everything is straight from the aphg textbook

Unit 5

Agricultural and Rural Land-Use Patterns and Processes

Introduction- 

transhumance

Arid climate

Add examples of large corporate farms (tyson foods, ect) 

ANSWER TOPIC QUESTION FOR EVERY SECTION!      

Change in agriculture over decades:

• Smaller family farms

• More large corporate farms

• More machinery

• More chemicals

• Expanded farmland from things that used to be forests, wetlands, ect.

• GMOs

• Global supply chains (can go farther distances, faster, ect.)

• Improvements in transportation + infrastructure

• Growth of agribusiness (farms as corporations)

• Globalization of agriculture

Complex system that connects producers and consumers across the world (globally) due to 

• advances in biotech

• mechanization

• transportation

• food preservation

Distance between producers and consumers can be farther bc of 

• Improvements in agricultural technology

• advances in transportation

• Increased globalized economy 

Chapter 11- origins, patterns, and settlements of agriculture

5.1- intro to agriculture

See flashcards

5.2- settlement patterns and survey methods

Rural Survey Methods: (defining boundaries of land ownership)

1. Metes and bounds (in the past)

Utilization of landmarks and physical features to establish boundary lines

• Short distances

• Results in irregular shaped plots of land

(people would just go mark their own land “from that mountain to the river is mine”)

• Not practical anymore, used to be in Great Britain and North America- now, rarely used (sometimes in the Middle East)

2. (French) Long Lot (still used along rivers)

Long strips of land that start at a river or lake with the intention of providing all landowners with equal access to the resources (soil and water) and transportation. 

(France, Spain, North America, ect.)

In North America, Quebec and Louisiana

3. Township and range (aka Public Land Survey System) (currently used)

• Made by thomas Jefferson

Started in 1785 after U.S. switched to surveying rather than landscape features

Rectangles and grid system

• townships- area 6mi x 6mi

• Keeps track of land sales and purchases

• Utilizes a uniform survey method 

Section- each square mile- consisted of 640 acres

Rural Settlement Patterns: (shapes)

1. Clustered- (aka nucleated)

• Farmland and pastures surround settlements and towns

• Share resources and community

• Have to walk to farmland

survey method: Metes & Bounds (have to agree between themselves, could lead to fights)

Throughout European history, rural residents lived in groups of homes in close proximity to one another.

2. Dispersed- 

Used right now in North America

Settlements are isolated and dispersed over the land area

U.S. Government promoted Westward Expansion by giving farmers land (usually 160 acres) if they agreed to live and farm on it.

Survey method: township & range

~Encourages self-sufficiency but makes shared things (like schools) hard~

3. Linear- 

Settlement organized along a line- transportation system, or physical feature like a river/coast 

(today, more demand for along a transportation route)

Survey method: long lots

5.3- agricultural origins and diffusions

First (neolithic/stone age) Agricultural Revolution- origin of farming (marked by domesticationꜜ of plants and animals- mostly was subsistence farming at the time) 

Domestication- the deliberate effort to grow plants and raise animals, making plants and animals adapt to human demands

• Animal domestication 

First was probably hunters in Central Asia- dogs and horses

Then SW Asia- goats, pigs, sheep, cattle 

Then cats, horses, camels, donkeys, llamas, ect.

• Plant domestication

Probably after animal domestication

First was vegetative planting (using parts of existing plants to grow more)

Then seeds

Hearth- the geographic origin of a trait, characteristic, innovation, or other concept. It is where something is “born”

Agricultural hearth- the separate location in which groups of people began to domesticate plants and animals

agricultural hearths

1. Southwest asia (fertile crescent in middle east) - first hearth

(Middle east) east coast of mediterranean sea, along tigris and euphrates, to persian gulf.

2. Southeast asia (includes islands like philippines, malaysia, thailand, indonesia)

3. South asia (indus valley (north of india)- also called fertile crescent)

4. East asia (incl. China, like wei-huang river valley)

5. Sub-saharan africa (west africa +  nile river valley (E Africa))

6. Mesoamerica [central america (guatemala, el salvador, nicaragua) + andean highlands (in ecuador, peru, chile)]

more hearths around rivers: 

• Chang Jiang (Yangtze) and (Wei) Huang He (yellow) river valleys in East Asia/China

• Nile valley in NE Africa

• Ganges valley in South Asia

first communities made were usually along rivers- source of water + drinking, transportation, defense, source of food (fish)

(flooding of rivers) also contributed to soil fertility, making agriculture more productive- people could focus on other tasks like building, military, ect. advancing all areas of human life.

