food notes- exam study

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Different levels of food consumption

between DCs and LDCs

• People in DCs generally consume more food than people in LDCs.

• Statistics from the World Health Organisationshow that food consumption per capita in DCs

have been higher from the mid-1960s to the late 1990s

Changing Food Preferences in DCs

• Increase in consumption of healthy food

– There has been a rise in the number of illness such as high blood pressure and diabetes, which is related

to consumption of fats.

– As a result, people are becoming more health conscious and moving away from high fat products.E.g. Organic food (food grown without use of

chemical fertilizers or pesticides)

Changing Food Preferences in DCs

• Increase in consumption of a larger variety of food

– People in DCs are more exposed to different types of

food around the world.

– In Singapore, it is not difficult to find different varieties of food from all over the world, i.e. Italian, Japanese, Korean, American, Mexican etc.

Changing Food Preferences in LDCs

• Changes in consumption of carbohydrates

1) The share of carbohydrates in people’s diets in LDCshave been falling.

2) There is a shift away from roots and tubers such as

sweet potatoes and yam to processed food such as cereal.

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Changing Food Preferences in LDCs

• Increase in consumption of non-staple food

– People in LDCs are consuming more non-staple food such as meat and fish (more protein and fats) in

replacement for staple food such as rice (carbohydrates)

– The proliferation of fast food restaurants have also turned people’s preference towards non-staple food

such as burger and fries.

Variations in food consumption (Summary)

• Levels of food consumption:- DCs > LDCs.- Average world consumption increasing.

• Changes in food preference:

- DCs: Less fatty foods.Larger variety of food.

- LDCs: Less carbohydrates.Different types of carbohydrates.Increase in non-staple food (protein).

Reasons for Variations in Food Consumption

• Affordability

– The amount and type of food available to a person depends on his / her’s purchasing power.

– In DCs, people generally have higher incomes and

hence, greater purchasing power. This means that they can afford to buy a variety of food to enjoy.

– In LDCs, people earn less and have less purchasing power to buy food to even meet their nutritional

needs.


• Stability of food supply

– When a country has a stable food supply, it is said to enjoy food security - a situation where people are

able to obtain sufficient food of acceptable quality and variety at all times.

– Not all countries are self-sufficient in providing enough food for their own population.

– Many countries achieve food security through

producing their own food and buying from other countries at the same time.

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• Natural Factors

– Natural disasters such as droughts, floods,

earthquakes and hurricanes can cause severe food shortages by destroying harvests.

– Spread of diseases, such as bird flu and mad cow can also affect food supply drastically (over 20 million birds were culled in 2003-

2004)


• Human Factors

– Areas experiencing wars and conflict may

face disruption in transportation.

– Farmland may have been destroyed.

– Farmers may have been forced to move from their homes.

Availability of transport facilities

People’s access to food depends on whether food is distributed to them.

Food distribution refers to the

movement of food from one place to another.

People living in rural areas may find it difficult to have

access to food

Reasons for Variations in Food Accessibility to Food

Accessibility to Food

Availability of food outlets

As you know, supermarkets and food chains that carry a large variety of food are

usually found in DCs.

In LDCs, such outlets are commonly found in urban areas.

Hence, people living in such

areas have limited access to food.

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Globalisation

Globalisation is the increase or

exchange of information, ideas,

cultures and values due to advancements in transport and

communications

With globalisation, food companies

can expand their business on a global

scale.

However, access to such products in

LDCs may only be limited to urban

areas where there is better

infrastructure and higher purchasing

power.


TradeTrade refers to the exchange of goods and services between countries

However, when there are

trade barriers (regulations that limit trade between countries), access to food

will be affected.

Impacts of Variations in Food Consumption

• Starvation (<1000 calories/day)

• Cause: Starvation has a negative effect on a

person’s health.

• Effect: When starvation continues over a long period of time, the organs in a person’s body will be permanently damaged and eventually die.


• Malnutrition (90% of the 800 million)– Cause: Malnutrition occurs when a person

consumes an imbalanced amount of nutrition over time.

– Some contributing factors include poor harvest and low purchasing power.

– May also be due to psychological factors (anorexia, bulimia).

– Effects:Severely weakens a person’s body, making it less resistant to illnesses.Can cause damage to internal organs and eventual death.Lack of vitamins and minerals can lead to various diseases.

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• Obesity (body fat content at 33%)– Cause: Obesity occurs when a person consumes

more nutrients than the body can use.When body fat is 1/3 or more of body weight.This condition affects people in DCs more than LDCs.

– Effects: Obesity may lead to health conditions such as

high blood pressure.

