The Growth of Food Supplies

1
The Growth of Food Supplies
2

• Two general factors account for the growth of
  food production
• 1. Expansion into new areas.
• grasslands of North and South America, Australia,
  South Africa.
• since 1850, 9 million km2 more cropland 3 more
  from 1980 to 1995.
• much through irrigation.
• no new large areas to expand into.

3

• 2. Improvements in production
• There are three broad ways this can be account
  for
• a. Transplanted food crops.
• some crops have thrived better in new areas
• eg., potato has spread around the world, and is
  still spreading, into India and China
• helped by genetic engineering - faster growing,
  disease resistant
• also maize and cassava (manioc)

4

• b. Better transportation and storage
• allowed for regional specialization of food
  production
• allows for moving food from surplus regions to
  deficit regions reduces waste
• has also meant that more food has entered world
  trade
• storage and packaging reduces waste

5

• c. Application of science and technology to
  agriculture.
• the First Agriculture Revolution
• the Second Agriculture Revolution and the
  Industrial Revolution.
• the Green Revolution.
• the New Green Revolution (biotechnology)

6

• The First Agricultural Revolution
• the scratch plow (a sharpened stick with handles)
  allowed for the use of animals to pull it

http//www.jovial.on.ca/vica/Asia/Bhutan/Plough.jp
g
7

• later the plough became more sophisticated, with
  a knife blade that allowed farmer to open up more
  land , cut through roots, etc.
• harnesses for the animals were invented and the
  horseshoe for better traction

http//www.rootsweb.com/pollubel/store3/farm19.jp
g
8

• The Second Agricultural Revolution the
  Industrial Revolution
• more machinery - the steam tractor and thresher

http//jhawkins.150m.com/wg-lg/images/Steam20Trac
tors2003.jpg
9
http//www.newrockford.com/activities/threshers/th
resh1.jpg
http//www.edgeta.org/jacob.gif
10

• The Green Revolution
• the hybridization of certain crops to maximize
  yields (more on this later in the unit.)
• The New Green Revolution
• wide range of new initiatives (more on this later
  in the unit.)