals, small animals, wildlife and research animals |
| Weathering | the process of breaking down rocks and minerals through the actions of weather, ice, roots and grinding |
| Research/Experimental | conduct research and analyze information to discover new knowledge |
| GMO | organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques |
| Conservation | the wise use of natural resources |
| Fertilizer | a material that supplies nutrients to plants |
| Forestry | the science of planting and managing forest for specific purposes such as timber production or conservation |
| Resume | a brief written account of personal, educational and professional qualifications and experience |
| Agriculture power | the use of engines, motors and other sources of power to do work in the agriculture industry |
| Animal welfare | line of thinking that proposed that animals should be treated well and that their comfort and well-being should be considered in their production |
| Agriculture Experience Tracker (AET) | online record keeping system for agricultural experiences |
| Biotechnology | the management of biological systems for the benefit of humans, including cloning, gene transfer and other technologies |
| FFA | national organization for students enrolled in agriculture education that promotes leadership, growth and career success |
| Non-renewable natural resource | a resource provided by nature that cannot replace itself |
| Transgenic | organisms that are a result of crossing genes from one organism to another |
| Minerals | inorganic compounds occurring naturally in the earth and having a distinctive structure |
| Agriculture structures | facilities used in the agriculture industry including barns, poultry houses, grain elevators, and earthen structures such as ponds |
| Bill of materials | listing of materials with specifications that are needed in a project |
| Plant science | the science of plant growth, care and management |
| Deciduous | plants that lose their leaves every year |
| Distribution | marketing, transporting, merchandising and selling of any item |
| Concrete | a mixture of stone aggregates, sand, cement and water that hardens as it dries |
| USDA | United States Department of Agriculture; |
| FDA | federal agency responsible for safety of national food supply, veterinary drugs and biological products |
| Perennial | a plant that needs more than two years to complete its life cycle |
| POA | a roadmap for planning FFA activities and accomplishing goals at the local level |
| Exploratory | learn about something in agriculture and its many related careers |
| Entrepreneurship | plan and operate an agriculture related business |
| Byproducts | a secondary or incidental product |
| Soil | the outer layer of the earth's crust that supports plant growth and includes sand, silt and clay |
| Prepared speech | a type of speech in which the speaker prepared the speech completely beforehand |
| Non-point source pollution | pollution from sources that cannot be directly traced to any single point of discharge |
| Plumbing | installing and repairing water pipes and fixtures |
| Natural resources systems | industries including habitat conservation, forest products, parks and recreation, mining, environmental services, fisheries and soil conservation |
| GMO | genetically modified organism; |
| Hydraulics | use of liquids to transfer force |
| Environmental service systems | industries including pollution prevention, water and air quality, hazardous materials, solid waste management, health and safety sanitation |
| Power structural & technical systems | industries including power, structure, controls, geospatial technology, computer systems, electronics, hydraulics and pneumatics |
| FDA | a federal agency responsible for safety of national food supply, veterinary drugs and biological products |
| Inventory | a physical count of all assets in a business |
| USDA | main agency of the federal government that oversees agriculture |
| Fossil fuels | any combustible organic material, as oil, coal, or natural gas derived from the remains of former life |
| Internal combustion engine | device that burns fuel inside a cylinder to create force that drives a piston |
| Welding | joining two pieces of metal using heat |
| Expense | any costs associated with producing a product |
| Ruminant | any animal having a multiple compartment stomach and being capable of digesting roughages |
| Masonry | anything made of brick, stone, tile or concrete units held in place by masonry cement |
| EPA | Environmental Protection Agency; |
| Transpiration | the process by which a pant loses water vapor |
| Breed | group of animals having similar characteristics that are passed on to their offspring |
