Agriculture and Society

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Agriculture and Society
Chapter 4 Lesson 4.1
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Theme Outline

• Lesson 4.1
• Food Production
• Food Production in Industrialized Countries
• From Farm to Market
• Food Production in Developing Countries

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PA Academic Standards for Environment Ecology

• Standard 4.4.10.A
• Describe the importance of agriculture to
  society.
• Identify the major cash crops of Pennsylvania.
• Identify what percentage of the United States
  population is involved in the food and fiber
  industry.
• Compare and contrast the influence of agriculture
  on a nations culture, standard of living and
  foreign trade.
• Identify laws that affect conservation and
  management of food and fiber production in the
  local area and analyze their impact.
• Compare a contemporary economic issue in
  agriculture to its historical origin.

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Learning Objectives

• Students will identify what percentage of the
  U.S. population is involved in the food and fiber
  industry.
• Students will identify the major cash crops of
  Pennsylvania.
• Students will compare and contrast the influence
  of agriculture on a nations culture, standard of
  living, and foreign trade.
• Students will compare a contemporary economic
  issue in agriculture with its historical origin.

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Agriculture Basics

• Agriculture is an integral part of every society.
• Advances in agricultural has resulted in more
  food being grown on less land to meet the needs
  of a constantly growing population.
• ¼ of the worlds food exports come from the
  United States.
• Why the U.S.? 1) Fertile soil
• 2) Favorable Climate
• 3) Access to Technology

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A change in times

• In 1790, first national census recorded 95 of
  the United States population as farmers.
• These farmers grew only enough food to meet
  their own needs.
• In 2000, the national census recorded 2 of the
  United States population as farmers.
• These farmers produce more food in greater
  varieties than in any other time in U.S. history.

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Food and Fiber System

• Definition system that produces enough food to
  feed the more than 280 million people of the
  United States

Number of People Fed Annually By One Farmer
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Pennsylvania Agriculture Basics

• About 59,000 farms in Pennsylvania, 9 million
  acres cultivated
• 18th highest income by state from agriculture
• One of the nations leading milk producers
• First in the nation for mushroom production

Dairy Cattle Produce 10,740,000,000 Pounds of
Milk Per Year in Pennsylvania. Generating
Approximately 1,667,400,000.00.
http//agimpact.aers.psu.edu
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Across the nation

• Small farms (sell less than 250,000 worth of
  crops of livestock annually) in the United States
  still outnumber the large scale farms in the
  nation.
• Bulk of the food produced in the United States
  now comes from large farms, owned and run by
  large corporations.

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How does corporate farming work?

• Typical scenario
• Technology costs have increased, making it harder
  for small farms to grow crops competitively
• Large corporate farms can afford this new
  technology, which allows them to grow more food
  per acre of land
• Since small farms cannot afford this increased
  cost of technology, many farmers abandon their
  fields
• Corporations buy unused farmland from small scale
  farmers
• Conclusion corporate farms thrive, small farms
  struggle

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Food Production

• Main production types by nation
• Food Production in Industrialized Nations
• Example United States of America
• Food Production in Developing Nations
• Example Mexico

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Green Revolution

• Definition modern farming method that uses
  scientifically produced varieties of grain (rice,
  wheat, corn) and fertilizers, pesticides, and
  water to increase crop yields

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Food Production in Industrialized Countries

• More food produced per acre, not by planting
  more, but by coaxing the land to produce more per
  acre as a result of the green revolution.
• Developed nations have increased their
  production, growing enough food to feed
  themselves, as well as export to other nations

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Industrialized Nations Irrigation Systems

• Increase land productivity
• Access to large amounts of water
• Sophisticated irrigation systems used
• Irrigation allows arid land to become suitable
  for farming.

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Industrialized Nations Machinery

• Increase land productivity
• Access to labor-saving technology
• Technology used throughout the farming practice
• Example used in planting, tending to, and
  harvesting crops
• Example automation in livestock facilities

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What does this increased production do to the
overall cost of food?

• More food produced means less expensive food in
  these countries
• Less expensive food means consumers can afford to
  purchase more product, spending less of their
  income on food supplies
• Less money spent on food means more money left in
  the consumer's pocket

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What does this increased production do to the
overall food supply?

• More food produced more surplus food available
  for export
• Surplus food means an increased revenue for
  exporting countries
• Imported food drains the revenue of importing
  countries

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Cost of increasing productivity

• Concentrated animal and crop production can lead
  to issues such as
• Manure disposal issues
• Controlling flies and other insect populations
• Suppressing odors
• Over reliance on chemical fertilizers and
  pesticides
• Chemical pest resistant in insect populations

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From Farm to Market

• Farming has changed over the years
• Historically, farmers raised just enough food for
  themselves and their families, doing their work
  almost entirely by hand
• The domestication of livestock to help with farm
  work, allowed farmers to cultivate more land,
  thus producing a surplus of food

• Modern agricultural technology allows only a
  small percentage of people to produce a majority
  of the worlds food supply.
• Agricultural has become impersonal, being
  consumers do not generally know the people who
  have actually farmed their food

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From Farm to Market

• A simple process
• crops are grown and sold at roadside stands,
  farmers co-ops, and farmers markets by local
  farmers
• A more complicated process
• crops are sold to large companies, processed,
  and used to produce processed foods, which are
  then shipped for distribution and sale
• Example applesauce from locally grown apples

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Food Production in Developing Countries

• Agricultural practices vary greatly by country
• Some farmers have large modern farming operations
  without the use of expensive green revolution
  technology
• Restricted access to expensive supplies
• High-yield seeds
• Fertilizers
• Pesticides
• Modern machinery
• Irrigation systems

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Food Production in Developing Countries

• Developing nations have a lower crop yield than
  developed nations
• Developing nations face a challenge that most
  industrial nations do not face
• Problem Populations are increasing in many
  developing nations. If these countries can
  currently not produce enough food and can not
  afford to import food from other countries, who
  are these countries going to meet the needs of
  their growing populations?

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Subsistence Farming

• Definition farming method that just meets a
  farmers survival needs

• Two main types of subsistence farming
• Shifting cultivation
• Slash-and-burn agriculture

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Shifting Cultivation

• Definition farming method in which farmers clear
  a plot of land in the forest, plant crops in it
  for a few years until the soil is depleted, and
  then move onto clear a different field

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Slash-and-burn Agriculture

• Definition farming method in which farmers clear
  fields by cutting the trees and burning the
  vegetation where it lies on the ground

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Problems with subsistence farming

• Occurs mainly in tropical regions of the world
• Characteristic of tropical regions
• Poor soil
• Nutrients locked away in vegetation
• Tropical rains quickly leach soil nutrients
• Soil bakes in hot sun forming dry, impenetrable
  soil
• Forces farmers to relocate every several years,
  after soil nutrients have been exhausted
• Forces farmers to constantly clear large tracks
  of land, resulting in global deforestation
  concerns