1 / 26

Food Production Systems

Food Production Systems. UNIT: Land Use Today: Agriculture. When you think of food production.. . … what do you think of..?. Practices of Conventional Agriculture. Built on 2 related goals: Maximization of production and Maximization of profit

jered
Download Presentation

Food Production Systems

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Food Production Systems UNIT: Land Use Today: Agriculture

  2. When you think of food production.. … what do you think of..?

  3. Practices of Conventional Agriculture • Built on 2 related goals: • Maximization of production and • Maximization of profit In pursuit of these goals six basic practices have been developed.

  4. monoculture *industrial approach to growing 1 crop in a field on a very extensive scale. Allow for: • More efficient use of machinery for cultivation and harvest • Creates economies of scale for purchasing seed, fertilizer and pesticides • Easier to control irrigation, application of chemicals and pest control.

  5. Application of Synthetic Fertilizers *9 million tons used in 1940; 40 million tons in 1980. • Produced in large quantities with low cost fossil fuels and mined mineral deposits. • Can be easily and uniformly applied • Meets plants needs

  6. Irrigation Supplying water from aquifers, reservoirs and diverted rivers. • Allows for agriculture where water is the limiting factor in food production. • 16% of agricultural land in irrigated.

  7. Chemical Pest and Weed Control Scientific weapon to destroy pests which ate up crops and profits. • Global sales reached $25 billion in 1994. • Kills bugs

  8. Manipulation of Plant Genomes Manipulation of plant genes • Hybrid seeds- combining characters of 2 or more plant strains. • More productive than nonhybrids • Require optimal conditions • Ability to splice non plant genomes into plants

  9. The Unsustainability of Food Production Systems UNIT: Land Use Today: Agriculture

  10. Food Production Is Managed like a an industrial process: So what does this mean to how food is produced..?

  11. Intensive tillage *Practice of cultivating the soil completely, deeply and several times a year with heavy machinery • Poor soil quality, because there is not protection or cover. • Soil becomes compacted from heavy machinery • Increases soil erosion • Increases the need for even more tillage

  12. monoculture *industrial approach to growing 1 crop in a field on a very extensive scale. Allow for: • Replaces polyculture subsistence. • Require intense pesticide application • Susceptible to attack by pests & disease

  13. Application of Synthetic Fertilizers *9 million tons used in 1940; 40 million tons in 1980. • Minerals easily leak from fields • Most fertilizers end up in streams, lakes and rivers • Can end up in drinking water sources • Cost fluctuates with price of fossil fuels

  14. Irrigation Supplying water from aquifers, reservoirs and diverted rivers. • Has a great impact on local water cycle. • Is generally pumped faster than it can be replenished- destabilizing the land above • Competition for water with water-dependent wildlife and urban areas • Increases runoff of fertilzers, pesticides and soil erosion

  15. Chemical Pest and Weed Control Scientific weapon to destroy pests which ate up crops and profits. • Can kill natural predators of pests in short term. • Lead to population explosions of pests • Creates dependence • Creates resistance in pests • Impact on pests in the long term is null • Impact the environment and human health.

  16. The Need for Sustainability Food Production Systems UNIT: Land Use Today: Agriculture

  17. Loss of local control Dramatic decline of Small Farms • Loss of knowledge of sustainable production • Experience is lost and replaced by ‘purchased’ [energy] inputs. • Increase in food dollar going to distributors and dollars. • Ag land is converted to urban centers and development. • Food is destined for export. • Many people in developing nations go hungry

  18. When you think of food production.. … what does sustainability mean..?

  19. What is Sustainability? Ecological basis • Being able to harvest biomass continually because the systemhas the ability to renew itself in the future • The proof of sustainability remains in the future. • Demonstrate moving towards sustainability. • What farming practices can be considered sustainable?

  20. Sustainable Agriculture Minimal impact on Environment • Minimal negative impacts onenvironment • Release no toxic or damaging substances into the -atmosphere-groundwater-surface water

  21. Protect Soil *Preserve Soils • Protect fertility • Prevent erosion • Maintain ecological health

  22. Water preservation *Using water to: • Allow aquifers to be recharged • Allow water needs of environmentto be met • Allow water needs of people to be met

  23. Local Resources Use resources within local ecosystem • As well as from nearby communities • Replacing external inputs with nutrient cycling • Better conservation • Expand ecological knowledge base

  24. Conservation Works towards valuing and conserv-ing biological diversity • Wild diversity • Domesticated diversity

  25. Equality of Access Equal access to • Appropriate agriculturalpractices, knowledge and technologies • Local control of agricultural resources

  26. Sustainable Agriculture • Farming in the future must be both sustainable AND highly productive • Cannot abandon

More Related