L3- global food system Flashcards
why is crop type that is grown important
Majority of crops grown are herb seed, but seed crops are grown over a larger global area than other types
- but there are large variation within crop types
why is location / climatic origins of crops important
places with high rainfall have low seasonality
places with low rainfall have high seasonality
places with high temperature have less seasonality
places with low temperature have high seasonality
crops originating in paces with high rainfall seasonality (less rain), and warm temperatures dominate global production (seasonal sub-tropics)
were older crops more important
major crop- appears on FAO UN database, minor crops may still be grown widely but may be more locally focused / subsistence.
minor crops tend to be younger, major crops important on international markets tend to be older crops domesticated wayyy back
why are older crops more likely to be major, and cultivated globally over a larger area then younger ones
priority effects whereby ecological niches and cultural niches were filled by first crops
potentially adaptation? older crops been around longer and allow for diversification of locally adapted varieties and breeding elite lines, had longer to adapt and diversify
why is older crops (seed crops) influencing todays global production of crop significant
minor crops are less widely used but could improve food security
- locally adapted crops are climate resistant, rich in micronutrients which could address “hidden huner”
what is a globalised food system
no longer reliant on locally grown food, not seasonal fruit and veg
how did crops spread across the world
archaeology shows crops moved along long-distance trade routes thousands of years ago
examples
- wheat domesticated in the fertile cresent 10,000 yrs ago it reach china >4,000 yrs ago. moving along silk road trade route between w and e asia
- pearl millet and sorghum domesticated in the sahel region more then 4,500 yrs ago, reached india 4,000 yrs ago along the sabean way trade route
Empires played important roles in moving crops into new regions
- muslim empires 650 to 1258AD supported trade in agricultural goods, moved crops originating in Africa, south and southeast asia into europe (eg bananas)
european colonisation of the americas expanded range of crops traded and moved across continents
- sugarcane (domesticated in new guinea), plantations established in americas from late 1400s, becoming a central part of atlantic slave trade
- maize, cassava, ground nut, and potatoes taken from america and introduced into africa, spread to become staples
but how did late 20th century accelerate food trade
late 20th century liberalisation of international trade has expanded markets in crop products
- reducation of tariffs on traded goods since late 1940s have been designed to promte international trade, trade especially opened up in 1970-1990, eg the NAFTA ( north american free trade agreement) promoted trade among mexico-usa-canada
what is crop homogenisation
growth in international markets for agricultural products has led to an increase in the diversity of crops grown within each region
however this globalisation process means different regions are becoming more similar in the crops they grow
diversity of crops buffers national yields against year-to-year climate variation
regression analysis of the factors associated with interannual yield stability, crop diversity and irrigation important in stabilising national yields against yr-to-yr climatic variartion
what is the diversity in human diets on global scale like
of >7,000 edible plant species, 90% of plant calories come from 15 species, 60% from rice, wheat, sugar and maize
of 15,000 bird and mammal species global supply of animal protein 76% milk, eggs, chicken pork and beef
is land footprint equally spread
more then 50% of eu “ consumption “ of cropland, grazing land and forests take place in other countries
via trade, the eu uses cropland from all over the world to meet its food demand
what has industrialisation led to in agriculture
led to decline in the importance of agriculture as an employer
- agricultural output shrank as a proportion of the economy, but grew in physical output
- industrialisation reduced labour requirement , while increasing agricultural producivtity
what was the green revolution
in the late 20th century increased production of relatively few crops
- publicly funded improvement of wheat, rice and maize production high-yielding, locally adapted, modern varieties, which were widely adopted across asia and latin america
-improvement of additional major food crops (eg cassava) didnt start from the same scientific knowledge base, occurred later and was less successful
what is industrialisation of m
eat production
- animals confined in high concentrations and fed crops-based diets
- efficient in terms of production and in production relative to ghg emissions
-issues with animal welfare, water use and pollution, antibiotic use
what has agricultural industrialisation led to an increase of
mechanisation, chemical inputs and modern variets have improved crop yields and economic production relative to labour inputs
concentrated animal operations have done the same for livestock
