1. Where are Agricultural Regions in More Developed Countries?
Ch. 10 Agriculture
Where are Agricultural Regions in More Developed Countries?

2. More Developed Countries
6 main types of commercial agriculture in MDC’s
Mixed Crop & Livestock
Dairy Farming
Grain Farming
Livestock Ranching
Mediterranean Agriculture
Commercial gardening & fruit farming
Climate is main determinant as in LDC’s

3. 1) Mixed Crop & Livestock
Common in Eastern Parts of USA, & much of Europe
Integration of crops & livestock
Most of land devoted to crops, but most of income (75%) comes from animal products
Reduces fluctuations in income (seasonal)
Crop rotation
USA- corn belt (Ohio-Dakotas), soybeans

4. 2) Dairy Farming
Most important near urban areas of NE USA, SE Canada, NW Europe
Transportation factor + location “milkshed”
Milk or specialize in other milk products
New Zealand world’s largest producer of dairy products (far away from largest world markets)
# of dairy farmers decline (expense) but production up

5. Dairy Production in the U.S.
Fig. 10-9: Milk production is widely dispersed because of its perishability, but cheese production is far more concentrated.

6. 3) Grain Farming For consumption of humans not livestock
Most important grain – wheat
US largest producer; Canada, Argentina, France & UK (dry areas)
N.A. – Winter wheat belt, Spring wheat belt & Palouse region (Washington)
Large farms, highly mechanized
World’s leading export crop; US & Canada export ½ of world total – prairies “breadbasket”

7. 4) Livestock Ranching
Commercial grazing of livestock over extensive area in semi arid or arid land
US Popular culture (Texas)
Declined in importance in 1880s; range wars
Other ranching occurs in Spain/Portugal, Argentina, S Brazil & Uruguay
Sheep over cattle in Middle East, N.Z. & South Africa

8. 5) Mediterranean Agriculture
Areas that border Mediterranean Sea + California, central Chile, SW parts of South Africa & Australia (all border a sea)
Similar physical environment
Horticulture (F & V, flowers, tree crops)
Olives & grapes (influence of culture)
½ of land devoted to cereals (wheat)
California: citrus fruits tree nuts etc.

9. 6) Commercial Gardening & Fruit Farming
Dominates US Southeast (high humidity)
Most sold to processors (canning/freezing)
Highly efficient, large scale operations, low labour costs (migrant workers)
High use of machinery
Apples, Asparagus, Cherries, Lettuce, Tomatoes, Mushrooms
Specialization

10. What is a “cash crop”
A cash crop is an agricultural crop which is grown in LDCs for sale to return a profit
Usually crops which attract demand in MDCs, and hence have some export value
A “Bad” thing?!?!

11. Guess the Cash Crop??
Cocoa/chocolate

12. Coffee

13. Cotton

14. Opium

15. Rubber

16. Sugar cane

17. Tea

18. Tobacco

19. Plantation Farming
Form of commercial agriculture found in in Tropics & Sub-tropics
Found in LDC’s, but owned & operated by Europeans or N. Americans + sold there
Large farms that specialize in 1 or 2 crops
Cotton, sugarcane, coffee, rubber, tobacco, cocoa, jute, bananas, tea, coconuts, palm oil
Import workers & provide them with necessities
Civil war; significance to US South

20. Focus on Coffee Considered one of the ‘luxury crops’
1st domesticated in present day Ethiopia, today thrives in Middle & South America (70%)
US buys more than ½ of all coffee sold, Western Europe imports most of rest
One of best examples of colonial legacy’s impact on present-day agricultural practices
Early 18th century- virtually unknown, now 2nd most valuable traded commodity in world
There are approximately 25 million farmers and coffee workers
Foreign owned plantations, low wages

21. Illegal Cash Crops Important cash crops, not easily mapped
High demand; particularly in core
Periphery farmers find it more profitable to cultivate poppy, coca, marijuana
Increased through the 1980s & 1990s
Coca- *Columbia, Peru, Bolivia
Poppy- SE & SW Asia (+90% Afghanistan & Myanmar)
USA – Role of Mexico