What are the responses to the variation in food consumption?

• International organizations have developed programs to provide food for people who are suffering from starvation and malnutrition.

• Examples: UN World Food Program implemented ‘food- for- work’ projects in Somalia. People build important farming facilities like roads and irrigation channels. Payment is in terms of food.

Responses to Variations in Food Consumption - International Organizations

International Organizations

• Success: People not only receive food, but

improve the countries farming

infrastructure as well as develop skills that help them make a living.

• Limitations: still a large number of people suffering from starvation and malnutrition

as it is difficult to meet all these food needs.

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Responses to Variations in Food Consumption

• Government Responses (National)

1. Food subsidies. This may come in the form of money, free food or food sold at a lower price.

2. Example: In the UK, the government provides school lunches to children of low income families.

Government Responses

3. Success: Children who qualify get a meal in school which will contribute towards their general health and performance in school.

4. Limitations: These subsidies create a huge burden on government as a large amount of money has to be spent. This is especially the case in LDCs.

5. Limitations: Subsidies criticized for causing over reliance on government help and not enabling the poor to break out of the poverty cycle.

Stockpiling

• Point: Stockpiling involves setting aside and storing food to ensure food security during emergencies.

• Elaboration: It is more common in DCs as they have the ability to build large expensive storages whereas LDCs are unable to do so.

• Example: East Asian Rice Reserve was started in 2004 to improve food security in the region. Members (Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Singapore, Japan and China) contribute to the building of a stockpile which can be used when disasters and emergencies take place.

Stockpiling

• Success: Food is available in the event of disasters or emergencies, sometimes up to three months or more.

• Limitations: Expensive storage facilities

required which may not be affordable to LDCs.

• Limitations: large food companies may stockpile to drive up the price of the crop which will affect LDCs as they are unable to afford the higher prices.

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Factors affecting Productivity

Technological

Political Economic

Social

Physical

Productivity

Physical Factors

• Relief

– Relief is the physical shape of the land.

– A gentle or flat relief is generally more productive for farming.

– Soil erosion is less likely to occur and farmers can increase productivity by using machines on flat surfaces.

Physical Factors

• Soil

– Productivity depends on the fertility of the soil

(the amount of air, water and nutrients present in it).

– Fertile soils are usually found on floodplains, river deltas and in areas surrounding volcanoes.

– Output per unit area in these areas is high.

Physical Factors

• Climate– Climate refers to atmospheric conditions of a specific

place over a considerable period of time, usually 30-35 years.

– Output is usually higher in areas with high temperature and rainfall.

– Climate is an important factor for fish and livestock farming. For e.g. cool temperatures are required for the growth and reproduction of salmon.

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Social Factors

• Social factors such as culture, traditions,

religions and inheritance laws often affect

the productivity of the land.

• This can be observed by the following

– Land fragmentation

– Land tenure

Social Factors

• Land fragmentation

– In traditional societies, it is common practice for a father to divide his land equally among his children.

– Over many generations, the fragmented pieces of land may become even smaller and smaller. Such small plots render machinery such as tractors cost-ineffective. Hence, productivity is low.

Social Factors

• Land tenure (the right to live on and use the

land)

– Land in LDCs are usually owned by the governments

or landlords. Farmers are required to pay money or give a portion of their crops to get land tenure.

Economic Factors

• Demand

– When people are willing and are able to buy a product (e.g. food) at a certain price at a certain time, we say

that there is demand for food.

– A high demand for food will encourage producers to increase production so they can earn more money

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Economic Factors

• Capital– Capital is vital for producers who

have to buying machines to help with food production as well as purchase seeds, fertilizers and pesticides etc.

– E.g. In commercial fishing, fishermen are able to increase productivity by using equipment such as acoustic sonar (sound navigation and ranging) to detect schools of fish.

– Farmers can increase food production in the fields by using irrigation methods and improved chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

Political Factor

• Governmental policies can determine how land and other resources are used to affect the level of food production in a country.

• For e.g., Singapore has scarce land to spare for traditional farming. A decision was made by the government in the 1980s to move towards high-tech farming such as aeroponics and hydrophonics as more crops can be cultivated on smaller pieces of land.

Political Factors

• Governments can encourage greater

productivity by

– Building new farming facilities

• For e.g., clearing lands for farming, building houses for farmers, constructing processing

factories and building a network of roads and railways to export the crops.

– Providing loans and subsidies to farmers

Technological Factors

• Use of modern machines and farming

methods have allowed farmers to increase

their efficiency in food production.

• The two major technological movements in

recent decades are the

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How has food production been intensified?

