Agriculture
Agriculture• deliberate modification of Earth’s surface
through the cultivation of plants and/or rearing of animals– Cultivate = “to care for”– Crop = any plant cultivated by people
Agriculture (terms to know)• Subsistence:
– production of food primarily for the family (in LDCs).• Commercial:
– production of food primarily for sale off of the farm (MDCs and growing in LDCs).
• Intensive– requires lots of labor or is focused on a small plot of
land or both. High agricultural density.• Extensive
– requires limited input of labor or is spread across a large area of land or both. Low agricultural density
• The use of certain methods (chemicals, monocultures) could represent an intensification of what would be otherwise extensive farming.
Commercial Farming
• ALL farming in MDCs– Increasing in LDCs
• began w/2nd Agricultural Rev. and Industrial Rev. (1700s → )
• Aided by (see guided reading)– mechanization– transportation– scientific advances – electronics
• Consolidation– largest 5% = 75% of output– fewer farms and farmers
• 60% less farms, 85% less farmers
• Integration with “agribusiness”– Current business model of farming where
the farm is no longer isolated but part of a larger food-processing industry.
MDC Farmers Face Economic Difficulties• Overproduction
– Green Revolution, machines, tech. science, etc. – leads to lower prices– demand remains relatively constant in MDCs, why?– Most MDCs are in stage 4/5
• consequence: incomes for farmers are low• susceptible to acquisition (Industrial farms)
» ECONOMIES OF SCALE• govt policies (subsidies) to support agriculture
• suburbanization– “Urban sprawl” vs. prime agricultural land
• Both want land that is flat and well-drained (near markets)
danger of being “suburbanized” as cities expandLoss of Productive Farmland
Subsistence Farming Difficulties• Is agricultural land in LDCs maxed out?
• recent decrease/stagnation in the amount of arable land• desertification
– change land from arable to non-arable (“make into a desert”) – caused by overgrazing, soil erosion, excessive farming, etc.
Effect of desertification and suburbanization
Subsistence Farming Difficulties• Is agricultural land in LDCs maxed out?
• Excess water usage for irrigation can lead to – Aquifer depletion/declining water table
Subsistence Farming Difficulties• Have we reached a point where food production is
unable to match population growth? Why?– LDC dilemma?
• Goal = achieve development with w/switch to cash crops – International trade model of development
• Less land for food crops for local consumption– food must be the purchased which leaves less investment for
development• most lucrative cash crop?
– drugs
Flow of Drug Crops
Subsistence Farming Difficulties• Have we reached a point where food production is
unable to match population growth? Why?– LDC dilemma?
• Goal = achieve development with w/switch to cash crops – International trade model of development
• Less land for food crops for local consumption– food must be the purchased which leaves less investment for
development• most lucrative cash crop?
– drugs– environmental impact
• deforestation– from switch to ranching, logging etc.
» MDCs want meat and lumber, LDCs want the cash– Also from subsistence farming “slash and burn” farming
Deforestation
Strategies to increase food supply– Expanding agricultural land
• better irrigation to reduce stress on water supplies– drip irrigation (Israel)
– Identifying new food sources• cultivating oceans
– But 3/4ths of fish stocks are overfished or already fully utilized • developing higher-protein cereals
– Ineffective in areas that don’t rely on processed foods • improving palatability of foods
– Krill is now abundant due to whale overfishing and the collapse of the USSR, but nasty tasting!
– Increasing trade• Ship global overproduction to areas in need• Where most food is produced is not where it is most
needed (unbalanced production/consumption)
Origins of agriculture• Origins
– Hunter-gatherers• Perhaps 250,000 remaining today
– San in Southern Africa, Aborigine in Australia
– Invention of agriculture• When it began = unclear, diffused from many hearths
The First Agricultural Revolution• Southeast Asia: Root crops, up to 14,000
years ago (Sauer) • Southwest Asia (the Fertile Crescent): Seed
crops, about 10,000 years ago → Neolithic Revolution = “1st Agricultural Revolution”
The Fertile Crescent
The Fertile Crescent• 1st cultivation of seed crops
– Enlargement of plants from seed selection• Generated a surplus of wheat and barley• Leads to?
