Tradi'onal Agriculture

Transcription

1 Tradi'onal Agriculture

2 The History of Agriculture Agriculture raising of crops and livestock for food OR for other products that are useful to humans. Began over 10,000 years ago This period was called the Agricultural Prior to humans were primarily hunter- gatherers Agriculture allowed human to grow at unprecedented rates of- agriculture- 1

3 Origins of Agriculture First used in the Middle East in a region running from present- day Turkey to Iraq and Israel called the Fer'le Crescent. Barley and wild wheat were abundant flood river plains were used.

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5 Agricultural Revolu'on Plants we grow and eat ( domes@cated ) today are descended from wild plants Example - Teosinte: ancestor of modern corn Farmers collected seeds from plants that exhibited the quali@es they desired Seeds were planted and harvested again and again Evolu@on of Corn Teosinte vs. Zea Mays

6 Agriculture Models Subsistence agriculture: growing food for by farmer s family Commercial (modern) agriculture: growing food for sale off the farm, heavy use of machinery, fossil fuels, and technology Sustainable Agriculture Small acreage Crop rota@on Co- plan@ng Fallow fields Regionally- appropriate crops Locally eaten and sold Modern Agriculture Large acreage Monoculture Extensive use of fer@lizers Extensive use of pes@cides Irriga@on Subsidies to overproduce Selec@on of cash crops following subsidies Crop selec@on for animal feed

7 Agricultural Revolu'on of habitats Made room for more crops to grow Grasslands, forests, and wetlands were replaced with farmland Replacement of forest caused: Soil loss Floods Water shortages

8 Agribusiness Agribusiness encompasses all the businesses involved in agricultural food including: farming, contract farming, seed supply, agrichemicals, farm machinery, processing, and retail sales. One of the largest and most diverse industries in the US revenue = $2.4 trillion Major industry stakeholders Monsanto, Cargill, ADM (Archer Daniels Midland), etc.

9 U.S. Crop Produc'on Major agricultural crops produced in the United States in 2000 (excluding root crops, citrus, vegetable, etc). Crop Harvested Area (million acres) Cash Receipts from Sales ($ billion) Corn (grain) Soybeans Hay Wheat CoCon Sorghum (grain) Rice hcp://

10 Earl Butz Head of the Department of Agriculture in the 1970 s. His major change - promoted bigger farms and encouraged get big or get out. Responsible for crea@ng direct payments to grow corn = subsidies Subsidies sum of money granted by government or a public body to assist an industry/ business so price of commodity can remain low/compe@@ve

11 Corn Most heavily subsidized crop Corn is the major source of food in the American diet Almost everything Americans eat contains corn: high fructose corn syrup, corn- fed meat, and corn- based processed foods are the staples of the modern diet. One bushel of industrial corn requires ¼ to 1/3 gallons of oil for = 50 gallons of oil/acre of corn

12 Issues with Agriculture

13 Monocultures Growing a single crop or plant species over a wide area for many years. ex. lawns, corn fields, tree farms Widely used in industrial agriculture for large crop yields with licle labor input. However, they can lead to quicker spread of disease or use more soil nutrients.

14 Livestock, Dairy, & Poultry Animals raised for product output or slaughtered for account for over half of the value of U.S. agricultural products olen exceeding $100 billion per year. Issues include overcrowding to maximize profit in large- scale disease spread in monocultures use of excessive waste output

15 Dairy Cows Trace amounts of hormones, blood, and pus can be found in milk from industrial processes

16 Poultry Farms Chickens are olen debeaked to prevent damage and cannibalism at crowded farms

17 Energy Inputs vs. Outputs Kilocalories of fossil fuel input per kilocalorie of protein output Pigs Feed lot beef Broiler Chicken Free range beef Sheep Vegetables

18 Fish Farms Leads to over crowding - can cause disease, stress, and pollu@on, and local habitat destruc@on Dead or diseased fish are olen ground up and fed to live fish Sea lice

19 Slash and Burn Agricultural technique which involves cumng and burning of forests to create fields commonly used in the Amazon Typically used in subsistence farming since it needs licle technology or tools

20 Environmental Impacts of Agriculture High use of fossil fuels and Air Pressures on non- renewable resources Untreated animal wastes and agricultural chemicals Water Harms fisheries Insects, weeds, and disease- causing organisms developing resistance to Contaminate food supply

21 Environmental Impacts of Agriculture Land Decreases future ability of land to support crops or livestock Habitat Breakup of large areas of habitat into small, isolated patches marginal lands dry land land prone to erosion

22 Pes'cides Residue on Produce Highest Lowest Apples Asparagus Bell peppers Avocados Celery Bananas Cherries Broccoli Imported grapes Cauliflower Nectarines Peaches Kiwi Peas Potatoes Corn (sweet corn) Mangos Onions Red Raspberries Papayas Spinach Pineapple Strawberries Peas (sweet) Released 10/21/2003 by EWG

23 Gene'c Engineering of genes by taking specific gene from a cell of one species and placing it into the cell of an unrelated species

24 Solu'ons to Large Scale Agriculture

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