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99-671: A farming and light industrial village, by the banks of the Seine , in the Pays de Caux , situated some 11 miles (18 km) east of Le Havre , at the junction of the D80 and D982 roads. The commune has two distinct parts: the north contains the village, farms and woodland , the south, separated by the A131 autoroute and the canal de Tancarville, has some port activity, a Renault factory and reclaimed marshland . This Le Havre geographical article

198-787: A lord of the manor with a Roman Catholic church and priest. Thanks to the exchange with the Al-Andalus where the Arab Agricultural Revolution was underway, European agriculture transformed, with improved techniques and the diffusion of crop plants, including the introduction of sugar, rice, cotton and fruit trees (such as the orange). After 1492, the Columbian exchange brought New World crops such as maize, potatoes, tomatoes, sweet potatoes , and manioc to Europe, and Old World crops such as wheat, barley, rice, and turnips , and livestock (including horses, cattle, sheep and goats) to

297-466: A combination of labor supply and labor demand trends have driven down the share of population employed in agriculture. During the 16th century in Europe, between 55 and 75% of the population was engaged in agriculture; by the 19th century, this had dropped to between 35 and 65%. In the same countries today, the figure is less than 10%. At the start of the 21st century, some one billion people, or over 1/3 of

396-416: A decline in biodiversity greater than 20% on average. A 2021 study says that just 3% of the planet's terrestrial surface is ecologically and faunally intact, meaning areas with healthy populations of native animal species and little to no human footprint. Many of these intact ecosystems were in areas inhabited by indigenous peoples. With 3.2 billion people affected globally, degradation affects over 30% of

495-411: A depletion of groundwater, as climate change can affect the hydrologic cycle in a number of ways. Uneven distributions of increased temperatures and increased precipitation around the globe results in water surpluses and deficits, but a global decrease in groundwater suggests a rise in sea level, even after meltwater and thermal expansion were accounted for, which can provide a positive feedback to

594-471: A fertilizer for crops. Environmental degradation Environmental degradation is the deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources such as quality of air , water and soil ; the destruction of ecosystems ; habitat destruction ; the extinction of wildlife ; and pollution . It is defined as any change or disturbance to the environment perceived to be deleterious or undesirable. The environmental degradation process amplifies

693-664: A hazardous industry, and farmers worldwide remain at high risk of work-related injuries, lung disease, noise-induced hearing loss , skin diseases, as well as certain cancers related to chemical use and prolonged sun exposure. On industrialized farms , injuries frequently involve the use of agricultural machinery , and a common cause of fatal agricultural injuries in developed countries is tractor rollovers . Pesticides and other chemicals used in farming can be hazardous to worker health , and workers exposed to pesticides may experience illness or have children with birth defects. As an industry in which families commonly share in work and live on

792-444: A high use of inputs (water, fertilizer, pesticide and automation). It is practiced mainly in developed countries. From the twentieth century onwards, intensive agriculture increased crop productivity. It substituted synthetic fertilizers and pesticides for labor, but caused increased water pollution, and often involved farm subsidies. Soil degradation and diseases such as stem rust are major concerns globally; approximately 40% of

891-447: A positive note, the gender gap in access to mobile internet in low- and middle-income countries fell from 25 percent to 16 percent between 2017 and 2021, and the gender gap in access to bank accounts narrowed from 9 to 6 percentage points. Women are as likely as men to adopt new technologies when the necessary enabling factors are put in place and they have equal access to complementary resources. Agriculture, specifically farming, remains

990-448: A possible increase in evaporation and evapotranspiration will result, depending on the accompanied rise in temperature. Groundwater reserves will be depleted, and the remaining water has a greater chance of being of poor quality from saline or contaminants on the land surface. Climate change is resulting into a very high rate of land degradation causing enhanced desertification and nutrient deficient soils. The menace of land degradation

1089-421: A quarter of the global population is living in an area that is using more than 20% of their renewable water supply; water use will rise with population while the water supply is also being aggravated by decreases in streamflow and groundwater caused by climate change. Even though some areas may see an increase in freshwater supply from an uneven distribution of precipitation increase, an increased use of water supply

