Food Resources Chapter 13 “There are two spiritual dangers in not owning a farm. One is the danger of supposing that breakfast comes from the grocery store and the other that heat comes from the furnace.” Aldo Leopold

Key Concepts Methods of producing food Increasing food production Environmental effects of food production Increasing sustainability

How is food produced? Sources of food Primary plants: wheat, corn, and rice Primary animals: beef, pork, and chicken

Major Types of Agriculture Traditional subsistence Traditional intensive Plantation Industrialized (high-input)

World Food Production Fig. 13-2, p 279 Plantation agriculture Industrialized agriculture Shifting cultivation Plantation agriculture Nomadic herding Intensive traditional agriculture No agriculture Fig. 13-2, p 279

Producing Food By Green Revolution 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

Green Revolutions Fig. 13-6, p 282 First green revolution (developed countries) Second green revolution (developing countries) Major International agricultural research centers and seed banks Fig. 13-6, p 282

Producing Food by Traditional Techniques Interplanting Polyvarietal cultivation Intercropping Agroforestry (alley cropping) Polyculture

Food Production Rapidly increasing Prices decreasing Shortages in developing countries Approaching limits on meat production

Nutrition Undernutrition Malnutrition Overnutrition

Environmental Effect of Food Production Biodiversity loss Soil Air pollution Water Human health

Increasing World Crop Production Crossbreeding and artificial selection Genetic engineering (gene splicing) Genetically modified organisms (GMO’s) Continued Green Revolution techniques Introducing new foods Working more land See Figure 13-16, p 291

Kilograms of grain needed per kilogram of body weight Producing More Meat Kilograms of grain needed per kilogram of body weight Beef cattle 7 Pigs 4 Chicken 2.2 Fish (catfish or carp) 2 Rangeland Pasture Efficiency Adaptations of rangeland plants Range conditions and management Environmental consequences Fig. 13-25, p 298

Catching and Raising More Fish Fisheries Fishing Methods Sustainable yield Over fishing Commercial extinction Aquiculture Fish farming and ranching

Government Agriculture Policy Artificially low prices Subsidies Elimination of price controls Food Aid

Solutions: Sustainable Agriculture Low-input agriculture Organic farming More benefits to the poor Increasing funding for research in sustainable techniques