Why Do We Need Agriculture

It is a known fact that the way humans produce food is not sustainable for a bright future. Here in America we discard almost half the amount of food we produce, which could be used to feed the enormous amount of starving people in the world. Not only are we being wasteful, but we are also greatly contributing to the amount of pollution and greenhouse gases because of our practices. After reading “What’s for supper?” my eyes were further opened to how damaging our agricultural system is and inspired me to take on a “greener” lifestyle.

"I believe in the future of agriculture, with a faith born not of words, but of deeds." These famous words from "The FFA Creed" by E.M. Tiffany outline the basic beliefs of FFA members and agriculturists around the world. But these values, although crucial to the sustaining of our world's ever-increasing population, are growing more and more detached from the people not involved in agriculture. Although food and fiber production has increased in recent years, providing more bushels per acre and more meat per head of cattle, the agriculture industry has come under fire due to an overwhelming majority of people being totally disconnected from the agriculture industry. Today, we'll examine the primary causes of this disconnect, the negative effects on agriculture and our society as a whole that results from it, and how you can help solve this ever-growing problem.

Production-based farming drives people out of the smaller communities because the production damages the economy of the town. Berry reflects, "The little towns that once had been social

Throughout time, humans have pushed forward in every aspect in life in order to improve their living standards, wealth and most importantly the agricultural sector which is the base of every human race. Food is the basic requirement for any individual to stay alive and healthy. In an article by Tamsin McMahon, she states that over the past 60 years, the world population has grown from 2.5 billion to 7 billion while world hunger dropped from 40% down to 15% (McMahon T., July 2012). This shows that our agricultural advances through technology have helped control world hunger and decrease it by more than half, but this is a short-term solution if we want to consider the future generations that depend on our current actions toward the three main pillars of agriculture which are: Health and nutrition, Economy and sustainability all while considering the local small farms and corporate farms.

Food Inc. Documentary Report Fatter, Faster, Bigger and Cheaper Fatter, faster, bigger and cheaper seems to be the way the food industry operates in America today. The Food Inc. documentary shed a short light on how our food is processed and how our image of the “American farmer” is no more than a memory. The film really made you think about what we are feeding our families. Throughout this movie Kenner highlights on how are meat is processed, and let me just say I was disgusted. I am a hunter and I have never had a problem killing my animal and butchering it myself, but as I watched how cows were standing in their own fecal matter three to four feet deep I about vomited, I thought to myself ‘ why is this not considered animal cruelty?’

However, agriculture is the central issue. While pesticides are being used to keep crops alive, a benefit to farmers, the natural ecosystem is not exactly experiencing the same effect; the ecosystem is being destroyed. An effective way agriculturists can improve on decreasing the amount of pesticides is to use continuous production, where it is reusing the fields, without wasting and hurting them.

that “farming is often considered the crown jewel of the U.S. economy”. This means that without

Mad Cow Disease Bovine spongiform encephalophathy ( BSE), which is mainly known as mad cow disease has infected the society and has put the lives of individuals at risk. This was very frightening to the people that ate meat during that time. The terrified people would not even want to eat hamburgers at MacDonald, steak at restaurant and much more. What also alarmed the people was the fact that there was a possibility of getting the human form of mad cow disease. This was called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) which is through tainted blood, but this was only a theory which

Canadian Agriculture experienced a distinct development in each region. Varying climate and geography being responsible for it. As a result, each region settled at different periods in politics and economics. Either way, from the colonial era to the modern day, agriculture is now a subordinate industry. Canada having a well-established individual agricultural industry alongside it. An example documented in the overwhelming success in the global marketplace. Even so, Canada prides itself on its systems and policies ensuring high standards. The industry’s best practices, besides reputation establishing a cornerstone. Canada’s economy and international trade thriving on it. For this reason, the historical significance of agriculture through history

Many varieties of genetically engineered crops have been designed to decrease the need for chemicals, particularly pesticides. Herbicide-tolerant varieties are among the most widely used type of genetically-modified crop, which enables farmers to use a single herbicide to eradicate weeds rather than rely on a cocktail of pesticides and herbicides. Eliminating weeds in this fashion also decreases the need for soil tillage, which can negatively impact soil ecology. (Ford,

In Massachusetts, there are 7,755 farms working on 523,00 acres of land (“Agricultural Resources Facts and Statistics”). This is equivalent to 817 square miles, which roughly equals the size of Jacksonville, Florida (“The Largest U.S. City”, 2014). To an uninformed civilian, this chunk of land may seem vast; however, it is quite small in comparison to the 1,565,401 square miles of farmland used in the United States today (“Agricultural Land”, 2016). Why does it matter how much farmland is in the United States? Wasn’t mass farming a good innovation for the country? Wasn’t the Agricultural Revolution a bright spot for human history? In Jack Diamond’s article, “The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race”, he states that the Agricultural Revolution is the worst mistake made by humans. This assumption is correct because it affected humans negatively in several ways: home lives, health, and socially.

Farmers. Although most farmers agree Chemicals are bad they are a necessary evil to grow

The agriculture field is one of the biggest employers, employing over 155 million people in the United States. What do you think about when you hear the word “agriculture?” Many people would say farming, but this is not the most common occupation in this field. Farmers make up a fraction of the agricultural jobs at 900,000, but over 2.1 million people own, rent, and claim farming as a primary source of income. The average farm size has dropped from 460 acres in 1990 to 418 acres in 2007, while the average age of this occupation rose to 57, making this one of the older workforces in the United States.

One concern about pesticides and herbicide usage is the amount of residues left on the end product of crops sprayed with the chemicals, and their effects on human health. (Williamson, 2007, p. 184). However, these effects are closely tested and levels are strictly regulated to ensure there is no danger from possible pesticide residues. Since 1910, many rules, regulations, and agencies have been formed to monitor the safety of the pesticides and herbicides used in conventional farming. These chemicals must meet specific safety standards in order to be registered for use, and regulations on levels of each product safe for use are also put in place. (Tafel et al.,2007, p.184). All pesticides are rigorously examined to ensure they have no significant effects on human health, or the environment. The residues in the food chain are closely monitored, and regularly tested, to ensure they are below legal limits. In a recent survey of residues

Agriculture in the United States has changed dramatically over the centuries. Since the 1960’s large commercial farms have been leading in sales. As a direct result of their success we, as a society, have access to affordable food. However, the success of large farms has lead to many negative impacts such as increased usage of resources and decreased diversity in crop fields. This begs the question, what can be done to reduce the negative impacts of large farms. One solution growing in popularity is sustainable agriculture. The idea of sustainable agriculture is to create farms that need little to no outside help from irrigation, pesticides, or fertilizers. Sustainability can be achieved in many way through