food and energy

food security

everyone in a given area has access to enough nutritious food to have an active healthy life

food insecurity

living with chronic hunger and malnutrition that limit ability to lead a healthy and active life

chronic undernutrition

cannot grow or buy enough food to meet energy needs

chronic malnutrition

forced to exists on a low protein diet, high carbohydrates, not enough nutrients

world hunger stats

1/10 (800 million) people are locked in a malnutrition-poverty cycle, 2 billion people suffer from lack of micronutrients (vitamin A, zinc, iron, iodine)

overnutrition

2.4 billion people face health problems related to overeating, 74% of americans over 20 are obese and 20% of americans under 20 are also

plants and animals that feed the world

world has around 30,000 edible plants, 12 plant and 5 animal species supply about 75% of the worlds food, wheat rice potatoes and corn are the big four, at least ½ of people survive on mainly rice wheat and corn

industrialized (high input) agriculture

use large amounts of fossil fuel, pesticides, water, fertilizer, and time. produce huge quantities of monoculture crops or livestock, produces 80% of worlds food on 25% of cropland, each US farmer feeds 166 people

plantation agriculture

MDCs buy land in LDCs and hire people to produce cash crops like bananas, coffee, sugarcane, and palm oil to export

traditional agriculture

provides 20% of crops on 75% of cultivated land

traditional subsidence ag. - produces enough for one family, if surplus its sold or put aside for hard times, uses human and draft animals labor, shifting cultivation or draft animal herding

traditional intensive ag. - increased human and draft animal input, more input of water and fertilizer, produces higher yield, surplus sold for income

interplanting

planting several crops on the same plot of land

polyvarietal cultivation

several varieties of the same crop are planted (avoid disease)

intercropping

growing two or more different crops at the same time

agroforestry

growing food crops and trees together

polyculture

planting different plants that mature at various times, higher yields than monocultures

first green revolution

1950-1970 in MDCs most of increase in global food production has resulted in increased yields per unit ares. form developing and planting monocultures of selectively bred or genetically modified varieties, using large amounts of fertilizers pesticides and water, increasing frequency and intensity of cropping

second green revolution

since 1967, in some developing countires, fast growing strains for sub-tropical regions with increased yields, 2-3 crops per year

pro and con of ag. revolution

producing more food on less land protects habitat and therefore biodiversity (genetic engineering, fertility of soil, ample water, use of machinery and fossil fuels to pump water and produce/apply fertilizer), con- at some point there is a limit on output from the same amount of land (soil erosion, loss of fertility form overcropping, depletion of ground water, salination from ground water, pest genetic resistence