The Global Availability of Food: Areas of Food Sufficiency and Deficiency IB Geography II

Objective: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to explain how changes in agricultural systems, scientific and technological innovations, and the expansion of the area under agriculture and the growth of agribusiness have increased the availability of food in some areas. Students will then be able to examine the factors that have caused areas of food deficiency, food insecurity, and famine.

Mark Bittman: What’s Wrong with What We Eat http://www.ted.com/talks/mark_bittman_on_what_s_wrong_with_what_we_eat.html?utm_source=email&source=email&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ios-share

Starting Activity: Essential Question to think about: What impacts the food decisions you make? Take 2 minutes to jot down a list.

Food Security… What is it? From th UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization: “Food security exists when all people, at all times, have access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.”

2 Important Terms Food Availability Deficit (FAD) Food availability deficit suggests that food shortages were caused by local difficulties in supply, perhaps the result of drought or floods (two extremes of water availability). Amartya Sen (1981) observed that hunger could be found in areas where food was not only available, but production was, in fact, increasing. Food Entitlement Deficit (FED) The problem was with the political and economic framework in the area. Rising costs of food relative to average incomes, Sen said, were a major factor in the availability of food A lack of wages/income means the term food entitlement deficit (FED) has been introduced as well.

Areas of Food Sufficiency Increasing Food Output: Remember the Green Revolution??? The Green Revolution is the name given to the approach that was developed by Norman Borlaug and others to increase the productivity of agricultural land in key countries of the world by educating farmers and introducing new technologies. Saw success in Mexico and India especially

Green Revolution Vocabulary High Yielding Varieties (HYVs): genetically engineered stale crops such as wheat, maize, and rice. Allowed for greater productivity with several harvests in one year. Artificial Fertilizers: nitrates and phosphates that were needed with HYVs in order to maintain the yield. Pesticides: destroy competitors such as insects, fungi, and weeds; they were needed because HYVs were more prone to disease and pests. Irrigation: Is essential for maximum yield in HYVs. Has allowed agriculture to develop in areas that are arid and semi-arid.

The Green Revolution: Strengths and Weaknesses Use of technology Using hybrid grain seeds (mainly rice, wheat and corn). Shorter stalks, so you grew more These HYVs were produced by genetic engineering and allowed for multiple harvests. Weaknesses Artificial fertilizers and pesticides were needed Costs were higher as there were fees for these artificial additions to the farm system. Farmers in these areas found it difficult to access loans and additional funding, and didn’t want to get into debt. Some crops also needed improved irrigation. In areas of water scarcity this was not always easy to guarantee.

Factors that Affect Food Sufficiency Changes in Agricultural Systems Scientific and Technological Innovations Expansion of the area under agriculture The growth of Agribusiness

Changes in Agricultural Systems Farming is about inputs, processes, and outputs. Agriculture needs investment. Many countries have put other areas as priority before agriculture. Only a small percentage of foreign aid is spent on agricultural projects.

Changes in Funding The funding of agricultural change is one issue that needs addressing. Recently a number of micro-credit systems have been introduced, which are available to small farmers as well as other individuals and small businesses.   The idea is that people search the website for someone to lend money to. They send a small sum which can then be repaid in time.

Scientific and Technological Innovations Farmers have always looked to improve their practice in order to save time and work more efficiently. Early innovations included the seed drill which enabled a farmer to complete an important job in a faster time.

Scientific and Technological Innovations Remote sensing can also be used to produce data across an entire farm, and target interventions by the farmer. The image shows that some fields have crops which are ‘stressed’ through lack of water. These fields could then be targeted for irrigation, thereby saving water, and ensuring that yields didn’t suffer.

The N Sensor http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BDncg6mZsY

Stone Lines http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQkiv_U5AoU

Expansion of the Area Under Agriculture An easy way to increase food production would seem to be to allot more land for agriculture. There are several issues with doing this: The most farmable land may be already being used for agriculture Many areas that are urbanized cannot be used There may be very little land available

The Growth of Agribusiness Increasing the scale of operations (by bringing together fragmented landholdings) forms more manageable and productive land areas with lest cost. Biotechnology: made possible through the research and development of large-scale companies (agribusinesses) Agribusiness is the name given to the aggregation of farmland under the control of a single business.

Factors that Affect Food Deficiency There are a number of environmental, demographic, political, social and economic factors that cause food shortages around the world. Some are: Soaring Oil and Energy Prices Rising Demand Natural Hazards Biofuels Underinvestment in Agriculture Climate Change

Soaring Oil and Energy Prices Can push up the cost of food production In 2007, rising oil prices cause fertilizer prices to increase by 70% and fuel for tractors and farm machinery by 30%

Rising Demand Results from global population growth and from people in emerging economies using their increasing affluence to buy more meat, eggs and dairy products Over 30% of the world’s grain now goes to feeding animals rather than people.

Natural Hazards Drought, floods, etc. Can severely disrupt agricultural production.

Biofuels Biofuels are competing with food for arable land, especially in the US and EU. Since 2008, about 30% of the US corn crop has been diverted to biofuels.

Underinvestment in Agriculture In 1986, 20% of foreign aid to developing countries was devoted to agriculture. By 2006, it was less than 3%. African governments, who are more influenced by their richer urban residents, now spend less than 5% of their budgets on agriculture, even through farming communities are where 2/3 of their residents live.

Climate Change With climate change, some areas will be drier and face water shortages, while others may experience extreme weather conditions. One estimate is that by 2050, half the arable land in the world might not be suitable for production. By then the global population will be over 9 billion.

Ending Activity Return to essential question: What impacts the food choices you make? Take 2 minutes to add to this list, considering the factors that contribute to food sufficiency and deficiency. What may impact the food choices you make in the future?