Feeding the World

A long long time ago…

So what happened

• Now 21 % of the Earth’s land is currently cultivated and grazed.

Did agriculture fix everything?

• In 2009, 1 billion people lacked access to adequate amounts of food.

Nutritional Requirements

• Undernutrition (chronic hunger); not consuming enough calories to be healthy.

• Effects: improper brain development and lower IQ (just 100-400 Kilocalories less than daily need)

• Calories not the only issue:– According to WHO 3 million people (half world’s

population) are malnourished.– Food security vs. food insecurity

Food Insecurity

• Famine: condition where food insecurity is so extreme that large numbers of deaths occur in a given area over a short period of time.

• What could cause famine?• 250,000 kids become blind each year from

vitamin A deficiency.• 3 million anemic people in the world.• Marasmus: nutritional deficiency which involves

both lack of calories and lack of proteins.

Why malnutrition?

• We grow enough food to feed 8 billion people. (our population 7 billion). Why are folks still going hungry?– Poverty (food not accessable)– Political and economic factors. (refuges, poor gov’t

regulation= wars and unrest)– Used to feed livestock and poultry. (40% of US

grain)

Food Security

• Overnutrition:1 billion people are overweight and roughly 300 million are obese. (20% over their ideal weight)

• Worldwide there are 50,000 edible plants but just three constitutes 60% of human energy intake.

• Meat consumption has increased globally and in the US.

The Green Revolution

• Dr. Norman Borlaug: won Nobel Peace Prize for his contribution to increasing the world food supply.

• What kind of changes are we talking about?– Mechanization– Irrigation– Fertilizers– Monocropping– Pesticides

Mechanization

Pros

• More work done quicker = more money

Cons• High up front cost• Monoculture is best• Increase energy use =

increase pollution

Irrigation

Pro• Increase crop growth• Transform deserts to prime

farm land.

Con• Deplete ground water• Soil degradation

(waterlogging and salinization)

Fertilizers

Pro• Replenishes lost nutrients

from overuse of soil.– Two types

• Organic • Synthetic (easier to apply,

nutrient content can be targeted to the needs of the farmer, easily absorbed.

Cons• Manufacturing = the use of

fossil fuels• More likely to be carried off

by runoff.• Do not add organic matter

to the soil.

Monocropping: Do we need to review?

Pesticides

Pro

• Gets rid of pest• Prevents crop damage

Cons

• Bioaccumulation with persistent pesticides

• Pest developing a resistance• Kills beneficial organisms• Pollute water

Terms you will hear when talking about pesticides1. Insecticides2. Herbicides3. Broad spectrum4. Selective5. Persistent (DDT)6. nonpersistant

The Genetic Revolution

GMO’s : the second Green Revolution

• What are they?– Genetically engineered using recombinant DNA by

the process of gene splicing.

GMO’s : the second Green Revolution

Advantages• Increased crop yield and

quality.• Could change pesticide use• Increased profits

Disadvantages• So fear but not proven, that

human ingestion can cause problems.

• Effects on biodiversity (modified genes will spread to wild relatives) and useful traits could be lost.

• No regulations (if you want to purchase NO GMO’s then you can buy “organic”

What about our Proteins?High-Density Animal Farming: CAFO’s (Concentrated animal feeding operations)

Advantages

• More product• Easier to produce• Cheaper• More money

Disadvantages• Concentrations of pollution

problems such as foul smells from fed lots

• Contaminations to drinking water by nitrates in animal wastes (also effects vegetables)

• Increase in the spread of diseases.

• Increase pressure on the world’s grain supply to feed the animals

• Increase inputs of energy from fossil fuels

Who’s to blame?

• Ignorance (us)• Government Policies– Farm Bill

• http://www.farmbillfacts.org/rallying-for-action-toward-the-next-farm-bill

• http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15891678

– Subsidies (keeps food prices artificially low)• http://www.pbs.org/teachers/access-analyze-act-econ

omy/curriculum/sugar-supply/the-cultivation-of-agricultural-subsidies#instant-expert

More Sustainable Methods

1. Small scale farming2. Shifting agriculture (Includes slash and burn)3. Sustainable agriculture: intercropping, crop rotation,

agroforestry, contour plowing/planting4. No-Till agriculture5. Integrated Pest Management (IPM)6. Organic Agriculture: use natural systems, keep as much

organic matter in soil as possible, no synthetic fertilizers and pesticides

7. To reduce fertilizer run-off (used prescribe amounts and plant legumes and other nitrogen fixing plants)