Unit 5 GEO

agriculture

the process by which humans alter the landscape in order to raise crops and livestock for consumption and trade

the evolution of agriculture

first (neolithic) agricultural revolution → second agricultural revolution (1700s) → green revolution (1960s)

fertile crescent

• present-day middle east from the Mediterranean to the Persian gulf

• excellent farmland

• crops: barley, wheat, lentils, olives, oats, rye

• animals: sheep, goats, cattle, pigs

silk road

trading routes used around the 1st century CE centred on the ____ _____. The routes remain largely valid for the period 500 BCE to 500 CE.

first (neolithic) Agricultural revolution

the origin of farming, marked by the first domestication of plants and animals

• began in the fertile crescent 10,000 - 12,000 years ago

traits

• Domestication → Raising plants and animals for human use.

• Simplistic tools and manual labor

• Subsistence Farming → When farmers consume the crops that they grow and raise. 

  • Transition away from hunter-gatherer lifestyle 

Second Agricultural Revolution

Beginning in the 1700’s, the advances of the Industrial Revolution were used to increase food supplies and support population growth. 

The Industrial Revolution → A set of changes in technology that dramatically increased manufacturing productivity, reshaping how people worked, behaved, and where they lived.

The Enclosure Acts → A series of laws enacted by the British Government that enabled landowners to purchase and enclose land for their own use that had previously been common land used by peasant farmers.

• Similar movements occurred throughout Europe

green revolution

Beginning in the 1960’s, it was the third agricultural revolution which involved the development of better and more efficient farming equipment and practices that led to increased production around the world. 

Massive population growth in 20th century, mostly in developing regions of the world, necessitated increased production

• Use of biotechnology 

• Development of higher-yielding, disease-resistant, faster-growing varieties of plants 

• Increased use of fertilizer and pesticides to reduce agricultural losses

• Development of more large-scale irrigation projects

• Double cropping (growing more than one crop in a year)

Seed Hybridization → The process of breeding together two plants that have desirable characteristics. 

GMOs → Genetically Modified Organisms, produced when humans use engineering techniques to change the DNA of a seed.

Von Thunen’s Model of Agricultural Land Use

An economic model that suggested a pattern for the types of products farmers       would produce at different positions relative to the market where they sold their goods.

• Created 1826 by German farm owner and economist Johann von Thunen 

  • Believed decisions regarding what to produce were based largely on transportation costs and that these costs were proportional to distance from the market 
    

Von Thunen’s Key Assumptions

1. A city is an isolated region within which all agricultural products are sold at a central market 

2. Markets are situated in the middle of plains that are flat and featureless and within which all land has similar characteristics

3. Farmers are rational economic producers (want to make as much money as possible) 

intensive farming

Agriculture that involves greater inputs of capital and paid labor relative to the space being used

• Ex. market gardening, plantation, mixed crop/livestock 

extensive farming

Agriculture that uses fewer inputs of capital and paid labor relative to the amount of space being used. 

• Ex. shifting cultivation, nomadic herding, ranching

horticulture

a type of agriculture that includes market gardening and dairy farming.

• _________ produces perishable items and farmers need to get them to the market quickly

distance decay

 A geographical theory that states that the interaction between two places decreases as the distance between them increases. 

Bid Rent Theory

A geographical economic theory that explains that price and demand for real estate decreases as the distance from the city center (market) increases. There is less land close to the center/market, so it is more expensive there. 

commodity chain

a process used by corporations to gather resources, transform them into goods, and then transport them to customers

economy of scale

The cost advantage experienced by a company when it increases its level of output.

• With better access to resources, markets, and better technology due to globalization, companies can increase their efficiency (output). 

• More efficient production leads to more profit for the company and lower prices for the consumer

fair trade

Trade between companies in developed countries and producers in developing countries that tries to ensure  farmers are paid a fair wage.

• Slightly increases price for consumers 

• Unfair trade practices contribute to poverty and oppression

food desert

A community where there is no access to fresh, healthy, affordable food options because there is a lack of grocery stores or farmer’s markets.

• Caused by business owners not opening food stores in low income areas due to lack of profit opportunities

• Abundance of fast food or convenience stores instead

• Can occur in rural and urban areas

  • Low income & low access communities 

urban agriculture

The practice of cultivating, processing, and distributing food in or around towns or cities.

• Includes micro farming (container gardening, roof gardens, vertical farming, hydroponics, traditional home gardening) 

double cropping

Planting and harvesting on the same parcel of  land twice per year.

• Can reduce soil quality if not done carefully 

• Can prevent need for additional land for agriculture

intercropping

When farmers grow two or more crops simultaneously on the same field.

• Can help replenish soil and reduce runoff

• Leads to higher yields

• Could require more fertilizer use and irrigation 

terrace farming

 When humans build a series of steps into the side of a hill, creating flat surfaces for the purpose of agriculture. 

• Used primarily in East Asia, Northern Africa, South America

value-added specialty crops

Crops that have some other product added to them to make them unique and able to sell at a higher price. 

• Ex. turning berries into jam, turning wheat into flour, turning corn into ethanol, etc. 

• Can help small farmers compete with larger farms/corporations

agribusiness

The integration of various steps of production in the food-processing industry.

• Includes large-scale commercial agriculture and also the steps of processing and production, transportation, marketing, retail, and research and development

• Highly commercial, highly mechanized, uses chemicals and biotechnology to raise crops and animals