Commonalities of agricultural hearths:

• Fertile soil in river valleys

• availability of water

• Moderate climate

• Skilled residence

Independent inventions- when a trait has many cultural hearths; crops and animals are domesticated in multiple regions but there was no interaction between the regions. (ex: wheat was domesticated in SW, E, and S Asia, but all did it independently without interacting with each other, they each had the idea themselves.)

(civilization started around the agricultural hearts- they became the first urban centers, turned into civilizations, societies and powerful states. increased trade, large empires, and increased other specialized jobs.

Diffusion of agriculture

1. Contagious diffusion

Agriculture first diffused to the immediate surrounding areas of the hearths through close contact and proximity between farmers

Ex: agriculture and animal domestication originated in Fertile Crescent then diffused through Turkey into Eastern Europe

2. Immigration and migration (relocation diffusion)

As people migrate, they bring food, ingredients, seeds, and animals with them.

• Stimulus diffusion: as people moved into new locations, seeds may not be as prosperous due to different physical conditions → resulting in the adaptation of farming methods/crops, using the agricultural knowledge the farmer had previously acquired (the idea had diffused and stayed but adapted)

3. Trade routes

Ex: the silk road: over 4,000 miles of trade routes that connected China with Europe with a variety of different people interacting. Traded silk, rice, and more. 

→ resulted in the spread of plants and animals throughout East Asia, South Asia, Middle East, Africa, and Europe

Columbian exchange- (after columbus in 1492)

Global movements of plants and animals between Afro-Eurasia and the Americas. (mainly caribbean)

Examples:

Coffee from east africa and bananas and sugar cane from New Guinea thrive in America today.

Potatoes from NW South America and maize from Mexico are grown in Europe, Asia, and Africa.

Tobacco and sugar are now new in Europe

Also with animals and diseases

Turkey- found in Americas, taken to Europe

Smallpox, influenza, malaria, and measles came from the eastern hemisphere to western hemisphere. 

(after that, contagious diffusion makes things further spread in the new places)

Chapter 12- the second and third agricultural revolutions

5.4- the second agricultural revolution 

Result: 

1. increased food supply (especially to countries part of global trade networks) and more people got access to a greater variety of food → higher life expectancy

2. Fewer but larger, more productive farms, and less farmers/farm laborers. → More people in urban areas than rural (for first time in U.S. history)

• Began in 1700s

• “Used advances of the Industrial Revolution to increase food supplies and support population growth”

Involved mechanization of agricultural production, advances in transportation (ex: could transport food over long distances, so the farming could be far away from markets), and more.

New innovations increased yields, especially in Europe and the U.S.

Examples:

• iron/steel plow

• Mechanized seed drilling

• mccormick reaper/harvester

• Grain elevator

• barbed wire

• Mixed nitrogen and nitric acid fertilizer

New techniques also increased yields 

• Crop rotation- planning different crops (in a specific sequence/order/timeline) on the same plot of land, to restore nutrients back into the soil. (ex: grains extract nitrogen from the soil, then alfalfa adds nitrogen back to the soil.)

• Irrigation- applying controlled amounts of water to crops using human-made devices (canals, pipes, sprinkler systems) instead of just rainfall.

Enclosure acts- Laws made by the British government allowing people to purchase and enclose land for their own use. -Divided up common land that was shared by farmers into individual plots. 

result: allowed for larger farms, more efficient production, and commercial farming.

But, many farmers were forced off their land and lost their traditional way of life- also less need for farm laborers, so people looked for jobs in the industrial/manufacturing sector, like factories, instead.

• Most of these factory jobs were in urban areas → created big migration of people from rural to urban areas

5.5- the green revolution

• Mid 20th century (main part of third agricultural revolution)

Advances in plant biology

Dr. Norman Borlaugh- father of green revolution

Developed higher yielding, more disease resistant, and faster growing crops- specifically worked on wheat in Mexico.

Concerns- increased use of chemical fertilizer & pesticides.

Hybridization- breeding two plants to create one seed with both plant’s characteristics.

(ex: long grain rice from Indonesia + dense grain short rice from Taiwan = longer and denser rice grain introduced in rest of Asia.)

Green revolution also introduced more machinery into developing countries (tractors, tillers, broadcast seeders, grain carts, ect.) 

