Feeding the World

1
Feeding the World

• Luke Clause
• Kainoa Westermark

2
Hunger

• 800 Million People do not eat enough a day
• 500 Million are chronically hungry (160 Million 5
  years or younger)
• 8 to 11 Million die each year due to hunger
• In the USA 20 to 30 Million People are suffering
  from malnutrition
• The richest countries eat 30-40 more calories
  than they need

3
The Vegetarianism Solution

• Meat industry causes more water pollution in the
  United States than all other industries combined.
  
• Animals raised for food in the U.S. produce 130
  times more excrement than the human population.
• Every year, factory farms dump 220 billion
  gallons of animal waste onto farmland and into
  our waterways.
• Watch it Pile Up

4
The Vegetarian Solution

• Twenty times more land is required to feed a
  meat-eater than to feed a pure vegetarian.
• More than half of all the water used in the
  United States is used for raising animals for
  consumption.
• It takes 2,500 gallons of water to produce a
  pound of meat, but only 25 gallons to produce a
  pound of wheat.

5
The Vegetarian Solution

• The primary cause for deforestation in America is
  making farm land for raising animals for food.
• For each acre of American forest that is cleared
  to make room for parking lots, roads, houses, and
  shopping malls, 7 acres of forest are converted
  into land for grazing livestock and/or growing
  livestock feed.
• Two-thirds of the rain forests of Central America
  have been cleared, in part to raise cattle whose
  meat is exported to profit the U.S. food
  industry.
• Raising animals for food requires more than
  one-third of all raw materials and fossil fuels
  used in the United States.

6
Precision Farming

• Holistic farm management strategy
• Farmers can adjust input use and cultivation
  methods
• Seed, fertilizer, pesticide, and water
  application, variety selection, planting,
  tillage, harvesting -- to match varying soil,
  crop and other field characteristics.
• Mapping and analyzing field variability, and
  linking relationships to management actions,
  allowing farmers to look at their farms, crops
  and practices from an entirely new perspective.

7
Precision Farming

• Benefits in profitability, productivity,
  sustainability, crop quality, environmental
  protection, on-farm quality of life, food safety,
  and rural economic development.
• Studies in USA, Canada, Europe and Australia have
  shown that PF permits reductions in input
  application rates without sacrificing crop
  yields.
• PF technologies in Asia can result in lower
  production costs, higher productivity and
  environmental benefits, and better stewardship of
  natural resources.
• Site-specific application of pesticides in cotton
  and of fertilizers in plantations of oil palm,
  rubber, coffee and tea in Asia can greatly reduce
  production costs and decrease environmental
  loading of chemicals.

8
Precision Farming

• 1. Ability to identify each field location
• 2. Ability to capture, interpret and analyze
  agronomic data at an appropriate scale and
  frequency
• 3. Ability to adjust input use and farming
  practices to maximize benefits from each field
  location

9
Precision Farming Technologies

• GPS
• GIS
• Remotely Sensed Imagery
• VRT
• Sensors

10
Integrated Pest Management

• Effective and environmentally sensitive approach
  to pest management
• Comprehensive information on the life cycles of
  pests and their interaction with the environment.
  
• Manage pest damage by the most economical means,
  and with the least possible hazard to people,
  property, and the environment.

11
Integrated Pest Management 4 Steps

• (1) Set Action Thresholds
• (2) Monitor and Identify Pests
• (3) Prevention
• (4) Control

12
Biotechnology in Food Production

• Extreme population growth necessitates greater
  food production
• Increased efficiency of production and
  distribution with biotechnology
• Faster growth rates of livestock and crops as
  well as increased overall size
• Decreased susceptibility to diseases in animals
• Increased defense against pests in crops
• More efficient water usage by crops and feed
  usage by livestock to lower requirements and
  costs
• Genetically engineered crops designed to control
  the ripening/softening process without chemical
  additives

13
Biotechnology and Environmental Protection

• Reduction of environmental impact from
  agriculture
• Minimized chemical use necessary
• Development of microorganisms to process
  contaminated soil
• Biotechnology in cattle feed can reduce methane
  exhaust

14
Biotechnology Concerns

• Chemical producers are also tied into crop
  development
• Lack of incentive to reduce herbicide and
  pesticide use
• Increased food production will not solve word
  hunger due to distribution issues
• Increase in efficiency displaces farmers and thus
  increases unemployment and world hunger
• So far there has been only a small decrease in
  crop loss due to new planting methods
• Population Contamination

15
Food Related Concerns in Rural Areas

• Half of the 17,000 of the worlds protected
  nature preserves are being heavily farmed due to
  rapid population growth.
• Population growth in tropical wilderness areas is
  double the worldwide average.
• Of the 25 biodiversity hot spots labeled by
  Conservation International, 16 are areas of high
  malnourishment and hunger.
• In the last 400 years, half of all tropical
  forests have been cleared for crops.

16
Eco-Agriculture

• Eco-agriculture refers to sustainable
  agriculture and associated natural resource
  management systems that embrace and
  simultaneously enhance productivity, rural
  livelihoods, ecosystem services and biodiversity.
  Eco-agriculture includes a wide range of systems
  and practices that integrate productivity goals
  (for crops, livestock, fish, trees and forests)
  with provision of ecosystem services including
  biodiversity and watershed services at a
  landscape scale. While maintaining or increasing
  productivity, eco-agriculture systems make more
  space for wildlife and improve habitat quality of
  productive areas.
• Allows simultaneous protection for endangered
  species and food production for impoverished
  groups.

17
Eco-Agriculture Strategies

• Small scale farms leave land for native species
• Networking of protected areas between farms allow
  natural migration and mating
• Increases in land productivity allow reduced
  spatial usage
• Increased production is possible through
  biotechnology and increased research on crop
  management strategies

18
Eco-Agriculture Strategies

• Minimizing agricultural pollution
• Emphasis on organic agriculture and soil
  conservation
• Reduction of chemical fertilizers and additives
• Creation of farming systems that resemble the
  natural ecosystem
• Use of either native or similar trees and shrubs
• increases soil fertility
• Maintains natural environment for native animals