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1188-642: A rapid rise in water melting from glaciers in the summer, followed by a retreat in glaciers and a decrease in the melt and consequently the water supply every year as the size of these glaciers get smaller and smaller. Thermal expansion of water and increased melting of oceanic glaciers from an increase in temperature gives way to a rise in sea level. This can affect the freshwater supply to coastal areas as well. As river mouths and deltas with higher salinity get pushed further inland, an intrusion of saltwater results in an increase of salinity in reservoirs and aquifers. Sea-level rise may also consequently be caused by

1287-404: A significant decrease in genetic diversity and resources among livestock breeds, leading to a corresponding decrease in disease resistance and local adaptations previously found among traditional breeds. Grassland based livestock production relies upon plant material such as shrubland , rangeland , and pastures for feeding ruminant animals. Outside nutrient inputs may be used, however manure

1386-485: A small area of forest is cleared by cutting and burning the trees. The cleared land is used for growing crops for a few years until the soil becomes too infertile, and the area is abandoned. Another patch of land is selected and the process is repeated. This type of farming is practiced mainly in areas with abundant rainfall where the forest regenerates quickly. This practice is used in Northeast India, Southeast Asia, and

1485-552: A year, or requiring irrigation. In all of these environments perennial crops are grown (coffee, chocolate) and systems are practiced such as agroforestry . In temperate environments, where ecosystems were predominantly grassland or prairie , highly productive annual farming is the dominant agricultural system. Important categories of food crops include cereals, legumes, forage, fruits and vegetables. Natural fibers include cotton, wool , hemp , silk and flax . Specific crops are cultivated in distinct growing regions throughout

1584-470: A yearly summit to discuss safety. Overall production varies by country as listed. The twenty largest countries by agricultural output (in nominal terms) at peak level as of 2018, according to the IMF and CIA World Factbook . Cropping systems vary among farms depending on the available resources and constraints; geography and climate of the farm; government policy; economic, social and political pressures; and

1683-655: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Farming Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture , and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization , whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to live in the cities. While humans started gathering grains at least 105,000 years ago, nascent farmers only began planting them around 11,500 years ago. Sheep, goats, pigs, and cattle were domesticated around 10,000 years ago. Plants were independently cultivated in at least 11 regions of

1782-571: Is a hybrid of a Chilean and a North American species, developed by breeding in Europe and North America. The indigenous people of the Southwest and the Pacific Northwest practiced forest gardening and fire-stick farming . The natives controlled fire on a regional scale to create a low-intensity fire ecology that sustained a low-density agriculture in loose rotation; a sort of "wild" permaculture . A system of companion planting called

1881-401: Is accompanied by an increase in population demand for natural resources. With the need for more production increases comes more damage to the environments and ecosystems in which those resources are housed. According to United Nations' population growth predictions, there could be up to 170 million more births by 2070. The need for more fuel, energy, food, buildings, and water sources grows with

1980-515: Is an important cause of involuntary migration and forced displacement According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, global greenhouse gas emissions from animal agriculture exceeds that of transportation. Water management is the process of planning, developing, and managing water resources across all water applications, in terms of both quantity and quality." Water management

2079-407: Is an increasing problem due to many foreseen issues in the future including population growth, increased urbanization , higher standards of living , and climate change. Industrial and domestic sewage, pesticides, fertilizers, plankton blooms, silt, oils, chemical residues, radioactive material, and other pollutants are some of the most frequent water pollutants. These have a huge negative impact on

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2178-626: Is both a cause of and sensitive to environmental degradation , such as biodiversity loss , desertification , soil degradation , and climate change , all of which can cause decreases in crop yield. Genetically modified organisms are widely used, although some countries ban them . The word agriculture is a late Middle English adaptation of Latin agricultūra , from ager 'field' and cultūra ' cultivation ' or 'growing'. While agriculture usually refers to human activities, certain species of ant , termite and beetle have been cultivating crops for up to 60 million years. Agriculture

2277-444: Is defined with varying scopes, in its broadest sense using natural resources to "produce commodities which maintain life, including food, fiber, forest products, horticultural crops, and their related services". Thus defined, it includes arable farming , horticulture, animal husbandry and forestry , but horticulture and forestry are in practice often excluded. It may also be broadly decomposed into plant agriculture , which concerns

2376-448: Is directed towards global warming and greenhouse effect , some of the most severe effects of climate change are likely to be from changes in precipitation, evapotranspiration , runoff, and soil moisture. It is generally expected that, on average, global precipitation will increase, with some areas receiving increases and some decreases. Climate models show that while some regions should expect an increase in precipitation, such as in

