1. THEME 3 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Unit 3.2 Food Production (Part 1)

2. Key Questions What are the main features of an agricultural system? What are the causes and effects of food shortages and the possible solutions to this problem?

3. Introduction A system of growing crops and raising animals which involves soil conservation and sustainable irrigation. In simple terms, also known as farming. Other types of ‘cultures’ (rearing/caring/growing):  silviculture;  aquaculture (mariculture and pisciculture);  viticulture;  sericulture;

4. Mariculture Pisciculture Silviculture Viticulture Sericulture

5. WHAT ARE THE MAIN FEATURES OF AN AGRICULTURAL SYSTEM? Food Production

6. Agricultural systems Individual farms and general types of farming can be seen to operate as a system. A farm requires a range of inputs such as labour and energy so that processes that take place on the farm, such as ploughing and harvesting, can be carried out. The aim is to produce the best possible outputs such as milk, eggs, meat and crops. A profit will only be made if the income from selling the outputs is greater than expenditure on the inputs and processes. Any farm can be viewed as a system, with inputs, throughputs (or processes), outputs and feedback.

7. Inputs – can be divided into two groups Physical inputs are naturally occurring things such as water, raw materials and the land. Human or Cultural Inputs are things like money, labour, and skills.

8. Processes and Outputs Processes or Throughputs are the actions within the farm that allow the inputs to turn into outputs. On a pastoral farm processes could include things such as milking, harvesting and shearing. Outputs can be negative or positive, although they are usually the latter. Negative outputs include waste products and soil erosion. The positive outputs are the finished products, such as meat, milk and eggs, and the money gained from the sale of those products.

9. Feedback Feedback is what is put back into the system. The main two examples of this are:  money, from the sale of the outputs, and  knowledge, gained from the whole manufacturing process. This knowledge could then be used to make the product better or improve the efficiency of the processes.

13. Types of Agricultural System Agriculture (farming) is the production of food and other resources through the growing of plants and the raising of domesticated animals. There are many different types of agricultural system in the world. The basic distinctions are between:  Arable, pastoral and mixed farming  Subsistence and commercial farming  Extensive and intensive farming  Organic and non-organic farming

14. Arable, pastoral and mixed farming

15. Arable farming Arable farms cultivate crops and are not involved with livestock. Such a farm may concentrate on one crop (monoculture), such as wheat, or may grow a range of crops. The crops grown on an arable farm may change over time e.g. if the market price of potatoes increases, farmers may be attracted to grow this crop.

16. Pastoral farming Mixed farming This involves the keeping of livestock / animals such as dairy cattle, beef cattle, sheep and pigs. This involves the cultivating of crops and keeping livestock together on a farm. Usually, on a mixed farm, at least part of the crop production will be used to feed the livestock Pastoral and Mixed farming

17. Mixed farming

18. Subsistence and Commercial farming

19. Subsistence farming The most basic form of agriculture. The produce is consumed entirely or mainly by the family who work the land or tend the livestock. If a small surplus is produced it may be sold or traded, but the primary objective is to produce enough food to survive. Such farming is generally small-scale and labour intensive with little or no technological input. Most subsistence farming takes place in LEDCs Examples include shifting cultivation and nomadic pastoralism.

21. Shifting Cultivation Traditional farmers move around forested areas. Vegetation is cleared by cutting and burning (which is why it is also called slash and burn agriculture) and short-term crops are planted.

23. Commercial farming This type of farming aims to produce crops and/or animals to sell in order to make a profit. The objective is to sell everything that the farm produces. The farmer aims to maximise yields in order to achieve the highest profits possible. Commercial farming can range from small scale to very large scale (the largest commercial beef cattle ranch in the world is 24,000km²). The very largest ones are often owned by TNCs. Examples include mixed crop and livestock farming, ranching, dairying and large scale grain production.

24. Commercial farming Whilst most commercial farming usually takes place in MEDCs, it also takes place in some LEDCs where cash crops are mainly grown for export. This is also called plantation farming.

25. Extensive and Intensive Farming

26. Extensive farming This is where a relatively small amount of agricultural produce is obtained per hectare of land, so such farms tend to cover large areas of land. It involves a low input of capital,, material and labour with large amounts of land. It produces a low yield of product from a large area of land. Inputs per unit of land are low. It can be both arable and pastoral in nature. Examples are sheep farming in Australia and wheat cultivation on the Canadian Prairies.

28. Intensive farming This is characterised by high inputs per unit of land to achieve high yields per hectare. High inputs of capital, fertilisers and labour, and labour-saving technologies such as pesticides or machinery. The object is to get as high a yield of product as possible from a small area of land. Examples of intensive farming include market gardening, dairy farming and horticulture. Intensive farms tend to be relatively small in terms to land area.