-Green and Blue Revolution

Green Revolution

• The Green Revolution was the first systematic attempt to make modern technology for farming to LDCs such as

– High-yielding varieties of food crops

– chemical fertilizers and pesticides

– modern irrigation methods.

• The aim was to increase food production and

help farmers in LDCs increase their income.

High Yielding Varieties

• One key aspect of the Green Revolution was the development of improved strains of crops (i.e. rice, wheat and cereal).

• These high yielding varieties (HYVs) were developed with traits such as pest resistance or faster growth duration compared to normal crops.

• As a result, farmers could enjoy higher output per unit area in their fields.

• Subsequently, total world production increased.

Modern Irrigation Methods

• Irrigation is the practice of supplying water to the land through artificial means.

• Man-made dykes, dams and canals were constructed to divert water from water sources

like rivers and reservoirs to farms.

• Automated irrigation systems such as water sprinklers and sluice gates could control the amount of water for watering the farms.

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Use of Chemicals

• The Green Revolution also led to the use

of chemicals such as fertilizers, pesticides

and herbicides

– Fertilizers (substances added to the soil to provide nutrients for healthy plant growth)

– Pesticides (chemicals used to destroy pests which affect crop growth)

– Herbicides (chemicals used to destroy weeds that compete for nutrients from the soil)

Blue Revolution

• Since the 1970s, the amount of fish caught have been falling as the world’s oceans suffer from a decline in fish populations due to over fishing and pollution.

• The Blue Revolution was an attempt to protect marine life and ensure sufficient seafood for present and future generations.

Blue Revolution

• The Blue Revolution encouraged fish farmingwhere farmers rear fishes in tanks, ponds or enclosed areas under special conditions that promote growth, instead of catching fish from the oceans.

What are the advantages and disadvantages to using methods developed during the Green and Blue Revolution to intensify food

production?

This information is also partially used to answer LORMS questions. See later section.

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Modern Irrigation Methods

• Irrigation is the practice of supplying

water to the land through artificial means.

• Man-made dykes, dams and canals were constructed to divert water from

water sources like rivers and reservoirs to farms.

• Automated irrigation systems such as water sprinklers and sluice gates

could control the amount of water for watering the farms.

Effects of increasing irrigation

• Poor management of irrigation can cause

the productivity of lands to decrease

drastically.

• Salinisation of soil

– Refers to the building up of salts within the soil.

– Overtime, the salts in the soil build up and hence

lower the quality of the soil.

Effects of increasing irrigation

• Waterlogging of soil

– Waterlogging occurs when farmers over-

irrigate the land or use large amounts of irrigated water to wash excess salt from the land to reduce salinisation.

– Hence, air and nutrients that crops need cannot reach their roots

– Output and food production decreases.

Use of Chemicals

• The Green Revolution also led to the use

of chemicals such as fertilizers, pesticides

and herbicides

– Fertilizers (substances added to the soil to provide nutrients for healthy plant growth)

– Pesticides (chemicals used to destroy pests which affect crop growth)

– Herbicides (chemicals used to destroy weeds that compete for nutrients from the soil)

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Effects of increasing use of chemicals

• Imbalance in soil nutrients

– Chemical fertilisers are unable to supply all the nutrients required by plants.

– In addition, chemical fertilisers do not add humus to

the soil. (Humus refers to the organic substance

formed from decomposition of dead plants and

animals)

– Hence, lack of humus may cause the soil to lose its

fertility in the long run.


• Eutrophication in water bodies– Excess fertilisers used in farms are washed

by rain to nearby lakes or rivers.– Eutrophication causes rapid growth of

algae that reduces oxygen supply for other aquatic life

– In the end, many aquatic plants and animals die from lack of oxygen


• Water Pollution

– Chemicals such as pesticides and herbicides seep into groundwater and flow into nearby water bodies

such as rivers.

– Chemicals in the water can harm or kill aquatic plants and animals.

– People who drink such contaminated water may also get poisoned.

GM food can be used to increase income for farmers,

increase food supply, improve the nutritional quality of food

and reduce environmental pollution. Do you agree?

Sometimes only parts of this question may be asked, or asked in an indirect way;

For example, the part about improving nutritional quality may be asked as GM

foods helping to fight diseases / improving health.

As with all ‘do you agree’ or ‘ to what extent’ questions, always give both sides

of the story. I.e. ‘ I agree because…’ AND ‘ I disagree because…’.

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Introduction

• GM food refers to food from plants that

have been genetically altered to achieve

certain qualities i.e. resistance to diseases, tolerance to herbicides etc.

Benefits of GM food crops‘I agree because’

• Increases income for farmers

– GM food are more resistant to pests, low rainfall and other

problems.

