1. 18
Food Resources

2. Overview of Chapter 18 World Food Security Food Production
Challenges of Producing More Crops and Livestock
Environmental Impact of Agriculture
Solutions to Agricultural Problems
Fisheries of the World
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

3. World Food Security Feeding growing population is difficult
Annual grain production (below) has increased from 1961–2008
Due to increase in population, amount of grain per person has not increased
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

4. FOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITION
The root cause of hunger and malnutrition is poverty.
Food security means that every person in a given area has daily access to enough nutritious food to have an active and healthy life.
Need large amounts of macronutrients(protein, carbohydrates, and fats).
Need smaller amounts of micronutrients(vitamins such as A,C, and E).
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

5. FOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITION
Chronic undernutrition, hunger
Chronic malnutrition (deficiency of protein & nutrients)
•1 in 6 people in less-developed countries is chronically undernourished or malnourished
•Famine •Drought, flooding, war, other catastrophes
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

6. World Food Security Famine Temporary but severe shortage of food
Developing nations of Africa, Asia and Latin America are most at risk
Worst African famine was caused by drought during 1983 to 1985.
More people die from starvation than famine
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

7. World Food Security Maintaining Grain Stocks
Provides us with one measure of food security.
Amounts of rice, wheat, corn and other grains remaining from previous harvest
Provides measure of food security
Decreased each year since mid 1980’s
In 2010, UN estimated that carryover stock would last 72 days
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

8. Decline in Grain Stock Rising temps Falling water tables and droughts
Ethanol production
More grain is going towards feeding livestock
Increased meat consumption in developing countries
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

9. World Food Security Economics and Politics Poverty and Food
Cost money to store, produce, transport and distribute food
Getting food to those who need it is political
Poverty and Food
1.3 billion people are so poor they cannot afford proper nutrition
More common in
Rural than urban areas
Infants, children and the elderly
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

10. Leading cause of hunger and famine….
Government
Democratic governments are more likely to get their people feed in difficult times
In developing countries
one solution is to shift to more local food production and consumption.
Globalization is another solution.
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

11. Food Production
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

12. Animals as food
Constitute 40% of the calories consumed in developed countries
Only comprise 5% of calories consumed in developing countries
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

13. Principle Types of Agriculture
Industrialized agriculture
Modern agriculture methods that require large capital input, and less land and labor
Subsistence Agriculture
Traditional agricultural methods, which are dependent on labor and large amounts of land.
Shifting cultivation, Slash and burn agriculture, Nomadic herding, Intercropping
On average, low input polyculture produces higher yields than high-input monoculture.
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

14. Subsistence Agriculture or aka Traditional Agriculture
Subsistence agriculture: Traditional agricultural methods, which are dependent on labor and a large amount of land to produce enough food to fee oneself and one’s family.
Low Input Polyculture
Many farmers in developing countries use low-input agriculture to grow a variety of crops on each plot of land (interplanting) through:
Polyvarietal cultivation: planting several genetic varieties.
Intercropping: two or more different crops grown at the same time in a plot.
Agroforestry: crops and trees are grown together.
Polyculture: type of intercropping different plants are planted together.
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

15. Sustainable Agriculture (Low-Input)
Some of the methods used in sustainable agriculture:
Reduce water waste in irrigation
Emphasize biological pest control and integrated pest management
Increase use of organic fertilizers
Increase use of soil conservation techniques

16. Forms of subsistence agriculture
Shifting cultivation is a form of subsistence agriculture in which short period of cultivation are followed by periods, during which the land is left uncultivated and revert to forest.
Stash and burn agriculture-Distinct type of shifting cultivation, involves clearing small patch of tropical forest to plant crops. Soil loses productivity.
Nomadic herding livestock is supported by land too arid for crop growth.
Intercropping is a form of intensive subsistence agriculture that involved growing of variety of plants at the same time on the same field.
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

17. Subsistence: Low Input:
Research has shown that, on average, low input polyculture produces higher yields than high-input monoculture.
Example of alley cropping
Figure 13-8

18. Industrial Food Production: High Input Monocultures
About 80% of the world’s food supply is produced by industrialized agriculture.
Uses large amounts of fossil fuel energy, water, commercial fertilizers, and pesticides to produce monocultures.
Greenhouses are increasingly being used.
Plantations are being used in tropics for cash crops such as coffee, sugarcane, bananas.

19. High Input Monoculture

20. Industrialized agriculture Plantation agriculture
Figure 13.4
Natural capital: locations of the world’s principal types of food production.
Industrialized agriculture
Plantation agriculture
Intensive traditional ag.
Shifting cultivation
Nomadic herding
No agriculture
Fig. 13-4, p. 275

21. Limits on Food Production
· arable land
· precipitation
· temperature

22. Energy Inputs in Industrialized Agriculture
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

23. Challenges of Producing More Crops
Domestication and Genetic Diversity
Domestication of crops and livestock causes a loss of genetic diversity
Farmer selects and propagates animals with desirable agricultural characteristics
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

24. Challenges of Producing More Crops
Increasing Crop Yield
Food production increased in developed countries
Pesticides
Selective
Breeding-more
desireable traits
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

25. Food Production Has Increased Dramatically
Three systems produce most of our food Croplands: 77% on 11% world’s land area
Rangelands, pastures, and feedlots: 16% on 29% of world’s land area
Aquaculture: 7%
Importance of wheat, rice, and corn
48% calories of the calories people consume
directly
2/3 of world depend on them
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

26. Challenges of Producing More Livestock
Increasing Livestock Yields
Hormone supplements
US and Canada, not used in Europe
Antibiotics
40% of antibiotics produced in US are used in livestock operations
Problems with increased bacteria resistance- some bacteria are resistant to every antibiotic known
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

27. Producing More Meat Sustainably
To accomplish this we need to switch from beef and pork to poultry and fish.
Why? Poultry and fish are more grain efficient.
Reducing livestock (cattle) would reduce damage to rangelands, but would not increase food production as the rangelands are not suitable for growing crops.

