12.4 Food Production
GQ: How can we produce enough food for a rapidly growing population while
sustaining our ability to produce it?
Each year Earth gains 75 million people and loses 12 million to 17 million
acres of land
Arable land: land suitable for farming (We are using most and people are still
standing)
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Food security: guarantee of an adequate and reliable food supply for all
people at all times
Malnutrition: (underlying factor = $) shortage of nutrients the body needs,
lack of nutrients causes diseases
3 Essential steps to global food security
1. Maintaining healthy soil and H2O
2. Protecting biodiversity of food sources
3. Ensuring safe distribution of food
Industrial Food Production:
(+) and (-) effects
ex: feedlots and aquaculture
Feedlot: # of animals raised for food rose from 7.2 billion to 24.3 billion between
1961-2007.
concentrated animal feeding operations or factory farms
huge warehouses or pens designed to deliver energy-rich food to animals.
(+)
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efficient production of food
doesn’t degrade soil through overgrazing, saving space & soil
reduces need for chemical fertilizers because cow manure is used instead
cheaper, fast & efficient
(-)
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animal cruelty, treatment sometimes means densely packed & no
interaction, under stress, not getting proper diet
improper management of manure can cause illness in animals & humans often
through H2O contamination
crowded, dirty conditions cause animals to be pumped w/ antibiotics which
make it into people (who eat the animal products) and groundwater to affect
ecosystems
bacteria become resistant to antibiotics
diseases spread fast
cattle given steroids passes into groundwater through manure
Aquaculture: raising aquatic food organisms for food in a controlled environment
(+)
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reliable protein source
sustainable (scraps = fertilizer)
reduces harvesting of declining wild aquatic animals
reduces by-catch (the unintended death of non-target animals)
uses less fossil fuel than fishing vessels
safer work environment than commercial fishing does
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diseases spread through dense populations, reducing production & profit
waste pollutes outside H2O
escaped organisms may spread disease to wild animals
escaped organisms outcompete wild animals and threaten genetically
modified
(-)
Seed Banks: organizations that preserve seeds of diverse plants as a kind of
insurance policy against global crop collapse
 protects diversity
Energy efficiency: food choices are also energy choices
*production of meat for food is extremely inefficient
Sustainable Agriculture: * alternatives to industrial agriculture
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agriculture that does not deplete soil faster than it forms and does not
reduce soil quality
Organic Agriculture : food growing practices that use no
synthetic fertilizer, insecticide, fungicide, or herbicides
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Organic Food Productions Act: established standards for growing and
selling
Why people choose organic?
o Pesticides may pose health risks
o Protect land, H2O, air, and nontarget animals from chemicals
Why not?
o $, typically organic is more costly
o no major concern about pesticides
Locally supported Agriculture –
 the average food product travels at least 1500 miles between farm & shelf,
and is usually chemically treated to preserve freshness
 boost local economy
 decrease carbon footprint
 CSA – pay in advance for weekly supply