2475-455: Is expanding rapidly, which together with even more rapid economic growth is the main cause of the degradation of the environment. Humanity's appetite for resources is disrupting the environment's natural equilibrium. Production industries are venting smoke into the atmosphere and discharging chemicals that are polluting water resources. The smoke includes detrimental gases such as carbon monoxide and sulphur dioxide. The high levels of pollution in

2574-470: Is expected. An increased population means increased withdrawals from the water supply for domestic, agricultural, and industrial uses, the largest of these being agriculture, believed to be the major non-climate driver of environmental change and water deterioration. The next 50 years will likely be the last period of rapid agricultural expansion , but the larger and wealthier population over this time will demand more agriculture. Population increase over

2673-433: Is increasing by the day and has been characterized as a major global threat. According to Global Assessment of Land Degradation and Improvement (GLADA) a quarter of land area around the globe can now be marked as degraded. Land degradation is supposed to influence lives of 1.5 billion people and 15 billion tons of fertile soil is lost every year due to anthropogenic activities and climate change. The human population on Earth

2772-977: Is one commodity expected to double global food demand by 2050, which directly affects the global supply of fresh water. Cows need water to drink, more if the temperature is high and humidity is low, and more if the production system the cow is in is extensive, since finding food takes more effort. Water is needed in the processing of the meat, and also in the production of feed for the livestock. Manure can contaminate bodies of freshwater, and slaughterhouses, depending on how well they are managed, contribute waste such as blood, fat, hair, and other bodily contents to supplies of fresh water. The transfer of water from agricultural to urban and suburban use raises concerns about agricultural sustainability, rural socioeconomic decline, food security, an increased carbon footprint from imported food, and decreased foreign trade balance. The depletion of fresh water, as applied to more specific and populated areas, increases fresh water scarcity among

2871-438: Is returned directly to the grassland as a major nutrient source. This system is particularly important in areas where crop production is not feasible because of climate or soil, representing 30–40 million pastoralists. Mixed production systems use grassland, fodder crops and grain feed crops as feed for ruminant and monogastric (one stomach; mainly chickens and pigs) livestock. Manure is typically recycled in mixed systems as

2970-587: Is supported and guided by institutions, infrastructure, incentives, and information systems The issue of the depletion of fresh water has stimulated increased efforts in water management. While water management systems are often flexible, adaptation to new hydrologic conditions may be very costly. Preventative approaches are necessary to avoid high costs of inefficiency and the need for rehabilitation of water supplies , and innovations to decrease overall demand may be important in planning water sustainability. Water supply systems, as they exist now, were based on

3069-485: Is the depletion of the resource of fresh water on Earth. Approximately only 2.5% of all of the water on Earth is fresh water , with the rest being salt water . 69% of fresh water is frozen in ice caps located on Antarctica and Greenland , so only 30% of the 2.5% of fresh water is available for consumption. Fresh water is an exceptionally important resource, since life on Earth is ultimately dependent on it. Water transports nutrients, minerals and chemicals within

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3168-471: Is used for industrial purposes such as processing, washing, and cooling in manufacturing centres. It is estimated that one in three people over the entire globe are already facing water shortages, almost one-fifth of the world population live in areas of physical water scarcity , and almost one quarter of the world's population live in a developing country that lacks the necessary infrastructure to use water from available rivers and aquifers. Water scarcity

3267-494: The Indus Valley civilization . In China, from the 5th century BC, there was a nationwide granary system and widespread silk farming . Water-powered grain mills were in use by the 1st century BC, followed by irrigation. By the late 2nd century, heavy ploughs had been developed with iron ploughshares and mouldboards . These spread westwards across Eurasia. Asian rice was domesticated 8,200–13,500 years ago – depending on

3366-572: The Paleolithic , after 10,000 BC. Staple food crops were grains such as wheat and barley, alongside industrial crops such as flax and papyrus . In India , wheat, barley and jujube were domesticated by 9,000 BC, soon followed by sheep and goats. Cattle, sheep and goats were domesticated in Mehrgarh culture by 8,000–6,000 BC. Cotton was cultivated by the 5th–4th millennium BC. Archeological evidence indicates an animal-drawn plough from 2,500 BC in