GMOs (genetically modified organisms)- humans changing DNA of a seed through engineering -to increase yields, resist diseases, and withstand chemicals used to kill pests/weeds. 

Positive impacts-

Higher yields (on the same amount of land)

• Countries like India and Mexico moved from importers to exporters (for wheat)

• Reduced hunger, lowered death rates, and grew populations

Money for research and business

Lower food prices

Negative impacts- 

Environmental damages 

• pollution due to increased use of pesticides & fertilizers → runoff in water led to polluted water, hurt ecosystems, health issues 

• soil erosion (b/c of intensive use of land)

• fossil fuels from machinery increased pollution

Impact on gender roles

• Traditionally, much of the farming labor was done by women, but men dominated socially and when the green revolution technologies came, the men were educated on these new methods and benefited, while the women were excluded. (continued on 5.12)

Economic changes

• Machinery, seeds, fertilizers and pesticides cost increased

• Farming tech heavily relied on investments (mostly from private corporations), but the corporations began to stop investing.

• Because of the migration from rural to urban, and these core wealthy areas got advantages over the poor outer areas.

Struggle in Africa

• Africa did not benefit from the Green Revolution for many reasons:

  • Diverse climate and soil

  • Harsh environmental conditions

  • Lack of well developed infrastructure → cost of investment in research, development, and transportation was too high.

  • Africa's staple crops (sorghum, millet, cassava, yams, cowpeas, peanuts) were not target research audiences for hybridization. 

Africa grew the most during the Green Revolution, but hunger remained a problem since the Green Revolution was not effective there. 

Chapter 13- spatial arrangement of agriculture

5.6- agricultural production regions

examples of intensive farming

• Paddy rice farming in S, SE, and E Asia is labor intensive. (terraced fields makes using machinery difficult)

• Truck farming (Cali, Teas, Florida, and near large cities) is capital intensive b/c uses expensive machinery and more. Also labor intensive because use low-pay migrant workers to harvest (large scale farms)

• Factory farming- capital intensive raising of livestock where animals  are in close quarters and bred and fed in a controlled environment. (animals move like a conveyor belt)

• Aquaculture (aquafarming)- intensive farming. Fish,shellfish and water plants are raised in netted areas in the sea, tanks, or more.  

extensive examples include shifting cultivation, pastoral nomadism/nomadic herding, ranching 

Lots of extensive farming has turned into intensive bc of increased demand for food (higher population) and global competition. (now, people use land continuously without fallow period, and use irrigation, chemical fertilizers, GMOs, ect.) 

Double cropping- planting + harvesting a crop two (or three) times a year on the same field.

intercropping/multicropping- two or more crops grow simultaneously on the same field.

monocropping/monoculture- (the opposite) - only growing one type of crop at a time on a piece of land. (like plantations)

Examples:

World dependent on India for Rice

• Russia- wheat

• Sri- lanka- tea

• (In the past) Iraq- dates

• U.S.- corn

• Iran- saffron

Pros:

• Maximized efficiency 

• Lower per-unit cost of production

• Higher yield

• More profit

Cons:

• Soil depletion

• Increased reliance on chemicals

• Increased risk since all of investments are in and depending on this one crop.

Increased demand for meat (50% higher between 1998 and 2018) results in feedlots- confined spaces where cattle have limited movement. (aka CAFOs- concentrated animal feeding operations) -maximizes space, makes cattle bigger bc of limited movement → maximizes profit.

Some things combine intensive + extensive, ex: raising cattle in wyoming- roam and feed on grass for months which is extensive, then intensive phase where they are transported to fatten quickly before processed for meat.

5.7- spatial organization of agriculture

Agribusiness- farms run as corporations - Large- Scale Production.

Various steps:

• Research and development

• Processing and production

• Transportation

• Marketing

• Retail (sale) of agricultural goods

(replacing small family farms)

More cost effective than family owned, cheaper for us. Higher yields than family-owned, so still make more money.

Owned by:

 Transnational corporations- operate in many countries

• Commercial (intention is making a profit)

• Use lots of machinery

• Use lots of biotech (GMOs) and chemicals

Home scale vs agribusiness scale examples:

1. Growing crops in a backyard garden vs owning thousands of acres worked by many employees

2. selling at local market vs selling to wholesale distributors who ship it regional + globally

3. Growing diff types to see which grows best vs investing thousands in research and development of new seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides

Vertical integration- Large corporate farms own  other businesses that are involved in the steps of producing a particular product. This gives the large farm more control + greater profits.

