HUG Vocab Unit 5

Von Thunen Model

An agricultural land-use theory developed by Johann Heinrich von Thunen that explains how distance from a central market affects land value, transportation costs, and the type of agriculture practiced

Vertical Integration

A business strategy where one company controls multiple, or all, stages of production and distribution for a single product, from raw materials to final retail

Subsistance Agriculture

A largely developing - world (LDC) farming system where crops and livestock are produced primarily for direct consumption by the farmer, with little to no surplus sold for profit

Shifting Cultivation

A subsistence farming method where farmers clear plots of land, grow crops for a few years until nutrients decrease, and abandon the plot to a new one. AKA Slash-and-burn

Second Agricultural Revolution

A period of technological advancement in western Europe (coinciding with industrial revolution) that increased food production through innovations (like crop isolation, mechanization, and selective breeding)

Ranching

A type of extensive commercial agriculture involving raising livestock on large tracts of land (often in semi-arid regions unsuitable for crops) where animals roam freely but farmers settle

Plantation Agriculture

A form of commercial agriculture specializing in one or two cash-crops on large, labor intensive estates (typically located in tropical/subtropical LDCS)

Mixed crop/livestock system

A farm that integrates growing crops and raising animals, creating a sustainable cycle where crop residue feeds animals and animal manure fertilizes crops, diversifying income and improving resource efficiency

Market Gardening

Small-scale, commercial, and intensive form of agriculture specializing in fresh products sold to local consumers

Intensive Agriculture

A farming system designed to maximize crop or livestock yield per unit of land through high inputs of labor, capital, fertilizer, and technology

Green Revolution

Introduced high-yield seed, chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and modern irrigation to developing nations (1940s - 1960s)

Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)

A plant, animal, or micro organism whose genetic material has been altered using engineering techniques, primarily to enhance desirable traits

Food Insecurity

The limited or uncertain, consistent access to enough safe, nutritious food (linked to povery and spatial disparities)

First Agricultural Revolution

Marked the transition from nomadic hunting and gathering to sedentary farming (~10,000 - 12,000)

Extensive Agriculture

An agricultural system characterized by low inputs of labor, capitol, and machinery relative to the large, expansive land area being cultivated or grazed

Domestication

The process of adapting wild plants and animals for human use, involving genetic and behavioral modifications

Commodity Chain

A linked, global system of processes — including resource extraction, production, manufacturing, marketing, and distribution

Commercial Agriculture

Large-scale production of crops and livestock for sale off the farm, primarily for profit rather than local consumption

Agribusiness

The industrialization of agriculture defined as the commercial systems of food production, processing, distribution, and marketing, often controlled by large corperations