Food Resources

Issues and Impacts of Agriculture

ENVS 1 Oct. 14, 2002

See Miller Chapter 12

Main Topics
Methods of producing food Increasing food production Environmental effects of food production
Issues of sustainability

Sources of food worldwide

Of 30,000 edible plants, only 15 spp. supply 90% of our food
Primary plants: wheat, corn, and rice
Provide > calories people consume

Primary animals: cattle, pigs, and chicken

2ndary: Eggs, milk & cheese

Major Types of Agriculture

Traditional subsistence
Shifting cultivation Nomadic herding

Traditional intensive Plantation Industrialized

Land Labor Capital

Industrialized agriculture in developed countries

Fossil fuel energy

Land

Labor

Capital
Fossil fuel energy

Intensive traditional agriculture in developing countries

Fig. 12.3a, p. 264

Land

Labor Capital

Shifting cultivation in tropical forests in developing countries

Land

Labor Capital

Nomadic herding in developing countries

Fig. 12.3b, p. 264

World Food Production

Industrialized agriculture Shifting cultivation No agriculture

Plantation agriculture

Nomadic herding

Intensive traditional agriculture

Fig. 12.2, p. 263

Total World Grain Production

2,000

Grain production (millions of tons)

1,500

1,000

500

0 1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

2010

Fig. 12.8a, p. 268

Per Capita World Grain Production

Per capita grain production (kilograms per person) 400 350 300 250 200 150 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

Fig. 12.8b, p. 268

Green Revolutions

First green revolution Second green revolution (developed countries) (developing countries) Major International agricultural research centers and seed banks Fig. 12.4, p. 265

Producing Food by GreenRevolution Techniques

High-input monoculture Selectively bred or genetically-engineered crops High inputs of fertilizer Extensive use of pesticides High inputs of water

Increased intensity and frequency of cropping

To increase rice yields: More, bigger grain per stalk (heavier head) More stalks per acre (higher density) More plantings per year
Heavier heads required: more fertilizer, water, hybrids with shorter stalks (to prevent lodging) Higher density plantings required: more fertilizer, constant water, hybrids with smaller root system More plantings per year required: more fertilizer, year round water, pesticides

More fertilizer, water, pesticides & hybrid seed required: more energy, esp. from fossil fuels more cash, especially US dollars

Results of Green Revolution: Mixed

Higher yields per acre when inputs available Lower yields when inputs unavailable Increased dependence on cash economy Increased dependence on fossil fuel Increased imports of inputs Income disparity?? Migration to cities??

Unintended consequences: Killer Bees

Mild-mannered, low honey producing Italian bee X Aggressive, high honey producing African bee?

Hope for a mildmannered, high producing bee

Instead, got an aggressive, low producing bee

Worse yet it escaped, and is interbreeding with other bees making them aggressive & low producing too!

Environmental Effects of Food Production

Biodiversity loss
Soil degradation Air pollution Water pollution

Human health

Biodiversity Loss Loss and degradation of habitat from clearing grasslands and forests and draining wetland Invasive species out competing natives Killing of wild predators to protect livestock Loss of genetic diversity from replacing thousands of wild crop strains with a few monoculture strains Erosion Loss of fertility

Soil

Salinization from irrigation Desertification

Fig. 12.10a, p. 271

Air & Climate Greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel use Other air pollutants from fossil fuel use Pesticide drift from spraying
Aquifer depletion Water diversions

Water
Surface and groundwater pollution from pesticides, fertilizers & livestock Overfertilization (eutrophication) of lakes and slow-moving rivers from runoff of nitrates and phosphates from fertilizers, livestock wastes, and food processing wastes

Increased runoff and flooding from land cleared to grow crops

Sediment pollution from erosion Fish kills from pesticide runoff

Dust / airborne particulates

Weather alteration from large scale clearing

Fig. 12.10b, p. 271

Human Health Nitrates in drinking water Pesticides residues in drinking water, food, and air Contamination of drinking and swimming water with disease organisms from livestock wastes Bacterial contamination of meat Farm worker exposure & working conditions
Fig. 12.10c, p. 271

Food Production since Green Rev

Rapid increases in total production Prices decreasing

Shortages in developing countries

Approaching limits on meat production

Increasing World Crop Production

Crossbreeding and artificial selection Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) Continued Green Revolution techniques Introducing new foods Working more land

Alternative Solutions: Sustainable Agriculture Low-input agriculture Organic farming

See Fig. 12-21 p. 291

Non-meat alternatives Research in sustainable techniques

Vermont: A case of agricultural innovation and environmental degradation Developing & disseminating new breeds: Merino sheep Jersey cow Morgan horse Green Mountain potato

Soil failure and the sheep boom

Soils, crop yields already in decline Merino sheep introduced 1811 & breeding yields 143% Wool tariffs 1824 Civil War 1860s (wool blankets!)

1.5 million sheep in VT in mid-1800s Hillsides denuded After Civil War, sheep industry failed in VT Farms abandoned

Whats was next for Vermont?

5 cows earn $357.50 per year, while 40 sheep net only $40 per year -- Vermont Board of Agriculture, 1868

And Cows still with us. 1525 of VTs 6800 farms are dairy
Served New England market for milk, butter & cheese. In 1960, 10,000 dairy farms produced half the milk that the current 1525 farms produce now! Average herd size Production per cow
Jersey cows bred in VT helped make VT butter and cheese famous!

Breeding & other ag research remain import to VTs economy and environment.

In Summary:
Supplying food for the worlds growing population was and still is an issue. Policy and research play a big role. Efforts to increase production have focused on:
Improved varieties thru breeding and genetic engineering

Inputs, esp. chemicals, energy and water

Agriculture has multiple impacts on the environment and human health Sustainable agricultural techniques are growing but far behind conventional