Ex: they might own a research and development company that improves seeds, a transporting  company that transports farm products, a processing factory, and a wholesaler that distributes the food to stores. 

Ex: Tyson Foods owns the farms where they raise the animals, then own the processing plants where they slaughter, process, and package the meat products.

Economies of scale- increase in efficiency to lower per-unit production cost. (usually occurs with larger farming operations, but could happen at any scale)

Ex: someone buys more land, but not more machinery, just uses the already existing machinery more efficiently- this will increase the earning without increasing the expenses too much, and the cost per unit will decrease, and profit increase.

Another example, at a smaller farm: increasing level of fertilization and irrigation- increases expenses by 10%, but yields increase by 25%, so cost per unit decreases, and profits increase.

Disappearance of small family farms because they can’t compete with the cheaper cots of the larger farms. They also cannot afford the newest tech but need to get it to compete in the global market. 

Commodity chain- process by corporations to gather resources, turn them into goods, and transport to consumers.

template commodity chain: (simplified)

planting (using seeds, fertilizers, water) → growing (fertile land and moisture) → harvesting (dried and stored until processing) → processing (packaged or used to create other products) → marketing (sold for food, animals, ect.)

Additionally includes financial institutions (banks), transportation companies, distributors, and governments.

Carrying capacity- total number of people farmers can support given the available resources. - risen a lot over the years. 

ex: in 1962, avg. U.S. farmers fed ~26 people. Today, it’s 166 people!

Cool chains- transportation networks that keep food cool throughout the trip. (now perishables can travel long distances for a low cost)

5.8- von thunen model 

Location theory- why people choose certain locations for economic activity (factories, stores, restaurants, or agriculture)

Johann Von thunen- North German farmer and economist

Published “an isolated state” in 1828

Von thunen model- economic model that gives a pattern for the types of products farmers would produce at different positions relative to the market. 

farmers make this decision based on:

• transportation cost

• land cost

• Intensity of land use

• Perishability of the product

His assumptions:

• farming = economic activity

• Farmers in business to make profit 

• 1 market where farmers sold products

• 1 transportation system

• farmers paid for transportation, which was different with distance

• market was in isotropic plain- flat with similar fertility + climate throughout

• area beyond market and farmland was wilderness

(center = market)

First circle= horticulture (dairy farming + market gardening)

Needs to be close to marked because perishability- gets spoiled easily

Perishability makes transport difficult

Intensive farming because of the high value + price of land near the market.

(not really anymore because of improvements in transportation, refrigeration, trucks, ect.)

Second= forests

Timber

Not perishable, but close to the market because transportation is difficult , heavy and expensive.

Firewood was an essential good in the 1800s (building fires for cooking, heating homes, building materials)

Third= grain + cereal crops

perishability= less perishable

transportation= not fragile, bulky, or heavy

Easier transportation to market, doesn’t need to be close to market

Extensive farming becomes profitable due to cost of land (low, because far from market)

Fourth= livestock ranching

perishability= not perishable while alive :)

transportation= cheap because would just walk to market

Land is less desirable because far from market + cheaper → ranchers can rent/buy large quantities of animals.

Bid- Rent Theory: The value of the land is influenced by its relationship to the market.

Graph: bid-price curve/bid-rent curve- determines starting position for each land use relative to the market, and where each land use would end 

• Each line on the graph shows farmers’ willingness to pay for land at various distances from the market. (willing to pay more for close land and less for far land)

• Free market-economy: where supply and demand decide who gets what land, instead of government policy. The farmer with greatest profit will pay most at each location

Where the two uppermost lines intersect show the end of one zone and start of the other

The closer land is to the market/transportation route, the more expensive

-so you can only buy a small amount of land, farming needs to be intensive to make a profit.

The farther land is to the market/transportation route, the cheaper

-so you can buy more land, farming is extensive.

shortcomings/limitations of his theory

Mainly, it was limited to his time and location

• Assumed isotropic plain- but:

Ex: a river runs through it, making transportation easier → zones would then be along the river

Some places may also have better climates or soil. 

• comparative advantage: naturally occurring beneficial conditions (advantages that exist naturally in a environment, which can contribute to its economic success (ex: fertile land, climate)

• Now: there isn’t just one central market, there are multiple markets

• Now: Food preservation techniques (tin cans, refrigeration) 

• refrigeration in trucks- goods can go longer distances

• Improved transportation infrastructure! - complex transportation like ships, air routes, ect. (ex: NYC flowers (perishable) are actually grown in south america, and flown there) 

• wood is no longer used as a major source of heating, cooking and building (U.S. still uses wood but not most of the world.)

