APES ch 12

what is happening even tho the world is producing more grains than ever before?

per person it still abt the same -→ produce more as pop grow to be same per capita

grain production limiting factors

* limit to irrigation, fertilizer, pesticides
* loss of topsoil, agricultural land
* salinization of the soil

1st green revolution

1950-1970 USA & Eur

* monocultures
* large unput of pesticides
* water
* fertilizers

2nd green revolution

1967-1985

* plant fast growing
* high yield varieties that can grow on less land

gene revolution

* GMF - genetically modified food
* old way of doing things … artificial selection or cross breeding
* critics fear we know too little abt long term potential harm to human & economic health from GMF
* controversy over legal ownership of GM crop varieties & if GMFs should be labeled

how much of the world’s GM crops are produced by the USA?

70%

where is mandatory labeling of GMF required?

Europe, Japan, Australia, Canada

is mandatory labeling of GMF required in the USA?

no

what is meat produced by?

* abt 1/2 world’s meat produced by livestock grazing on grass
* other 1/2 under factory-like conditions (feedlots)

what are densely packed livestock fed?

grain or fishmeal (corn)

what reduced harmful enviro impacts of meat production?

eating more chicken & less beef & pork -→ energy going into grain

kg grain needed per kg of bod weight

* beef cattle: 7
* pigs: 4
* chicken: 2.2
* fish (catfish/carp): 2

water needed for producing meat (by 1 lb -→ if including water for growing feed, drinking, cleaning farmlands)

* beef: 1857 gal
* pork: 756 gal
* chicken: 469 gal

what is the world’s fastest, largest type of food production?

raising #s of fish & shellfish in ponds/cages → aquatic feedlots

fish farming

raising fish in controlled enviro/harvest them

fish ranching

form of aquaculture in which a population of a fish species (such as salmon) is held in captivity for the first stage of their lives, then released, and later harvested as adults when they return from the sea to their freshwater birthplace to spawn

* ex: salmon

aquaculture pros

* increased efficiency
* high yield in small volume of water
* can reduce overharvesting of conventional fisheries
* lower fuel use
* higher profits

aquaculture cons

* needs higher inputs of land, feed, water
* higher waste output
* destroys mangrove forests & estuaries
* uses grain to feed same species
* dense pops vulnerable to disease
* tanks too contaminated to use after 5

aquaculture solutions → more sustainable

* use less fishmeal feed to decrease depletion of other fish
* improve management of aquaculture wastes
* reduce escape of aquaculture species into wild
* restrict location of fish farms to decrease loss of mangrove forests & estuaries
* farm some aquaculture species in deeply submerged cages to protect from wave action & predators & allow dilution of wastes into ocean
* certify sustainable forms of agriculture

100% organic

no synthetic fertilizer, pesticides, growth hormone, GE, antibiotics

organic

95% of ingredients organic

made w organic ingredients

70% ingredients organic

organic meat

no hormones, antibiotics, access to outdoors, organic feed

fruits/vegs high in pesticide residue

apples, strawberry, grapes, celery, peaches, spinach, peppers, nectarines, cucumbers, potatoes, tomatoes

inorganic (synthetic) fertilizers

* easily transported, stored, applied
* not add humus -→ lower water & air holding ability, leads to compaction
* only supply abt 3/20 needed nutrients → not v many micronutrients
* requires higher amt energy for production
* release nitrous oxide (N2O) during production (Greenhouse gas)
* nutrients readily available
* crops grow faster, higher yield
* runoff pollutes waterways

cows raised by grazing

overgrazing, meat, w less fat

cows raised in feedlots

antibiotics, fed corn, less space used

wild caught fish

depletion wild fish stocks, requires more energy bycatch

farm raised fish

antibiotics, requires less energy, can introduce invasive species in area, produce a lot of fish sewage, lead to destruction of mangroves

golden rice

* GE strain of rice w beta-carotene
* 2 genes from daffodils, 1 gene from soil bacteria
* bod converts to vitamin A
* vitamin A deficiency leads to blindness → outer lining of eyeball becomes dry & wrinkled, leading to inflammation & blindness

what type of countries is golden rice mostly in?

developing countries

as pop increases, still need more food, affect enviro

* enviro degradation: soil loss, lost habitat, contaminated water
* inc pollution: nitrogen, phosphates, pesticides
* lack of water: diminishing water table
* overgrazing: reducing grassland productivity
* overfishing: reducing fish stocks
* loss of ecological services

food production

* cropland (produce grain mostly)
* rangeland (livestock)
* oceanic fisheries

big 3 grains

wheat, rice, corn

big 3 meats

beef, pork, chicken

what has allowed for food production to keep up w growing pop?

