Agriculture notes
WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF FARMING?
- livestock &Poultry: Meat, Dairy, and Eggs; Utilizes Rangeland
- Agriculture: growing one crop (monoculture) or many crops (polyculture)
- Aquaculture: raising aquatic organisms for food
- Malnutrition: a condition caused by not consuming enough necessary nutrients
- Famine: a food scarcity so widespread that it causes severe malnutrition throughout large geographic areas
- Why do people go hungry?
- Crop failure due to...
- Population> Crop yield
- Crop failure due to...
- Over nutrition: food energy intake exceeds energy use and causes excess body fat
- Similar health problems to those who are underfed
- Lower life expectancy
- Greater susceptibility to disease and illness
- Lower productivity and life quality
- Similar health problems to those who are underfed
- The first agricultural revolution began as early as 9000 BC
- Nomads> Settlements
- Cross pollination first began
- Grew enough to support family & trade
- GOALS
- Stop hunger
- Increase crop yield
- Minimize crop losses/ failure
- METHODS:
- new, high yield grain varieties
- Pesticides
- Fertilizers
- Better Management Practices
- More technologically advanced machinery
- Vision: treat agriculture as business (agribusiness). Plant a large amount of a single species (monocropping)
- Drawbacks:
- too expensive
- air, soil, and water pollution due to toxic chemicals
- Uneven distribution- poorer countries still can't transport food
- Maximize Output--High Efficiency
- Minimize Space
- concentrated Animal Feeding Operations ( CAFOS)
- Genetically Modified Crops (temperature and chemical resistance)
- Heavy equipment (Fossil Fuels)
- Chemicals (pesticides and fertilizers)
- Sustainable output
- takes more space
- pasture/Rangeland feeding
- Incorporates more human and animal labor
- Minimize Chemical usage (biochemicals)
- POLYCULTURE
- CONVENTIONAL
- lower food costs
- fast production times (more growing seasons in a given year)
- Meets increased demand
- SUSTAINABLE
- healthier for humans and organisms alike
- Higher quality foods ( in terms of energy)
- Conserves energy and water resources
- Lower biodiversity/environmental impact
- CONVENTIONAL
- biodiversity/habitat degradation
- soil, water, and air pollution
- Erosion/desertification
- energy and water loss
- contamination of human foods
- Pesticide and antibiotic resistance
- SUSTAINABLE
- higher food costs
- low yield
- decreased availability
- more susceptible to storms, pests, changes in environment, etc.