5.9- the global system of agriculture 

Supply chains- all the steps required to get a product/service to customers.

(there can be thousands of miles between producers and consumers- ex: seeds could be developed in the UK, sent to Ghana where it’s grown and harvested, then sent to China where its turned into the final product and sent to the U.S. to sell.)

regional interdependence

Low- latitude countries with tropical climates (many of which are periphery/semi-periphery) produce crops like coffee, tea, bananas, and pineapples, and sell them to core countries. 

These are luxury crops- not necessary to human survival but have a high profit margin. (ex: cocoa beans processed into chocolate, grown on large plantations (that practice monoculture) that are controlled by transnational corporations - these corporations provide capital to run the plantations. 

Problems for periphery and semi periphery countries (producers):

• Farmers may not be able to afford their own luxury crops

• As the supply of locally grown food decreases, prices for local consumers increase.

• For countries that are dependent on one thing they export to core countries, if that thing is not in demand anymore then they become vulnerable. 

• Competition may cause farmers to do environmentally damaging things (chemicals, soil erosion, ect.)

_____

The exchange of food around the world is dependent on -political systems, -strong infrastructure, and -trade policies

Connections between Europe and the rest of the world are because of colonization.

Relationships between core countries + semi periphery and periphery countries still resemble colonialism.

Neocolonialism- the use of economic, political, and social pressures to control former colonies

(describes current state of global food distribution)

(ex: while growing/processing coffee beans is expensive, the profit margin in selling coffee drinks is very high. But most of the money stays with the transnational corporations in wealthy countries and little goes back to the producers.)

 Fair trade movement- promotes higher incomes for producers +more sustainable farming practices.

Principles:

• direct trade between producers and consumers so that producers get more money (no intermediate step)

• fair price paid to farmers by importers, and workers paid a fair price. 

• good conditions for laborers (safe working environment, no child labor)

• environmental sustainability (no GMOs, safe practices for the environment)

• respect for local culture 

Subsides- financial support that governments provide to farmers

Ex: they subsidize rice in Japan, wheat and corn in the U.S. and soybean in China.

Do this to:

• ensure dependable food supply

• Help farmers by increasing agricultural exports

• help consumers by reducing food costs (by highering supply)

Infrastructure- roads, bridges, ect, that help transportation/exports of agricultural products. Governments subsidize infrastructure as well [ex: U.S gov indirectly subsidizes things from the midwest by spending money on the Mississippi river to be used for exporting/transportation products like corn, soybean, ect.]

This makes the products go into the market at a lower price (because water transportation is cheap,) so ex: people from mexico can purchase it at a lower price from the U.S. than from mexico- this benefits the people of Mexico ,but hurts the farmers of Mexico

Chapter 14- challenges and consequences of agriculture

5.10- consequences of agricultural practices

Environmental Issues:

Environmental issues rose when commercial overtook subsistence. 

Land cover change: study of how land is used and impact of changing land use:

Pollution- increased use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides polluted air, water, and land. + health issues. 

Desertification- formerly fertile lands become infertile (ex: deforestation or overgrazing can increase wind erosion, losing the topsoil.)

Soil salinization- salt from water remains in the soil. (decreases plants ability to absorb water and nutrients- lowers yields + makes soil useless.)

Efforts- governments have made limits on chemicals, and protected zones are created where development is not allowed, to preserve the land. (ex: “save the rainforest” in 1980s)

Humans Altering landscape:

Terrace farming- 

Typically practiced by subsistence farmers in mountainous areas (common in China and India, with rice.)

Steps are built into the sides of hills/mountain sides in order to cultivate water-intensive crops like rice.

During rainfall, the water floods through the steps without pulling out the plants or causing soil erosion.

Allows land to be cultivated that would otherwise be non-arable.

Negative when not carefully maintained → leads to mudslides

Irrigation

when rainfall is not enough, applying controlled amounts of water from other sources [sprinkler systems, dams, canals, pipes, aquifers, (underground reserves of water that are piped to the fields - could be overused) ect.]

Used a lot in California- turns dry central + southern regions into farmland

Dams can destroy river ecosystems and displace people from their land.

center-pivot irrigation- pivot is rotated around the center, giving specific amounts of water (or pesticides/fertilizer) to the field. Creates circular pattern. (used with large-scale commercial farming.)

