AGRICULTURE

THE FUTURE OF FOOD

Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did
we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you
drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome
you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you
sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer
them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of
these my brothers, you did it to me.’ Mt 25:37-40
 IN THIS SECTION WE WILL
 Introduce the concept of agriculture and problems
associated with it
 Focus on different aspects of agriculture
 Soil
 Water
 Fertilizer
 Pest Management
 Genetic engineering and GMOs
 Look at alternative agricultural systems
 Organic agriculture
 Conservation agriculture
 Regenerative agriculture
 Examine issues related to animal production/harvest
KCAL
Region
CONSUMPTION
1964 - 1974 - 1984 -
DATA
1997 - 2015 2030
1966 1976 1986 1999
World 2358 2435 2655 2803 2940 3050
Developing 2054 2152 2450 2681 2850 2980
countries
Near East 2290 2591 2953 3006 3090 3170
and North
Africa
Sub-Saharan 2058 2079 2057 2195 2360 2540
Africaa

Latin America 2393 2546 2689 2824 2980 3140

and the
Caribbean

East Asia 1957 2105 2559 2921 3060 3190

South Asia 2017 1986 2205 2403 2700 2900

Industrialized 2947 3065 3206 3380 3440 3500

countries
Transition 3222 3385 3379 2906 3060 3180
countries
Table 1. Global and regional per capita food consumption (kcal per capita per day)
a
Excludes South Africa.
Note: measure of food available for consumption at the household level but does not account for any food wasted
KCAL AND MEAT CONSUMPTION

Food consumption maps

Nat Geographic pie charts
WORLD FOOD PRODUCTION & HUNGER

Overall food increases have

outpaced population increases And undernutrition has been declining
BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN
IT’S NOT A PROBLEM
• What parts of the world suffer most
from undernutrition?
• What parts of the world suffer least?
• How big an issue is it?

• Around 45% of deaths among children under 5

years of age are linked to undernutrition.
Source:
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/de
tail/malnutrition

Undernourishment Map
3 FACES OF OUR FOOD PROBLEM
Overnutrition: more calories than needed
Undernutrition: fewer calories than needed
Malnutrition: shortage of required nutrients
Protein deficiency
Marasmus: protein deficiency combined
with undernutrition
Specific nutrient deficiencies and some results
Vitamin A: vision problems, impaired immunity
Vitamin C: fatigue, depression, scurvy
Vitamin D: bone, muscle weakness, rickets
IMPACT OF AGRICULTURE:
TEXAS EXAMPLE
In Texas, agricultural activities
take 74% of land (127 of 172 million acres)
Directly provide about 250,000 jobs
1 of every 7 working Texans (14%) is in an agriculture-
related job
account for 1.8% of state GDP
Highest valued commodities?
Cattle and calves
Cotton
Broilers
Milk
Source: Texas Department of Agriculture
 EFFECTS AGRICULTURE HAS ON NATURAL
SYSTEMS

Major effects of agriculture on biodiversity include:

 conversion of natural habitats into agricultural lands
leading to habitat fragmentation
 reduction of genetic variability of the managed plant or
animal
 changes of natural ecosystems where agriculture take
place
 off-site pollution or alteration due to technologies and
inputs used in agriculture such as fertilizers and pesticides.
Under a business-as-usual scenario, land devoted to crops is projected to expand in many parts of
the world, causing increased land clearing, greenhouse gas emissions, and extinctions.
NOTE: Ratio of national cropland in 2060 to that in 2010.
SOURCE: Tilman, D., M. Clark, D. R. Williams, K. Kimmel, S. Polasky, and C. Packer. 2017.
Future threats to biodiversity and pathways to their prevention. Nature 546:73–81. See Figure 3c
on p. 76.
Source: National Academy of Sciences. 2021. The Challenge of Feeding the World Sustainably:
Summary of the US-UK Scientific Forum on Sustainable Agriculture. Washington, DC: The
National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26007.
 RECOGNIZING THE IMPACT OF
AGRICULTURE
Traditional vs. modern agriculture
Costs, benefits of each?
 SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
WHAT IS IT?
“Sustainable agriculture” as legally defined in U.S. Code Title 7, Section 3103
means an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having
a site-specific application that will over the long term:
1. Satisfy human food and fiber needs.
2. Enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which
the agricultural economy depends.
3. Make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and on-farm
resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and
controls.
4. Sustain the economic viability of farm operations.
5. Enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole.
 SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

