Food and Agriculture

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Food and Agriculture

• Wednesday, November 20, 2013

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Outline

• Food Riddles
• Ethanol
• GMOs
• Organic v Non-Organic

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OIL

• Riddle 1
• I exist, but I cant be made.
• China is using more of me than ever before.
• Canada is wondering how to replace me.
• Pineapples and bananas need me to get to you.
• Apples and tomatoes? Not so much.
• The food on your table is there thanks to me,
• but Im a hidden ingredient in the farm-to-table
  link.
• What am I?

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ETHANOL

• Riddle 2
• Im found in vodka and Volvos,
• and I help show the heat rise.
• Brazil is one of my largest producers,
• using sweetness to make their cars go.
• Canada wants to produce more of me,
• turning solid yellow into liquid blue.
• Some say I am the answer to a global problem,
• others say I am a cause.
• What am I?

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CLIMATE

• Riddle 3
• I can be hot, cold, wet, or dry,
• and lately Ive gone to extremes.
• Humans didnt create me,
• yet they have a way of making me change.
• Usually Im harmless,
• but depending on my mood, I can be deadly.
• Some people dont give me much thought,
• others worry I will wreak havoc in their lives.
• What am I?

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MEAT

• Riddle 4
• Some people avoid me altogether,
• Others consume a lot of me every day.
• Some people cant bear to think
• of what I used to be.
• I can be the first thing off the list
• when money is tight.
• A lot of resources are needed,
• to produce just a little bit of me.
• What am I?

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GRAIN

• Riddle 5
• In the summer you might see great piles of me,
• but now my reserves are shrinking.
• Most people take me for granted,
• because Ive been around longer than sliced
  bread.
• You can consume me,
• or consume something that consumed me first.
• I come in many forms,
• and I travel with thousands like me.
• What am I?

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MONEY

• Riddle 6
• You cant eat me, but its hard to eat without
  me.
• I talk without saying a word.
• I can grow, but Im not alive.
• I make people smile, but I have no personality.
• Most people are happy to hold me,
• but I dont feel a thing.
• Some make lots of me with only a little to start,
• but be warned I go as easy as I come.
• What am I?

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Weekend Homework

• Search through your cupboards and fridge in order
  to determine what foods do and do not contain
  corn products.
• Read the ingredients label on the packaging to
  see if you can find any corn products in the
  ingredients list.
• Corn products include Corn, Corn oil, Corn meal,
  Corn starch, Corn syrup, Dextrose, Ethyl alcohol,
  Glucose,
• High-Fructose corn syrup (HFCS), Maltodextrin,
  Starch (unless specified as another kind),
  Xanthan gum

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Homework

• Create a T-Chart with your answers at least 7 in
  each category

With Corn
Without Corn
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ETHANOL

• Read pages 360-362 and answer the following
  questions
• What is ethanol?
• What is ethanol used for?
• What is ethanol made from?
• How is ethanol manufactured?
• List 2 advantages and 2 disadvantages of using
  ethanol

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Facts about Ethanol

• The ethanol industry in Brazil is based on
  sugar
• cane the US and Canadas ethanol industries are
• based on corn.
• Ethanol is a cleaner burning fuel source than
  oil, so
• it reduces greenhouse gas emissions that
  contribute
• to climate change.
• Ethanol is expensive to produce and requires
  intensive
• energy inputs some scientists argue that the
• production of ethanol requires more energy than
  it
• ultimately yields.

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USES OF THE U.S. CORN CROP2007Source AFDC
Use
Percentage Feed/Residual
45.0 Ethanol
25.0 Exports/Shipments
19.0 High-fructose corn syrup 4.1 Starch
2.2 Glucose/Dextrose
1.9 Cereals/Other products
1.5 Alcoholic beverages 1.1 Seed
0.2
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CARBON DIOXIDE PRODUCTION BY FUEL TYPESource UK
Department for Transport

• Fuel Type Carbon
  Dioxide
• (grams/Megajoule
  of energy)
• Wheat Ethanol (Canada) 69
• Sugar Cane Ethanol (Brazil) 18
• Corn Ethanol (average) 76
• Natural Gas (average) 62
• Diesel (average) 86
• Gasoline (average) 85
• Coal (average) 112

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Ethanol and Food Insecurity

• Ethanol is the source of much controversy some
  people want to increase its production as a more
  efficient fuel additive (to cut greenhouse gases)
  and others argue that using crops for fuel rather
  than food has decreased the global food supply
  and contributed to rising food prices.
• Some analysts have blamed biofuels for pushing up
  food prices as much as 30 to 60 per cent, while
  others argue biofuels have only increased food
  prices two to three per cent.

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Ethanol and Food Insecurity

• Brazils ethanol industry is based on using
  alcohol from sugar cane, which is not a food
  staple and is a more efficient source of ethanol
  than corn.
• One person could be fed for a year on the corn
  needed to fill an ethanol-fueled SUV.
• Farmers in some developed countries receive
  government subsidies to grow corn for ethanol
  11 to 12 billion US a year in subsidies and
  tariffs has diverted 100 million tonnes of
  cereals from human consumption.

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• Do the benefits of producing and using ethanol
  outweigh the costs to the global food supply.
• Suggest ways for moving forward in ethanol
  production. Is it possible to balance the needs
  for transportation fuel with environmental
  sustainability and global food security?