Negative effects/problems:

• Disrupt natural drainage of water

• Reduce normal regeneration of soil caused by natural flooding

• Reduce amount of surface water in rivers/lakes

• Overwatering can lead to chemical-contaminated water seeping into rivers + underground systems.

history/example problem:

1960s, soviets diverted water from the aral sea to incr. cotton production. aral sea (once 4th largest lake global) reduced to 10% by 1997. (remaining water was saline)

Draining wetlands

Wetland: (low-lying) area of land that is covered by water (swamps, marshes, and bogs)

Drained and converted to arable land.

Results in loss of biodiversity and other environmental issues

• Loss of habitat for fish, mammals, ect

• Increases storm and flood damage (b/c during floods, wetlands hold water then slowly release)

Deforestation

Occurs today mostly in SE Asia, Africa, and Amazon rainforest

Leads to soil erosion, decreased rainfall, lower temps, desertification, and increase in CO2

Shifting cultivation

Practiced in periphery and semi- periphery countries in South America, C and W Africa, and SE Asia.

Farmers cultivate the land until the soil becomes infertile, wasted.

It is overused constantly without rest and without switching crops + no fallow period → until loses hydration and land is depleted, then move somewhere else. 

Ex: on the great plains/prairies of the U.S, during a period known as the dust bowl, 35 million acres of arable land became useless.

Slash and burn agriculture (type of shifting cultivation that permanently alters the landscape.)

Happens a lot in the Amazon.

Cutting and burning forests in order to create fields for cultivation- ash from burning gives nutrients + fertilizes crops

Results in deforestation and soil erosion. 

Half of the world’s topsoil has been lost in the past 150 years.

Pastoral nomadism

Practiced in semi-arid (dry, hot) and arid climates, subsistence farming. Everywhere, but most common in Asia and Africa.

Herders move animals seasonally to find grass to graze.

Results in soil erosion and desertification (formerly fertile lands become infertile)

Typically as a result of droughts + overgrazing

Societal effects of agriculture

Demand for meat- 

• About 35% of crops get fed to livestock, so there are les crops available for human consumption. 

Environmental effects of increased meat:

•  large amounts of fresh water they need

•  disposal of their waste.

• Increased animal waste that could have bacteria that contaminates water, soil, and causes illness.

Increased consumption for processed food is affecting people's  health. (High BP, Cholesterol, obesity, ect.)

Role of women- 

In semi-periphery and periphery countries, women play important role in agriculture. (helped into the fields.)

Now, the men in these areas have accepted more jobs in urban centers and left the farm, and women are left to manage the farm. → Feminization of agriculture 

International aid agencies have given more education, training, and financial assistance in agriculture to women. 

Economics

Agriculture is part of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of countries-

 it is a small percent of U.S. and Canada’s GDPs, but since their GDPs are very big (over $22 trillion), the value of agriculture is over $200 billion

Examples:

because of improvements in tech, the percentage of labor in the U.S. and Canada is much lower than Afghanistan and Ghana, which doesn’t have as much tech. 

5.11- challenges of contemporary agriculture

answer to this question is in this section- how do consumers influence agricultural practices?

GMOs (genetically modified organisms)- part of biotech- plants scientists have modified by putting genes of one species into the DNA of another one (to make food more nutritious, resistant to weather or pests, and less spoiled.) - results in farmers reducing chemical use to control disease,weeds, and pests.

history: produced in 1970s, grown popular in 1990s.

 The U.S, Brazil and Argentina use lots of GMOs. 

but many countries (in Europe) restricted them because:

• too expensive for poor farmers and new seeds often need to be bought every yr.

• GMO seeds resistant to pests and herbicides may result in more superpests or superweeds.

• Potential (not proven) health risks to consumers

aquaculture/aquafarming- (talked about in 5.6- in general, the practice of raising fish + sea things) 

China and SE Asia have been using it for a while, but it's rising in other places. 

Blue Revolution- (what practicing aquaculture is referred to) - now the fastest growing form of food production in the world. (responsible for 50% of the world’s seafood.)

Problems with aquaculture:

• high fish density increases spread of diseases + gives diseases to nearby wild (in open-pen system, the cages/net is on the seafloor so fishes can somewhat interact with the wild surroundings) 

• chemicals/antibiotics to counter the diseases can hurt the ecosystem around it.