31. Organic Farming

32. Organic farming This type of farming does not use manufactured chemicals – production is without chemical fertilisers, pesticides, insecticides and herbicides. Animal and green manures are used along with mineral fertilisers such as fish and bone meal. Requires a higher input of labour than a regular farm, with weeding being a major task. This is less likely to result in soil erosion and is generally less harmful to the environment e.g. no nitrate runoff into streams and less damage to wildlife. It does not produce the ‘perfect’ vegetable or fruit, but its popularity means that it commands a much higher price than mainstream farm produce.

34. Types of Farming Systems

35. THE INFLUENCE OF NATURAL AND HUMAN INPUTS ON AGRICULTURAL LAND USE. What are the main features of an agricultural system?

36. Effect of natural and human inputs Inputs including:  natural inputs (relief, climate and soil) and  human inputs (economic and social). Their combined influences on:  the scale of production,  methods of organisation and  the products of agricultural systems

38. Natural Inputs

39. Physical factors This includes:  Climate (temperature and precipitation)  Soils  Relief Variations in these individually will cause variances in the physical environment. Crops grown and livestock kept vary according to the physical environment. For example, North America has many different physical environments, which allow for a wide variety of crops to be grown and livestock reared.

40. Physical factors The influence of the physical environment has diminished somewhat owing to the development new technologies and increased capital investment. In areas where agriculture has not been traditionally practiced such as the drier or colder areas of the American High Plains and Canadian Prairies, new technology (Genetically modified plants) and high levels of capital investment have allowed farming to be extended into these difficult environments. For example, irrigation has enabled farming to flourish in the dry south-west (California) while new varieties of wheat have pushed production northwards in Canada. Irrigation has also allowed dry countries like Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Libya to boost their agricultural output in cotton and wheat.

41. Dry areas in California are heavily irrigated. The growing season gets shorter as one goes north in Canada. New varieties of wheat which mature in less time are being planted in such areas.

42. CategoriesTypesCharacteristicsEfficiency (%) Surface Furrow Traditional method; cheap to install, labour intensive, high water loss, susceptible to erosion and salinisation 20 - 60 Basin Cheap to install and run, needs a lot of water, susceptible to salinisation and waterlogging. 50 - 75 Aerial Sprinkler 10-15% of all irrigation globally, costly to install and run, low-pressure systems preferable 60 -80 Sub- surfaceDrip 1% of all irrigation worldwide, high capital costs, sophisticated monitoring, very efficient 75 - 95 Types of Irrigation The table is an example of the ‘ladder’ of agricultural technology, with surface irrigation being the most traditional and subsurface, the most advanced technique.

43. Furrow SprinklerBasin Drip

44. Physical factors However, there are things that technology and capital can do little to alter, meaning that the physical environment still has a big influence on farming. Thus, relief, climate and soils still set broad limits as to what can be produced – leaving the farmer with choices in difficult environments. He is then influenced by economic, socio-cultural and political factors.

45. Physical factors Temperature  A minimum of 6°C is required for crops to grow  It also influences the length of the growing season. e.g. spring wheat needs 90 days but cotton needs 200. Some rice-growing areas have two or three crops per year.  In Canada, less than 8% of the country is farmed as 70% lies north of the thermal limit for crop growth. Rainfall  At least 250mm to 500mm annually is needed for crops to grow.  The amount and how it is distributed throughout the year will influence the types of crops that can be grown, e.g. hot, wet tropical areas favour rice, while cooler, drier areas favour wheat.  Long steady periods of rainfall are best as it allows for better infiltration and moisture availability for plants. Heavy, intense downpours cause surface runoff which may lead to soil erosion and less water for plants.

46. Physical factors Relief (including the degree of slope, altitude and aspect)  Steep slopes hinder machinery and have thinner, drier soils. This is why highland areas in Scotland favour sheep farming as the soils are too thin for arable farming to be successful but pasture is not really affected.  Lowlands, such as flood plains, are good for crops. Access is easier and soils deeper, with a higher water content. Lower, more gentle slopes are also less prone to soil erosion. (East Anglia in England)  Tea and coffee crops prefer the well-drained soil on hill slopes. Temperature decreases by 6.5°C for every 1000 metres gained in height.  This may allow for temperate crops to be grown at high altitude in tropical countries e.g. Ecuador produces apples, pears and flowers in its Andean Regions as the temperatures are mild enough to allow this. South-facing slopes receive more sunlight.  This is called aspect and can allow for longer growing seasons on south- facing slopes at high latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere.