Maintains
soil health
water quality
genetic diversity
Low input Agriculture vs. Industrial Agriculture
 WHAT ARE IMPACTS OF
CONVENTIONAL FARMING?
Food biodiversity Loss (American Livestock Breeds Conservancy)
Soil loss
Soil Organic Matter Loss
EXAMPLES OF MORE
SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES
The Milpa system, focused on the cultivation of maize, but,
which may constitute a system of polyculture including up to 20-
25 agricultural and forest species. It is in many cases combined
with agricultural market-oriented products such as hot-pepper,
rice, bans, sugarcane etc.,
-home gardens (agroforestry systems located next or close to
households),
-“chinampas” multicropped, species-diverse gardens developed
from reclaimed lakes);
and - coffee in stratified forest systems (shade coffee).
 SOIL

Definition: layer of chemically and biologically altered material

that overlies rock or other unaltered materials
Important for:
• Water holding ability
• Nutrients
Soil is dynamic
Soil formation results from the interaction of 5 factors (CLORPT)
• 1. Parent material
• 2. Climate
• 3. Biotic factors
• 4. Topography
• 5. Time
 INFLUENCE OF LIVING ORGANISMS

Aeration
Addition of organic material
Return of nutrients to
surface
Decomposition of organic
material
Humus: organic material
derived from partial decay
of plant and animal matter
 SOIL STRUCTURE, PHYSICAL
CHARACTERISTICS
Topsoil

Soil Horizons Water leaches mineral

nutrients out of upper
Soil profile layers

Soil skeleton
sand
silt
clay
PROFILES OF DIFFERENT
SOIL ORDERS
 SWIDDEN AGRICULTURE
IS POPULAR IN TROPICS

A traditional way to work with the problem of low

soil fertility
Is it a viable option today?
MAINTAINING SOIL IN MODERN AGRICULTURE
Problems
• Loss of organic matter, nutrients
• Erosion
• Desertification (dry and semi-dry environments)
MAINTAINING SOIL IN MODERN AGRICULTURE
Crop rotation
Conservation tillage (minimum-till, no-till)
Erosion reduction strategies
• Contour farming
• Terracing
• Protecting waterways
• Intercropping
• Windbreaks
 MINIMUM TILL
FARMING TECHNIQUES
 CHANGING AGRICULTURAL
PRACTICES TO REDUCE EROSION
EXAMPLES OF
WINDBREAKS
CONTOUR FARMING
STRIP FARMING (INTERCROPPING)
EXAMPLES OF
TERRACING
WATER - IRRIGATION
Agriculture is a major user of
water (including groundwater)
Texans use about 15 million
acre feet of water/year
• (1 acre foot = 325,851
gallons)
About 60% is groundwater,
rest is surface water
How is our water use
projected to change?
 IN THE FUTURE

State Water Plan forecasts to 2060

By 2070 population expected to increase to over 51 million

2016 Regional Water Plan - Water Demand Projections for 2020-2070

Texas State Summary in Acre Feet
Demand Category 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060 2070

Irrigation 9,437959 9,138,384 8,799,716 8,431,400 8,067,438 7,778,038

Livestock 296,232 304,828 309,463 314,601 320,364 324,595

Manufacturing 2,177,056 2,488,715 2,643,702 2,777,510 2,900,274 3,029,981
Mining 343,413 354,084 326,904 302,786 287,095 292,242
Municipal 5,199,942 5,791,143 6,403,647 7,042,305 7,718,557 8,432,718
Steam Electric Power 952,695 1,108,033 1,225,009 1,388,176 1,560,752 1,739,856

Texas Total 18,407,297 19,185,187 19,708,441 20,256,778 20,854,480 21,597,430

 IRRIGATION
Greatly increases agricultural production, however
Problems include
• Waterlogged soils
• Salinization of soil
• Aquifer depletion
IS THERE A MORE SUSTAINABLE WAY TO
IRRIGATE?
Traditional irrigation uses open ditches (flood or furrow
irrigation)
• Water loss to
• Evaporation
• Soaking into soil away from roots
Newer systems include
• Sprinkler: still waste water

• Drip irrigation
 WHAT IS DRIP IRRIGATION?

Allows water to drip slowly to the roots of plants, either

onto the soil surface or directly onto the root zone
• Increases efficiency to >90%
• Emitters regulate amount of water
• Does require more maintenance
• Not well-suited to cover crops
 FERTILIZER USE
Fertilizer use has expanded greatly since the mid 20th century

Inorganic vs. Organic Fertilizers

 CONTROLLING PESTS

Pesticide use has also increased dramatically

• What’s the problem?