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• Instructions
• 1. Place each of the events out on chart paper
• 2. Use arrows to connect the different events to
  show how one event can cause another. Along the
  arrow, explain how the event is causing the other
  event. Remember, one event may have many causes
  and/or might impact on several other events. Your
  group might consider starting with the event card
  for Ethanol increases
• the demand for corn.
• Event Cards
• Ethanol increases the demand for corn
• More petroleum is needed
• Fewer other crops are planted
• Global hunger worsens
• More corn is planted
• Ethanol profits shrink
• Animal feed prices go up
• Corn exports shrink
• Farmers lose out
• Farmland prices go up
• Food prices go up
• Corn prices go up

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GMOs Genetically Modified Organisms
Broadly defined any microbe, plant, or animal
developed through breeding and
selection Narrowly defined organisms produced
by gene transfer techniques
Current examples of GMO Crops

• insect-resistant crops
• cotton
• potato
• corn

• herbicide-resistant crops
• soybean
• corn
• canola (rapeseed)
• many others

GMO Crops on the Horizon
Corn, soy, canola with improved
nutritional qualities for animal
feed Crops with specialty starches and oils for
industrial processes
Nutraceuticals Golden Rice Vaccines in
plants Improved yields and stress tolerance
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GMOs Why the Controversy?
Genetic engineering is a powerful new technology
that is in general poorly understood and whose
long term effects are unknown. GMOs are an
innovation that have and will continue to impact
all facets of the global agricultural economy.
Processing
Production
Consumer Products
Commodity Handling
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GMO Crops Two Major Issues
1. Environmental impacts 2. Increased
corporate control of agriculture
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GMOs and Environmental Impacts

• Genetic engineering creates novel genetic
  combinations
• All GMOs are tested for potential environmental
  impacts prior to sale
• influence on soil and water composition
• insect resistance management
• gene/trait transfer to weedy relatives
• interactions with agricultural environment

• GMO Crops Have Many Significant Environmental
  Benefits
• Reduced chemical pesticide and herbicide use
• More sustainable pest management
• Better erosion control through no-till practices
• Increased efficiency of production / unit fossil
  fuel energy expended

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• However,
• Effects on ecosystems
• If corn is grown to help stop caterpillars from
  eating plant, what else is it doing?
• http//www.gmo-safety.eu/en/
• Changes with pollination
• Unintentional transfer of genes
• Growth of super weeds

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Increased Corporate Control of Agriculture

• The Development of GM Crops is Expensive
• Intellectual property and patent protection
• Consolidation/vertical integration increases
  ability to capture profits

Ag-biotech is a recent example of a century-old
trend
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Questions

• Should companies be able to own the DNA contained
  in plant seeds?
• How does this situation compare to downloading
  music for free?
• How does this ownership of seeds compare to
  companies owning water? What are the
  consequences?

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Food and the Environment

• Organic Food - Foods produced without hormones,
  antibiotics, herbicides, insecticides, chemical
  fertilizers, genetic modification or germ-killing
  radiation 

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Organic Farming

• In 2007 there were 669 certified organic farms in
  Ontario with over 100,000 acres of certified
  cropland.
• 96 growth in farm numbers since 1997 and farm
  acreage growth of 150 over that period.
• Growth of organic food sales in North America is
  reported to be 15-20 per year for the past 10
  years and has grown from 4 Billion to over 22
  billion during that period for North America.

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Organic Farming and the Environment

• Pesticides now kill 67 million American birds per
  year 
• The Mississippi River dumps enough fertilizer
  into the Gulf of Mexico to maintain a 60 mile
  dead zone devoid of fish 

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Pesticides and Human Health

• India suffering from human health consequences of
  pesticide use 
• Infertility
• Cancer related deaths increasing
• Childhood cancers
• Mental retardation
• Research shows pesticides and fertilizers in the
  groundwater.

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Organic farming and the Environment

• Enhances soil structure
• Diverse crop rotations guarantee a better uptake
  of nutrient elements from the soil
• Conserves water
• Less chemicals in water,
• Sustained biodiversity
• In many countries, agriculture is the largest
  form of land use farmland habitats account for a
  great percentage of natural habitats

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100 mile diet

• A way to think locally about the food you eat.
• You are only allowed to consume food that comes
  from 100 miles (160km) from where you live

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Why Eat Local?

• Better tasting food
• Know where your food comes from
• Taste new foods
• Eat what is in season
• Give back to local economy
• Save the environment (?)
• This has been under scrutiny recently

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100 mile diet

• How would living on this diet change your daily
  eating routines?
• http//www.foodland.gov.on.ca/english/availability
  .html
• Make a list of foods that you could no longer eat
  if you were on this diet

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100 mile diet

• Show on Food TV
• Takes place in Mission BC
• http//100mile.foodtv.ca/video/watch-episode-1-onl
  ine-purge
• Fraser Valley area which is a good agricultural
  area

HERE!
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How to Eat Local

• http//farmersmarketsontario.com/MarketDetails.cfm
  ?uSearchStringuPageNum1uMarketID24
• Grow food in your own backyard
• Hens in your backyard?
• Guerilla gardening

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Homework

• 356-357
• What is Bt?
• What is the principal biotech crop in 2006?
• What are environmental effects of GMOs?
• P377 box 10.11
• What are 2 tips on reducing environmental damage
  with biocides?
• How can you protect yourself?
• P386-388
• Why should we use organic farming and what are
  its implications?