* machines
* inorganic fertilizers
* build dams for irrigation
* pesticides
* high yield varieties of wheat/rice
* high density in feedlots
* aquatic culture
* GMO

types of agriculture

* industrialized/high input
* plantation
* traditional agriculture: subsistence, intensive

industrialized/high input

* abt 80% world’s food supply produced by industrialized agriculture
* mostly more developed countries
* uses high amts of … fossil fuel energy, water, commercial inorganic fert, pesticide use, monocultures

monocultures

grow only 1 type of crop

industrial food production: livestock

* livestock production in more dev countries is industrialized
* feedlots used to fatten up cattle before slaughter (GH)
* most pigs & chicks live in densely populated pens/cages (get sick so use antibiotics)
* most livestock fed grain grown on cropland
* systems use a lot of energy & water & produce huge amts of animal waste pollutes water

plantation agriculture

* dev countries wear equator → monoculture
* form of industrialized agriculture for cash crops (sugarcane, bananas, coffee)

traditional agriculture

* low in put polyculture
* many farmers in less dev countries use low-input agriculture to grow variety of crops on each plot of land (interplanting)

mostly subsistence farming

* grow enough for fam
* human/animal labor

traditional intensive agriculture

enough for fam plus extra to sell → uses more water, fert, labor

polyvariant cultivation

planting several dif genetic varieties of same crop

agroforestry

crops & tree grown together

* corn grown btwn poplar trees, alley cropping, reduce erosion

sustainable agriculture

* ferts can help restore soil nutrients, but runoff of inorganic fert can cause water pollution

organic ferts

from plant & animal (fresj, manure, or compost materials)

commercial inorganic ferts

active ingredients contain nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium (N,P,K)

industrialized agriculture uses feedlots to grow meat … this leads to …

* production of large amts of nitrogenous wastes
* loss of habitat to grow more crops to feed that animals
* use of antibiotics to keep animals from getting sick
* large amts of water, fert, pesticides being used to grow the grain to feed animals
* crowding of animals like chicken & pigs

most to least energy intensive

1. industrial agriculture
2. traditional intensive
3. subsistence farming

organic fert

* slow release of nutrients
* compost
* manure
* offensive odor
* bulky
* contains micronutrients

inorganic fert

* requires frequent application to the soil
* requires a lot of energy to produce
* ez to apply
* synthetic
* mostly N, P, K

malnutrition

not enough vitamins/minerals → in developing countries

what does malnutrition lead to?

* brain damage
* poor immune system
* early death

kwashiorkor

lack of protein

* children will have swollen abdomens & reddish orange hair

marasmus

lack of protein & total cal

* wrinkled skin, thin, weak bones, higher susceptibility to disease

goiter

enlarged thyroid due to lack of iodine, can lead to deafness

rickets

not enough calcium in bones due to not enough vitamin D

ariboflavinosis

deficiency of riboflavin (B2) skin problems, lips, mouth sores, anemia

pellagra

not enough niacin (B3) skin problems, learning disabilities, death, diet mostly of corn

beriberi

not enough thiamine (B1) loss of appetite, cramps, lethargic, fatigued

ways to reduce childhood deaths from nutrition-related causes

* immunize children
* encourage breast-feeding
* prevent dehydration from diarrhea (sugar/salt in water)
* prevent blindness from vitamin A deficiency
* provide fam planning
* increase education for women how to sterilize

overnutrition

eating too much; too many calories, not enough exercise → can lead to early death

DDT ) dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane

* broad spectrum pesticide → kill many dif types pests
* made bald eagle pop decrease due to thin eggshell
* toxic to cats

herbicide

kill plants

fungicide

kill fungus

rodenticide

kill rodents

miticide

kill mites

what does overuse of pesticides lead to?

resistance by pest → become imitation

super pests

eat many types of plants

* few natural predators
* genetically resistant to many pesticides
* short gen time

ways of reducing exposure to pesticides

* grow ur food using organic methods
* buy organic food
* wash/scrub all fresh foods, vegs
* eat less or no meat
* trim fat from meat

1st gen pesticides

in 1600s, from plants

2nd gen pesticides

1939, synthetic, made in lab

what can GE plants w/stand

herbicides so weeds die but plant w resistance gene survives

other ways to control pests

* fool the pest thru cultivation practices → rotating crops, adjusting planting times
* provide homes for pest enemies by using polyculture
* implant genetic resistance (GM)
* bring in natural enemies
* use pheromone to lure pests into traps
* use hormones to disrupt life cycles
* scald them (spray hot water)
* biological control

IPM (integrated pest management)

* look @ crops & pests as a system
* uses combo biological, cultivation, chem approaches
* large vacuums
* a little insecticides as last resort
* no broad spectrum pesticides
* protect predators of pest species

negative aspects of IPM

* not enough experts
* initial costs are high
* situation specific
* not fast acting

super pests develop by the overuse of pesticides. the pest can become \[ \] to a chemical by having a beneficial \[ \] mutation. this is then passed down to its \[ \] and the pesticides is not longer effective at controlling the pest

resistant, mutation, offspring

what organisms provide natural pest control?

organisms found in nature

pest

any species plant, animal, insects that compete w us for food or resources

pesticides

chems that kill/repel pests (vary in persistence)

persistence

amt of time a chem remains deadly in enviros

broad spectrum agents

effective against many species

* ex: DDT

narrow spectrum agents

more selective

especially dangerous to children

endocrine, nervous system, immune system disorders

pest management advantages

* save lives
* increase food supplies
* profitable to use
* work fast
* safe if used properly

pest management disadvantages

* promote genetic resistance
* kill natural pest enemies
* pollute enviro
* can harm wildlife & ppl
* create new pest species

ideal pesticide

kill only target pest

* not cause genetic resistance in target organism
* disappear/break down into harmless chem after foing its job
* be more cost-effective than going nothing

where do most pesticides go?

into air, water, non target organisms, humans/wildlife

pesticide protection laws in USA

EPA, Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food & Drug Administration (FDA) regulate sales of pesticides under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide & Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)

where are harmful pesticides made to be exported to other countries?

USA

1996 Food quality protection act (FQPA)

directs secretary of agriculture to collect pesticide residue data on commodities, most frequently consumed by infants / pop