– CIVILIZATION!!!!• Animal domestication
– Began in Fertile Crescent (c. 8000 years ago)• pigs, sheep, goats, dogs, cattle• Relatively few domesticated animals• Continuing efforts not very successful
– 1st integration of plant growing and animal raising • Crops used to feed livestock
– Use fallow fields to graze• Livestock to help crops
– Dung is fertilizer, clear stalks etc.• Used for milk, hides,
– beasts of burden
Animal Hearths
Second Agricultural Revolution• series of innovations, improvements, and techniques
used to improve the output of agricultural surpluses– 17th and 18th centuries (linked to Scientific Rev.)
• Enclosure Act = larger farms– Allows experimentation
• New tools (seed drill, water wheel, etc.)• Advances in livestock breeding (selective)• New fertilizers (non-chemical)• More efficient crop rotation
• Closely connected to the Industrial Revolution– displaced farmers/pop. growth → factory workers
• Urbanization (so also connected to the 2nd Urban Rev.)– increased food supply
• Feeds urban factory workers, • lowers CDR • Helps to move UK into stage 2
Agricultural density
• Calculated as:– # of farmers/arable land– High density = ?
• LDCs, Why?• Low farming efficiency
– Farming done by hand
High Agricultural Density
Agricultural density
– Low density = ?• MDCs, Why?• Advanced technology and finance• Corporate or large scale farming
– Farms are getting bigger!
Low Agricultural Density
Green Revolution (3rd Agriculture Rev.)• Innovations developed in U.S. Midwest (1930s → )
– Norman Borlaug “the man who saved a billion lives”– diffusion to LDCs (1960s → )
• shift from subsistence to commercial methods in LDCs• adoption of a western farming model
– methods include:• use of chemical fertilizers/pesticides • machinery • better irrigation methods• invention of high-yield grains (hybridization, crossbreeding)
– increased production of rice» impact on hunger greatest where rice is produced
– new varieties of wheat and corn» GMOs = genetically modified organisms (4th Rev.?)» “biotechnology”
• Result– Famines reduced!
• Most famines today are due to political problems
Average Daily Calorie Consumption per Capita
Has the Green Revolution run its course?
Opposition to Green Revolution
• Environmental concerns (overuse)– soil erosion and water shortages– dependency on chemicals for production
• pollution, dangerous to ingest, bee colony collapse• growth of “monocultures” lessens biodiversity
• “superpests” could develop resistance • are Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) safe?
– probably, but????• health problems???? (antibiotics, allergens)
– EU strictly regulates (has approved only 48 organisms)• labelling required, why labelling resistance in the US?
• Economic dependence on transnational corps• $$$$$$ → Western agribusiness (Monsanto)• life becomes “intellectual property” = “terminator seeds”• loss of control over seeds → wind → → contamination
• Produce only what’s profitable• Products vary by distance from
the market (town). Factors:– Cost of land (bid-rent theory)– Use of land governed by
cost/ease of transport to market• Perishability and weight
• First effort to analyze the spatial character of economic activity– Modified for physical features
Von Thünen’s Model
Bid-rent
Theory
• $ rent (land cost) someone is
willing to pay is based on their
business realities
– For example, per von Thunen’s dairy
farmers/vegetable growers (X) would
be willing to pay more for land in
order to be close to market, Why?
• Transportation costs are high
• perishability.
– per von Thunen, lumber (Y) would
then outbid grains etc. Why?
• Trans. costs are high due to weight.
– Pattern continues outward forming
concentric rings. Until you get to
extensive activities like grazing.
Why?
• Need to pay less for land because their
activity is extensive (uses a lot of land)
Application of Von Thünen Model• Wealthy countries
– Underlying principles on larger scale (NYC/Megalopolis =
center)
• dairy farming, vegetables located close to population
centers/markets
– Market gardening in SE
– milkshed in NE
– Wisconsin cheese b/c it is further away
• Extensive activities (grain, ranching) located farther west.
von Thunen and the USA
Application of Von Thünen Model• Wealthy countries
– Underlying principles on larger scale (NYC/Megalopolis =
center)
• dairy farming, vegetables located close to population
centers/markets
– Market gardening in SE
– milkshed in NE
– Wisconsin cheese b/c it is further away
• Extensive activities (grain, ranching) located farther west.
– But modernity breaks model down
• multiple markets, expanded trade
– Not a single market in a small region
• Use of faster higher capacity transportation
• Use of preservatives, refrigeration
– Both allow distance from market to be increased/altered