28. Green revolution
An agricultural system that produces more food on less land (increased yields per unit area of cropland). This system has three main components:
1) developing and planting monocultures of genetically engineered, high–yield varieties of crops;
2) growing and protecting crops with large inputs of fertilizer, pesticides, and water;
3) increasing the intensity and frequency of cropping.
Modern agriculture has a greater harmful environmental impact than any human activity
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

29. Antibiotic Use and Resistance
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

30. Genetic Engineering
Manipulation of genes by taking specific gene from a cell of one species and placing it into the cell of an unrelated species
Used to produce Genetically Modified (GM) food
Ex: golden rice - rich in beta carotene (prevent Vitamin A deficiency in developing countries)
Plants that are tolerant to insect pests, heat, cold, drought, or acidic soils
More productive farm animals
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

31. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

32. Genetically Modified Foods “Frankenfood”
Foods created through genetic engineering.
Genes are spliced from species into the DNA of another species.
Allows higher yielding crops, faster growing crops, and disease resistance species to be created.
2/3 of food products in U.S. grocery stores are GMF.
Concern from some- uncertainty of the safety of these products.
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

33. Unmodified corn (left); drought resistant GM corn (right)
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

34. Genetically Modified Food and Crops
Trade-Offs
Genetically Modified Food and Crops
Projected
Advantages
Projected
Disadvantages
Need less fertilizer
Need less water
More resistant to insects,
plant disease, frost, and
drought
Faster growth
Can grow in slightly salty
soils
Less spoilage
Better flavor
Less use of conventional
pesticides
Tolerate higher levels of
pesticide use
Higher yields
Irreversible and
unpredictable genetic
and ecological effects
Harmful toxins in food
From possible plant cell
Mutations
New allergens in food
Lower nutrition
Increased evolution of
Pesticide-resistant
Insects and plant
disease
Creation of herbicide-
Resistant weeds
Harm beneficial insects
Lower genetic diversity

35. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

36. Safety in Genetic Engineering
Determined to be safe for human consumption
Concerns about GMO seed or pollen spreading in wild
Currently does not appear to be an issue
Long term unknown
Backlash against GMOs - especially in Europe
GMOs are not currently labeled
FDA finds it would be counterproductive and expensive to label
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

37. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

38. Environmental Impacts of Agriculture
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

39. Solutions to Agricultural Problems- Sustainable Agriculture
Agricultural methods that maintain soil productivity and a healthy ecological balance while having minimal long-term impacts
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

40. Sustainable Agriculture
Examples:
Natural Predator-prey relationships instead of pesticides
Crop selection
Crop rotation and conservation tillage
Supplying nitrogen with legumes
Organic agriculture
Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
Limited use of pesticides with sustainable agriculture practices
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

41. Turning to the Oceans Fisheries and Fish Harvests Why?
11 of the world’s 15 major oceanic fishing areas have been fished at or beyond their estimated maximum sustainable yield for commercially valuable species and are in a state of decline.
Why?
growing demand for seafood;
efficient, large–scale industrial fishing fleets;
degradation and destruction of coastal wetlands;
pollution of coastal waters.

42. CATCHING AND RAISING MORE FISH AND SHELLFISH
Government subsidies given to the fishing industry are a major cause of overfishing.
Global fishing industry spends about $25 billion per year more than its catch is worth.
Without subsidies many fishing fleets would have to go out of business.
Subsidies allow excess fishing with some keeping their jobs longer with making less money.

43. Aquaculture: Aquatic Feedlots
Raising large numbers of fish and shellfish in ponds and cages is world’s fastest growing type of food production.
Fish farming involves cultivating fish in a controlled environment and harvesting them in captivity.
Fish ranching involves holding anadromous species that live part of their lives in freshwater and part in saltwater.
Fish are held for the first few years, released, and then harvested when they return to spawn.

44. Fisheries of the World - Problems
No nation lays claim to open ocean
Resource susceptible to overuse and degradation
Overharvesting
Many species are at point of severe depletion
62% of world’s fish stock are in need of management action
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

45. Fisheries of the World - Problems
Overharvesting (continued)
Sophisticated fishing equipment
Bycatch killed off
Magnuson Fisheries Conservation Act
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

46. World Seafood Harvest
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

47. Fisheries of the World - Problems
Ocean Pollution - dumping ground
Oil
Heavy metals
Deliberate litter dumping
Storm water runoff from cities and agricultural areas
Aquaculture
Growing of aquatic organisms for human consumption
Great potential to supply food
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

48. Fisheries of the World - Problems
Aquaculture (continued)
Locations of fisheries may hurt natural habitats
Produce waste that pollutes adjacent water
© 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.