Food Resources
Intended Learning Outcomes
At the end of this session, students will be able to
• Explain food Resources
• Discuss the world food problems
• Describe the changes in land use by agriculture grazing
• Explain the effects of modern agriculture
• Discuss fertilizer/ pesticide problems
• Discuss water logging and salinity
Food Resources
• Today our food comes almost entirely from agriculture, animal husbandry and fishing
• Although India is self-sufficient in food production, it is only because of modern patterns of agriculture that are unsustainable and which pollute our environment with excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides
• Most of our large farms grow single crops (monoculture), If this crop is hit by pest, the entire crop can be devastated, leaving the farmer with no income during the year
• Many studies have shown that one can use alternatives to inorganic fertilizers and pesticides, this is known as Integrated Crop Management
World food problems
• In many developing countries where populations are expanding rapidly, the production of food is unable to keep pace with the growing demand
• Countries are unable to produce more food or do not have the financial means to import it
• India is one of the countries that have been able to produce enough food by cultivating a large proportion of its arable land through irrigation
• However many of the technologies we have used to achieve this are now being questioned
• Our fertile soils are being exploited faster than they can recuperate
• Forests, grasslands and wetlands have been converted to agricultural use, which has led to serious ecological questions
• Our fish resources, both marine and inland, show evidence of exhaustion
• There are great disparities in the availability of nutritious food. Some communities such as tribal people still face serious food problems leading to malnutrition especially among women and children
• Women play an extremely vital role in food production as well as cooking the meal and feeding children
• In India there is a shortage of cultivable productive land, Thus farm sizes are too small to support a family on farm produce alone
• Poor environmental agricultural practices such as slash and burn, shifting cultivation or ‘rab’ (woodash) cultivation degrade forests
• Globally 5 to 7 million hectares of farmland is degraded each year
• Loss of nutrients and overuse of agricultural chemicals are major factors in land degradation
• Water scarcity is an important aspect of poor agricultural outputs
Food Security
• Estimated that 18 million people worldwide, most of whom are children, die each year due to starvation or malnutrition, and many others suffer a variety of dietary deficiencies
• Earth can only supply a limited amount of food, thus food security is closely linked with population control through the family welfare program
• It is also linked to the availability of water for farming
• Food security is only possible if food is equitably distributed to all
• A major concern is the support needed for small
Fisheries
• Fish is an important protein food in many parts of the world
• Modern fishing technologies using mechanized trawlers and small meshed nets lead directly to overexploitation, which is not sustainable
• The worst hit are the small traditional fishermen who are no match for organized trawlers
Loss of Genetic diversity
• There are 50,000 known edible plants documented worldwide, of these only 15 varieties produce 90% of the world’s food
• Modern agricultural practices have resulted in a serious loss of genetic variability of crops
• Creates a risk to our food security, as farmers can loose all their produce due to a rapidly spreading disease
• The most effective method to introduce desirable traits into crops is by using characteristics found in the wild relatives of crop plants
• As the wilderness shrinks, these varieties are rapidly disappearing
• Once they are lost, their desirable characteristics cannot be introduced when found necessary in future
• Collections in germplasm, seed banks and tissue culture facilities, are other possible ways to prevent extinction but are extremely expensive
• Scientists now believe that the world will soon need a second green revolution to meet our future demands of food based on a new ethic of land and water management that must be based on values which include environmental sensitivity, equity, biodiversity conservation of cultivars and insitu preservation of wild relatives of crop plants
• Pollution of water sources, land degradation and desertification must be rapidly reversed
• Adopting soil conservation measures, using appropriate farming techniques, especially on hill slopes, enhancing the soil with organic matter, rotating crops and managing watersheds at the micro level are a key to agricultural production to meet future needs
• Most importantly food supply is closely linked to the effectiveness of population control programs worldwide
• The world needs better and sustainable methods of food production which is an important aspect of land use management
Alternate food sources
• Food can be innovatively produced if we break out of the current agricultural patterns
• This includes working on new avenues to produce food, such as using forests for their multiple non-wood fores products, which can be used for food if harvested sustainably
• This includes fruit, mushrooms, sap, gum, etc. this takes time, as people must develop a taste for these new foods
• Medicines, both traditional and modern, can be harvested sustainably from forests
• Popularising this crop could add to food availability from marginal lands
• Several crops can be grown in urban settings, including vegetables and fruit which can be grown on waste household water and fertilizers from vermicomposting pits
• Several foods can be popularized from yet unused seafood products such as seaweed as long as this is done at sustainable levels
• Educating women about nutrition, who are more closely involved with feeding the family, is an important aspect of supporting the food needs of many developing countries
• Integrated Pest Management includes preserving pest predators, using pest resistant seed varieties and reducing the use of chemical fertilizers
Summary
• Today our food comes almost entirely from agriculture, animal husbandry and fishing
• Countries are unable to produce more food or do not have the financial means to import it
• Forests, grasslands and wetlands have been converted to agricultural use, which has led to serious ecological questions
• Popularising this crop could add to food availability from marginal lands
• The world needs better and sustainable methods of food production which is an important aspect of land use management
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