PLANTATION AGRICULTURE General Study

PLANTATION AGRICULTURE What is Plantation Agriculture? Plantation agriculture is a commercial tropical agriculture system which is essentially export-oriented. Where does Plantation Agriculture takes place? Mostly in tropical and sub-tropical regions like Central and South America, Southern and South-eastern Asia Why do people practice Plantation Agriculture? For better variety of crops (eg. food, fruits) Income for the farmers, as the crops would be exported To meet increasing demand of food from the increasing population

CHARACTERISTICS A single crop is grown over a large area Well-developed network of transportation and communication, connecting plantation areas, processing industries and markets together Production is mainly for the market and not for the farmers’ self-consumption Involves modern inputs like chemical fertilisers, insecticides and pesticides Modern machinery is needed Labour-intensive

Inputs Large land area Large number of workers (labour-intensive) Huge sum of capital Infrastructures Chemical fertilisers, pesticides and insecticides Modern Machinery

Process Select the land (warm temp. and adequate rainfall) Plough the soil Seedlings are planted Some are harvested after 3-5 years 8-10 years of planting, the plantation will be harvested Application of fertilisers, pesticides and insecticides

Outputs Wider variety of crops Huge profits Crops exported to other countries

ADVANTAGES More job opportunities for the people Source of income for the country Wider variety of food Effective use of vast land

DISADVANTAGES Local people may be exploited as cheap labour, leading to slavery Growth of a single crop makes plantations very prone to diseases, poor weather and the fluctuation in world market prices Fertile soil for crops exported, rather than for self-consumption

PROBLEMS FACED Technology advances, reducing the need of plantation agriculture HYV (High-yield varieties) Short growth periods Shortage of workers Deforestation Destroy natural habitats

RESOURCES IMAGES: http://images.google.com.sg/imghp?hl=en CONTEXT: http://library.thinkquest.org/26634/forest/farming/plantation.htm http://www.alfredhartemink.nl/plantations.htm http://www.slideshare.net/ http://wiki.answers.com/