Basics of Agriculture and Crop Science

Agriculture – the science and art of cultivating useful plants and raising livestock to meet human
needs. It is concerned with plant and animal production for food and fiber, the provision for
agricultural supplies and services and the processing, marketing, and distribution of agricultural
products.
WORLD POPULATION AND LAND UTILIZATION
2019 world population ------------------------- 7.7 Billion
World’s total land area ------------------------- 150M km2 –
Arable land ------------------------- 10% of the total area
Permanent crops ------------------------- 1%
Meadows and pastures ------------------------- 24%
Forest and woodland ------------------------- 31%
No vegetation such as ------------------------- 34%
urban area, Antarctica,
deserts, mines
PHILIPPINE POPULATION, FOOD SUPPLY AND AGRICULTURE
2019 Philippine population – 108.61M
Agricultural land – about 32% of the total land area
In 2008, agriculture accounted for 18% of the gross domestic product (GDP)
The increase in food supply is about 2% per year, just enough to keep up with population increase.
About 20% of this increase is due to the expansion of new production areas; 80% is due to technological
advances in production like improved irrigation, crop protection, better cultivars, improved crop
nutrition, post-harvest handling, etc.
PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE
Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act (AFMA) or Republic Act 8435, mandated the
modernization of the country’s agriculture sector, signed into law in 1997
THE CONCEPT OF CROP SCIENCE
Crop Science is concerned with the observation and classification of knowledge concerning
economically cultivated crops and the establishment of verifiable principles regarding their
growth, development, and reproduction to derive optimum benefit from them.
Divided into the following areas:
Agronomy – principles and practices of managing field crops and soils
Horticulture – gardens and plants within an enclosure, which includes
a. Olericulture (vegetables)
b. Pomology (fruits)
c. Floriculture (flowers)
d. Nursery management
e. Landscape gardening
CROP PRODUCTION AS A SCIENCE, ART, AND BUSINESS
It is a science is based on the basic sciences of chemistry, mathematics, physics, and breeding and
genetics.
It is an art requires skills to produce crops even with little or no scientific training.
It is a business because plants are grown not simply to satisfy the needs of man but to realize
some profit.
Agricultural research in the Philippines is carried out in schools and research centers in both private
and public sectors. These are:
A. State colleges and universities offering degree programs in agriculture and related fields
B. Department of Agriculture research networks
C. National commodity research centers
Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice)
National Tobacco Administration (NTA)
Fiber Industry Development Authority (FIDA)
Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA)
Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA)
Philippine Root Crops Research and Training Center (PRCRTC)
National Abaca Research Center (NARC)
Northern Philippines Root Crops Research and Training Center (NPRCRTC)
D. Specialized discipline-oriented research centers
Institute of Plant Breeding (IPB)
National Crop Protection Center (NCPC)
National Plant Genetic Resource Laboratory (NPGRL)
National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (BIOTECH)
Postharvest Horticulture Training and Research Center (PHTRC)
E. Private seed companies
Syngenta
East West
Pioneer
Monsanto
Allied Botanicals
The following are major international research organizations mandated to do research and
development in crop species important to food and agriculture:
International Rice Research Institute, Philippines (IRRI)
International Center for Semi-Arid Tropics, India (ICRISAT)
Centro Internacional de Mejoramiente de Maize y Trigo, Mexico (CIMMYT)
International Institute for Tropical Agriculture, Nigeria (IITA)
Centro Internacional de Patatas, Peru (CIP)
Centro de International de Agricultural Tropical, Colombia (CIAT)
International Center for Agricultural Research for Dry Areas, Syria (ICARDA)
International Center for Research on Agroforestry, Kenya (ICRAF)
Asian Vegetable Research and Development Center, Taiwan (AVRDC)
Biodiversity International – for International Plant Genetic Resources Institute, Italy