• fish can escape pens and breed/compete with fish nearby

• excess feed + fish waste can make dangerous levels of organic matter in nearby bodies of water

Social concerns:

• can challenge traditional fishers and lead to conflict between groups of fishers

• owners of the aquaculture operations may pay workers low wages/bad working conditions, and may hurt the environment 

• fish from these farms may have high levels of pesticides and harm humans.

Environmental issues of agriculture: (elaborated, talked about in other sections as well.)

chemicals from pesticides and fertilizers → contaminates water and growth of toxic algae that uses the oxygen in the water, therefore killing fish and other sea life. 

• antibiotics given to livestock (to prevent disease and incr growth) may create superbugs that could be transferred to and hurt us.

• fossil fuels from machinery 

• water may be wasted by farmers (overwatering, leaks in irrigation systems, growing crops in hot, dry places that require lots of water, ect.)  almost 70% of freshwater is used for agriculture. 

• Loss of biodiversity (bc of monoculture and farmers abandoning old varieties of crops for new improved ones)

• When theres too many animals or too little land,  animals overgraze → makes the vegetation disappear (won't come back even after the animals leave) → soil erosion

Happening a lot in Africa, and in pastoral nomadism practices b/c these people have access to less land (b/c now not that much land is just public, or now used for housing, farming, mining, petrol, ect.)

organic foods- crops are non-GMO and produced without chemical pesticides + fertilizers. animals have to be fed 100% organic feed and no antibiotics/hormones.

rising as consumers believe it to be more healthy

pros: 

More labor intensive so more jobs 

Cons:

More expensive

Need more land to get same quantity

Produce more greenhouse gasses

Can still use naturally-occuring chemicals

value-added crops- crops consumers are willing to pay more for b/c of special qualities or they are difficult to acquire:

• organic foods

• rare subtropical plants (passion fruit, cherimoya, longan, star fruit)

• grass-fed beef and free-range chickens/eggs

Farmers try this when their profits decline

value-added farming- turning their crops into a higher value product instead of just selling as is. Ex: grapes into wine, strawberries and other fruit into jam, tomato/pepper into salsa. 

Dairy farmings do this by making + selling their own ice cream or cheese.

local-food movement- consumers seek out food produced nearby (advocates for this are called locavores.) 

• supports local farmers

• Reduces fossil fuels from transportation

(high price)

Starting ~1990s, farmers markets became more popular. 

urban farming- production of farm goods within an urban area so you can provide locally grown food. 

• reduced distance between producer and consumer in urban areas (consumers enjoy fresher products)

A variation of urban farming is community gardens -share agricultural products with family/friends, and maybe the needy, instead of a business. People grow and harvest their own food, and allows poorer people to get more high-quality food. 

vertical farms- new type of urban farming that grows crops indoors in stackable trays, using greenhouses, artificial light (to mimic sunlight,) and hydroponics- growing plants in mineral-enriched solutions instead of soil.

Uses less land and water, but uses lots of energy for the lights used to grow the crops.

community-supported agriculture (CSA)- connects producers and consumers when consumers subscribe to a certain quantity of crop for a season, so the consumer gets a local supply of fresh product and the farmer earns throughout the season instead of just at the end. 

food insecurity- lack of access to enough food (b/c of economic issues.)

Reasons:

• Poverty

• Unemployment

• under-employment

In other countries: (non core)

• High population growth

• Political instability

• Environmental challenges

(obviously, most prevalent in poor neighborhoods and among homeless)

places:

food desert- neighborhood that has access to little to no healthy + affordable foods

• Low income/ high poverty areas

• urban area - 33% of the population located more than 1 mile from a grocery store.

rural area- more than 10 miles away

• usually home to racial/ethnic minorities or large % of elderly/disabled

bc of economic + physical restraints (rare car ownership, city buses unavailable/unaffordable) residents cannot travel to grocery stores outside of their area and have to shop in their own neighborhood. (grocery chains removed stores in these areas bc of little profit)

What's left are small convenience stores which don't have healthy food. → residents get health issues. 

food distribution system- network of trade and transportation to get food from farm to consumer

Local level: if farmers can not reach the market, product will go to waste, and if consumer cannot reach the market, they will face hunger.

Regional/global level: (modern transportation systems have improved distribution, but:)

Ships, trucks, ect. can only work well with good infrastructure (ports, roads, rail lines.)- usually “the people in great need of food live in remote areas without good transportation links.” 

governments can affect food distribution- they might use food as a weapon during political unrest. (to suppress opposition)

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Weather problems:

In core countries, farmers have crop insurance for weather disasters, but that’s not in non-core countries- weather disasters can impact the population a lot and another region needs to diliver food to the population.