– Farmers can sell food that has been genetically modified to stay fresh for a longer period of

time to countries further away and earn more money.


• Increases food supply

– Increase in food supply leads to a decline in food

prices, thus making it cheaper for citizens living in LDCs to buy food.

– Farmers may also earn more from selling GM food crops.

– Eventually, this can lead to regional development.


• Improves nutritional value of food

– GM food crops such as Golden Rice has

been enriched with beta-carotene to supplement the lack of Vitamin A in rice diets in LDCs.

– Scientists are also exploring the use of GM food as a form of medicine or vaccine in LDCs.

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• Reduces environment pollution

– With the growing awareness on use of

chemicals in agriculture and negative impact on the environment, crops can be genetically modified to reduce reliance on such chemicals.

Threats of genetically modified food crops

‘I disagree because…’

• Potential health risks

– Some risks associated with GM food includes fear that GM food might contain food

substances that people are allergic to.

– This is particularly so because GM food is not labeled, thus preventing consumers from making an informed decision.


‘I disagree because…’• Loss of biodiversity

– Biodiversity refers to the great variety of living things in an ecosystem.

– There are concerns over how GM food can affect biodiversity.

– For e.g. harmless insects like Monarch butterflies are unintentionally affected by pest resistant plants when they were exposed to it.

– This may affect animals further up the food chain.


‘I disagree because…’

• Loss of natural species

– When pollen of pest-resistant crop is carried by wind or insects to compatible natural crops, the offspring of the organic crops also become pest-resistant.

– Such gene pollution is irreversible and results in the loss of natural plant species.

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Evaluate methods to intensify food production.

LORMS

Introduction• The Green and Blue revolutions were aimed at

increasing food production.

• The Green Revolution was the first systematic attempt to make modern technology for farming to LDCs by using

– high-yielding varieties of food crops

– chemical fertilizers and pesticides

– modern irrigation methods.

• The Blue Revolution encouraged fish farminginstead of catching fish from the oceans.

Modern Irrigation Methods• Point: Modern irrigation methods.

• Elaboration: This is the practice of

supplying water to the land through

artificial means.

• Example: Hoover Dam in the USA supplies water to farms in California and

Nevada.

• Success: agriculture is now possible in

many places that were once desert or

very arid.

Limitation of increasing irrigation

• Building up of salts within the soil

– Overtime, the salts in the soil build up and

hence lower the quality of the soil.

• Waterlogging of soil

– occurs when farmers over-irrigate the land.

– Hence, air and nutrients that crops need cannot reach their roots

– Output and food production decreases.

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Use of Chemicals

• Point: The Green Revolution also led to the use of chemicals.

• Example: In India multiple cropping through the year required the intensive use of fertilizers.

• Elaboration: These chemicals include fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides.

• Success: Fertilizers provide nutrients for healthy plant growth, Pesticides destroy pests which affect crop growth and Herbicides destroy weeds that compete for nutrients from the soil.

Limitation of increasing use of chemicals

• Chemical fertilisers are unable to supply all the nutrients required by plants.– In addition, chemical fertilisers do not add humus to

the soil, causing the soil to lose its fertility in the long run.

• Eutrophication in water bodies– Excess fertilisers used in farms are washed by rain to

nearby lakes or rivers.

– causing rapid growth of algae that reduces oxygen supply for other aquatic life

– In the end, many aquatic plants and animals die from lack of oxygen

Limitation of increasing use of chemicals

• Water Pollution

– Chemicals such as pesticides and herbicides seep into groundwater and flow into nearby water bodies

such as rivers.

– Chemicals in the water can harm or kill aquatic plants and animals.

– People who drink such contaminated water may also get poisoned.

Blue Revolution

• Point: The Blue Revolution was an attempt to protect marine life and ensure sufficient seafood for present and future generations.

• Elaboration: The Blue Revolution encouraged

fish farming where farmers rear fishes in tanks, ponds or enclosed areas under special conditions that promote growth, instead of catching fish from the oceans.

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• Example: Singapore's consumption of fish

is estimated to be 100,000 tonnes per year of which about 5% is accounted for by

local foodfish aquaculture.

Limitations

• The impact of aquaculture facilities and infrastructure may affect the local fauna and flora negatively, including threatened species.

• The effluents from aquaculture farms containing undesired chemicals and might distress the local ecosystem.

• The use of exotic species in aquaculture is even more important, as they bring some risks such as the introduction of associated forms of life that come together with them (e.g. algae or microorganisms) or new pathogen agents that can spread out to a new environment.

food notes- exam study

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