47. Physical factors Soils  Fertility is important; poor soil means lower outputs or larger inputs of fertilisers.  Some areas have traditionally not been farmed because soil fertility was poor or perceived to be poor.  Floodplains are good for rice because of the alluvial soils.  Good drainage reduces the dangers of waterlogging.  The Canadian Shield, with its thin, rocky soils are unsuited to large-scale arable farming. The prairies have deeper soils and are used for extensive wheat cultivation.

49. Economic factors This includes:  Transport  Markets  Capital  Technology The cost of growing different crops or raising different types of livestock varies. The market prices for different agricultural products also varies form year to year. The necessary investment in buildings and machinery can mean that some changes in farming activities are very expensive and difficult to achieve while others may be cheaper and easier. Its is not always easy for farmers to react quickly to changes in consumer demand.

50. Economic factors In many countries there has been a trend towards fewer but larger farms. Thus in many countries, the acreage under cultivation has increased but the number of farms has fallen. Large farms allow economies of scale to operate which reduces the unit cost of production As more large farms are created, smaller farms find it difficult to compete and make a profit, thus selling to a neighbouring farm (amalgamation) may be the only solution. In the EU, average farm size varies considerably. Countries with large farm sizes often have more efficient agricultural sectors than countries with a small average farm size.

51. Transport Types of transport available, time taken, and the cost of moving raw materials. For perishable commodities (e.g. Milk) an efficient transport network is an necessity. For bulky goods (e.g. Potatoes) transport costs must be lower for outputs to be profitable. Items should be grown as close to market as possible (as in market gardening) Improvements in technology (e.g. refrigerated ships, trucks and railcars) have allowed perishable items to be produced further away from their markets.

52. Markets Role of the market is closely linked with transport. Market demand depends on size and affluence of the market population. It also depends on religious and cultural beliefs. Farmers grow crops which are in demand and change to meet new demands, e.g. rubber plantation farmers in Malaysia have switched to oil palm as the demand for rubber has fallen. Markets vary throughout the year and farmers change their production to suit them.

53. Capital (finance) Capital, the money the farmer has to invest in the farm, can be used to increase the amount of inputs into the farm, e.g. machinery, fences, seeds, fertiliser and renewing buildings. If a farmer can afford to invest capital, yields will rise and can create greater profits which can be used for more investment. Some types of farming, though profitable, are expensive to set up e.g. hydroponics and market gardening in greenhouses. A lack of finance may hinder the farmer from such projects.

54. Technology Agricultural technology is the application of techniques to control the growth and harvesting of animal and vegetable products. This requires investment and is thus an economic factor. Lack of capital may mean that countries are unable to take advantage of these developments and affecting its food security and quality of life of its citizens. Greenhouses, with computer-controlled technology, provide ideal conditions for high quality crops. The computer controls the temperature, moisture level and amount of feed for the plants. An important form of aid is the transfer of agricultural technology from MEDCs to LEDCs

55. Technology Technological developments such as new strains of seed (GM plants), cross-breeding of animals, improved machinery and irrigation may extend the areas of optimal conditions and the limits of production (Green Revolution). Genetic engineering has allowed new plants to be bred that resist drought and disease and give higher yields.

56. Socio-cultural factors Tradition is an important consideration in some areas with a tendency for farmers to stay with what they know best and often a sense of transgenerational responsibility to maintain family farming tradition. Inheritance laws in the past have had a tremendous impact on land tenure and farm size. In some countries the custom has been to divide the land equally between all his sons upon his death, but not his daughters. Dowry customs may also include giving land upon marriage of a daughter The resulting reduction of farms often reduced them to operating only at subsistence level. In most societies women have unequal access to, and control over, rural land and associated resources. Societies with well-recognised property rights are the ones that thrive best economically and socially.

57. Land tenure This refers to the ways in which the land is or can be owned. Farmers may be owner- occupiers, tenants, landless labourers or state employees on the land which they farm. Examples include:  Cash Tenancy  a tenant who pays a money rent for a farm  Share Cropping  where a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on their portion of land.

58. Political Factors The influence of government on farming has steadily increased in many countries. For example, in the USA the main parts of government farm policy over the last 50 years have been:  Price support loans – loans that tide farmers over until they sell their produce  Production controls – these limit how much a farmer can produce of surplus crops  Income supplements – cash payments to farmers for major crops in years when market prices fail to reach certain levels Therefore, the decisions made by individual farmers may be heavily influenced by government policies like those above.

59. Political factors Governments influence the crops farmers grow through regulations, subsidies and quotas. This is seen in the USA and by the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy. Governments offer advice, training and finance to farmers and, in new farming areas, may build the infrastructure of roads and drainage, e.g. Amazonia. In some countries, e.g. Kenya and Malaysia, the government is trying to help nomadic farmers to settle in one place. Some governments plan and fund land reclamation and improvement schemes. In centrally planned governments it is the state not the individual that makes the farming decision.