Climate change will affect farmers a lot. (increase droughts and storms → hurt crop yields and livestock)

For hot areas: could cause drought, for livestock: heat-wave death, reduced milk, and reduced wait gain for beef cattle.

For cold areas: could be good, increase growing season with shorter & milder winters. (+ longer life for young animals and less energy cost.)

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Farmland is threatened by expansion of cities and suburbs (suburbanization). 

Being converted for urban development (housing, shopping centers, business buildings, ect.)

Since cities began as agricultural centers, the cities are where the fertile land IS. 

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food processing- transformation of agricultural products into food or transforming food items into a different food [ex: milling wheat into flour (which is then sold to consumers or to factories to make bread)]

Core countries (because of advanced infrastructure), can move goods rapidly, without waste.

But in periphery countries, because of poor infrastructure, there is product loss. (can’t go far distances fast)

Used to be: Food processing facilities near the farms, in rural areas (so they could work with fresh products, and have lower labor and land cost in rural areas)

Now: because of improvements in transportation and infrastructure, the small, old facilities have closed for larger and more efficient ones, but are farther from the farms- they allow companies to process products at a lower cost per unit. (economies of scale, elaborated on 5.7)

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In commercial farming, products have to go from farm to food processor, wholesaler, and market, in a timely manner. With perishable crops, this means the pickup and delivery has to be fast- 

If that's not possible, then the farmers and shippers have to have access to a storage system that can preserve the quality of the crops for a couple days.

Agricultural industries started Just-in-time delivery to reduce the need for storage space. (during covid this was affected and product shortages happened)

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Since food is vital to national security, governments help protect agriculture:

• Regulations on migrant workers who work in this industry.

• Financial assistance like low-interest loans and subsidies. (5.9)

• investment in transportation + storage infrastructure (5.9) (to increase efficiency + storage capacity)

• Regulations on the amount a product is grown/sold, to prevent surplus/shortages.

• taxes to discourage production/use of unhealthy things (like tobacco)

International politics can lead to changes in production: 

Tariff- tax on imports

Quota- There is a limit to the quantity that a good can be exported/imported

A country might have to reduce exports of a certain crop, which could lead to less production.

both are there to protect domestically produced goods- these restrictions raise the price of imports and of that product. - if this continues, countries change their production of crops. 

5.12- women in agriculture

Today, women make up about 40% of the agricultural labor force.

In subsistence farming areas, it's about 70%

• (in developing world) men migrate to urban areas looking for work, and women stay at home and work the farms w/ the children. (if they sell their goods at the local market, women are the sellers)

• when machinery was introduced, women became less involved with field work.

• So in large-scale agribusiness, along with raising crops, tending animals and processing products, they work on the business side of it- management, sales, distribution and research.

where people live/work changed how they prepare food. In urban areas, there is less growing and more buying. Today, women work more outside the house than olden days, so they are also doing less preparing food.

people purchase way more food for convenience now -cake mix, frozen microwave meals, ect.

(so food companies are investing in this to make prettier, tastier, healthier foods)

In 2015 (for the first time in history) the restaurant/eating out bill was more than the grocery bill.

Gender inequality- unequal opportunities, treatment, or rights of a person based on gender.

Examples in agriculture:

(as written before) men move to urban areas for work and women stay to tend to the farm and take care of the children- but, they still have little authority in the eyes of government officials, businesses, society, or male farmers.

Gender-specific obstacles -”discriminatory practices that prevent (female) farmers from reaching their potential productivity”

Women are:

• denied access to finance and capital → can’t afford machinery or chemicals, can’t modernize and increase productivity. 

• denied training and education → cant lrean abou the new improve practices to improve productivity/safety on the farms

• denied property ownership 

• limited mobility → in some countries, the male wont let them go out, so its hard for them to take products to market to sell/trade, or go to market to get food.

• lack political power → rarely allowed leadership positions or are even approached when development projects are planned- the plans dont have the knowledge or ideas of the women who play a big role in the plan’s success or failure. 

As a result of gender equality leading women to be less productive, there's a crop gap of 20-30% between male and female-run farms.

The worst food insecurities are periphery countries, which is where gender-specific obstacles are the most- if these went away, female-run farms would have more productivity, and result in economic growth and enough food available in the periphery (no more food insecurity!)