Unit 5: Part 2 Flashcards
Agribusiness
Farms run as corporations
Transnational corporations
Agribusinesses that operate in many countries
Vertical integration
Ownership of other businesses involved in the steps of producing a particular good
Economies of scale
An increase in efficiency to lower the per unit production cost resulting in greater profits
Commodity chain
A process used by corporations to gather resources, transform them into goods, and transport them to consumers
Carrying capacity
The available resources that can be harvested without harming the land
Cool chains
Transportation networks to keep food cool on a trip
Location theory
Deals with why people choose certain locations for various types of economic activity
von Thünen Model
An economic model that suggested a pattern for the types of products that farmers would produce at different positions relative to the market
Isotropic plain
Flat and featureless and similar throughout
Horticulture
A type of agriculture that includes market gardening/truck farming and dairy farming
Bid-price curve (bid-rent curve)
Can be used to determine the starting point for each land use relative to the market as well as where each land use would end
Free-market economy
Where supply and demand, not government policy, determine the outcome of competition for land
Comparative advantage
Naturally occuring beneficial conditions
Supply chain
All the steps required to get a product or service to customers
Luxury crops
Are note essential to human survival but have a high profit margin
Neocolonialism
The use of economic, political, and social pressures to control former colonies
Fair trade movement
An effort to promote higher incomes for producers and for more sustainable farming practices
Subsidies
Public support to farmers to ensure that customers have a dependable, low cost food supply
Infrastructure
The basic structure of services, installations, and facilities needed to support industrial, agricultural, and other economic development
Land cover change
Process by which agricultural areas are lost to development
Desertification
The transition of land from fertile to desert
Salinization
when soil in an arid climate has been made available for agricultural production using irrigation
Terrace farming
One of the earliest human alterations of the landscape in which farmers build a series of steps into the side of a hill
Irrigation
The process of diverting water from its natural course or location to aid the production of crops
Center-pivot irrigation
Watering equipment rotates around a pivot and delivers specific amounts of fertilizer, pesticides, or water to the field
Wetlands
Low-lying areas that contain a significant amount of water at or near the surface
Deforestation
The removal of large tracts of forest
Slash-and-burn agriculture
A type of shifting cultivation where all the vegetation in an area of forest is cut down and burned in place
Blue Revolution
Water equivalent of the green revolution, the fastest growing form of food production on the planet and responsible for 50% of the worlds seafood
Overgraze
When animals damage the grassland to the extent that the vegetation will not refresh itself even after the animals leave
Organic foods
Food produced without the use of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, or other unnatural processes
Value-added crops
Crops that consumers are willing to pay more for because it is hard to find or has special qualities
Value-added farming
When farmers process their crops into high value products instead of selling it as it comes from the field
Local-food movement
Seeking out food produced nearby
Urban farming
Production of farm goods within an urban area with the goal of providing locally grown food
Community gardens
Used to share agricultural products with family, friends, or those in need rather than as a business
Vertical farms
Grow crops in stackable trays using greenhouses, artificial lights, and hydroponics
Hydroponics
Allows crops to grow without soil using mineral-enriched solutions
Community-supported agriculture (CSA)
a particular network, or association of individuals, who have pledged to support one or
more local farms, with growers and consumers sharing the risks and benefits of food
production.
Food insecurity
Physical, social, and economic access at all times to safe and nutritious food sufficient to meet dietary needs and food preferences
Food desert
Urban zones that lack food stores
Food distribution system
A network of trade and transportation that get food from farms to consumers
Food processing
The transformation of agricultural products into food or taking food items and transforming them into a different type of food
Tariff
a tax that a government charges people on import and export goods.
Quota
Limit the quantity of a good imported
Gender inequality
The unequal opportunities, treatment, or rights of a person based off of gender
Gender-specific obstacles
Discriminatory practices that prevent female farmers from reaching their potential productivity
Crop gap
Gap between number of male and female farmers