Estimated worldwide annual sales of pesticides

PESTS DEVELOP RESISTANCE
 WE ALSO LOSE BENEFICIAL SPECIES
Pollinators
• Honey bees
• Native bees
• Other insect pollinators
 OTHER METHODS OF CONTROLLING LOSS
TO PESTS
Biological control
• Parasitoid wasps
• Nematodes
• Fungi
• Viruses

Problem?
• Nontarget species
• Expansion of range

The famous example of prickly pear and the cactus moth in Australia
Invasive
 INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT

Uses multiple techniques to control pests

• Close monitoring of pest populations
• Biocontrol
• Chemical control
• Habitat alteration
• Crop rotation
• Alternative tillage
• Mechanical pest removal
• Transgenic crops
GENETIC ENGINEERING AND GMOS
What are transgenic plants?
Is transgenic the same as
genetically engineered?
• Modification of
endogenous genes (Flavr
Savr® tomato)
HOW COMMON ARE GENETICALLY ENGINEERED
PLANTS IN AGRICULTURE?
SOME
EXAMPLES
FEARS, PROBLEMS, CONTROVERSIES
Spread of genes to wild populations
Development of resistance
Health concerns
OTHER OPTIONS TO INCREASE
SUSTAINABILITY
Video (7:58)

Organic Farming: What is it?

• Holistic form of agriculture
• Typically does not use
• Pesticides*
• Fertilizers*
• genetically modified organisms
• antibiotics and growth hormones
• Do allow “natural” and approved synthetic pesticides and fertilizers

How does it compare to conventional agriculture?

CONVENTIONAL VS. ORGANIC AGRICULTURE: ONE
EXAMPLE
Conventional systems out-yielded organic farms by 25
percent – Nature 2012 However,
Most of disparity was in grain production

Iowa State University’s Leopold

Center for Sustainable Agriculture
runs the Long-Term
Agroecological Research
Experiment (LTAR)
 THE RODALE INSTITUTE’S
FARMING SYSTEMS TRIAL
 Begun in 1982
Link
 Compared 3 farming systems
 Chemical input-based conventional system
 Legume-based organic system
 Manure-based organic system
 Each system focused on corn-soybean production

 In 2008,
 Each system split between full-tillage and reduced-tillage
 GMO corn and soybean introduced to conventional system
AFTER 40 YEARS, WHAT HAVE THEY SEEN?
Water Infiltration

Soil Health Carbon Capture

 OTHER RESULTS
 Yields
 Organic legume yields are 20% lower than other 2. (costs
also lower)
 Reduced till yields about 7% lower. (costs also lower)
 Organic yields higher than conventional during unusually dry
and wet years.

 Profit
 Organic systems more profitable due to
 Lower operating costs
 Higher prices for products at market
 Gross revenue lower in reduced-till (except organic manure),
but also lower costs
IS ORGANIC AG THE SAME
AS SUSTAINABLE AG?

What is conservation agriculture?

What is regenerative agriculture?
Ae they the same thing?
 CONSERVATION
AGRICULTURE
A farming system that promotes maintenance of a permanent soil cover,
minimum soil disturbance (i.e. no tillage), and diversification of plant species. It
enhances biodiversity and natural biological processes above and below the
ground surface, which contribute to increased water and nutrient use efficiency
From
and to improved and sustained crop production.
http://www.fao.org/conservation-agriculture/en/
Conservation Agriculture is based on three main principles
adapted to reflect local conditions and needs
Minimum mechanical soil disturbance
(i.e. no tillage) through direct seed and/or fertilizer placement.

Permanent soil organic cover

(at least 30 percent) with crop residues and/or cover crops.

Species diversification
through varied crop sequences and associations involving at least
three different crops.
REGENERATIVE
AGRICULTURE
Video 3:53
WHAT ABOUT ANIMAL PRODUCTION?

Is it wrong to eat meat?

• CAFOs
• Aquaculture
Is all meat the same?
Is all beef even the same?

Beef Facts Link

WHAT ARE CAFOS?
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations
Problems with
• Waste management
• Pollution
• Escape into wild (aquaculture)
• Drug resistance

CAFO Poll
CAFO POLL
POLLEV.COM/JAMESCARPENT581
WHAT ABOUT SEAFOOD?
Link
 Wild harvest using
 Nets, including
 Trawls
 Gillnets
 Purse seines
 Hook and line methods
 Trolling
 Long-lining
 Pots
 Dredges

 Problems
 Bycatch
 Habitat destruction
 Overharvest
Shrimp trawl bycatch example
IS AQUACULTURE THE SOLUTION?
 Species raised in aquaculture include
 Salmon
 Tilapia
 Catfish
 Trout
 Shrimp
 Oysters