3465-504: The Tigris and Euphrates rivers and a canal system for irrigation. Ploughs appear in pictographs around 3,000 BC; seed-ploughs around 2,300 BC. Farmers grew wheat, barley, vegetables such as lentils and onions, and fruits including dates, grapes, and figs. Ancient Egyptian agriculture relied on the Nile River and its seasonal flooding. Farming started in the predynastic period at the end of

3564-467: The biosphere to all forms of life, sustains both plants and animals, and moulds the surface of the Earth with transportation and deposition of materials. The current top three uses of fresh water account for 95% of its consumption; approximately 85% is used for irrigation of farmland, golf courses, and parks, 6% is used for domestic purposes such as indoor bathing uses and outdoor garden and lawn use, and 4%

3663-613: The molecular clock estimate that is used – on the Pearl River in southern China with a single genetic origin from the wild rice Oryza rufipogon . In Greece and Rome , the major cereals were wheat, emmer, and barley, alongside vegetables including peas, beans, and olives. Sheep and goats were kept mainly for dairy products. In the Americas, crops domesticated in Mesoamerica (apart from teosinte) include squash, beans, and cacao . Cocoa

3762-536: The organic movement . Unsustainable farming practices in North America led to the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. Pastoralism involves managing domesticated animals. In nomadic pastoralism , herds of livestock are moved from place to place in search of pasture, fodder, and water. This type of farming is practiced in arid and semi-arid regions of Sahara , Central Asia and some parts of India. In shifting cultivation ,

3861-528: The Amazon Basin. Subsistence farming is practiced to satisfy family or local needs alone, with little left over for transport elsewhere. It is intensively practiced in Monsoon Asia and South-East Asia. An estimated 2.5 billion subsistence farmers worked in 2018, cultivating about 60% of the earth's arable land . Intensive farming is cultivation to maximize productivity, with a low fallow ratio and

3960-547: The Americas. Irrigation , crop rotation , and fertilizers advanced from the 17th century with the British Agricultural Revolution , allowing global population to rise significantly. Since 1900, agriculture in developed nations, and to a lesser extent in the developing world, has seen large rises in productivity as mechanization replaces human labor, and assisted by synthetic fertilizers , pesticides, and selective breeding . The Haber-Bosch method allowed

4059-568: The Paleolithic Levant, 23,000 years ago, cereals cultivation of emmer , barley , and oats has been observed near the sea of Galilee. Rice was domesticated in China between 11,500 and 6,200 BC with the earliest known cultivation from 5,700 BC, followed by mung , soy and azuki beans. Sheep were domesticated in Mesopotamia between 13,000 and 11,000 years ago. Cattle were domesticated from

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4158-479: The Three Sisters was developed in North America. The three crops were winter squash , maize, and climbing beans. Indigenous Australians , long supposed to have been nomadic hunter-gatherers , practiced systematic burning, possibly to enhance natural productivity in fire-stick farming. Scholars have pointed out that hunter-gatherers need a productive environment to support gathering without cultivation. Because

4257-543: The United Nation's IPBES in 2019, posits that roughly one million species of plants and animals face extinction from anthropogenic causes, such as expanding human land use for industrial agriculture and livestock rearing, along with overfishing . Since the establishment of agriculture over 11,000 years ago, humans have altered roughly 70% of the Earth's land surface, with the global biomass of vegetation being reduced by half, and terrestrial animal communities seeing

4356-729: The United Nations (FAO) posits that the roles and responsibilities of women in agriculture may be changing – for example, from subsistence farming to wage employment, and from contributing household members to primary producers in the context of male-out-migration. In general, women account for a greater share of agricultural employment at lower levels of economic development, as inadequate education, limited access to basic infrastructure and markets, high unpaid work burden and poor rural employment opportunities outside agriculture severely limit women's opportunities for off-farm work. Women who work in agricultural production tend to do so under highly unfavorable conditions. They tend to be concentrated in

4455-517: The United States is roughly 1.7 times more productive than it was in 1948. Agriculture employed 873 million people in 2021, or 27% of the global workforce, compared with 1 027 million (or 40%) in 2000. The share of agriculture in global GDP was stable at around 4% since 2000–2023. Despite increases in agricultural production and productivity, between 702 and 828 million people were affected by hunger in 2021. Food insecurity and malnutrition can be

4554-496: The aftermath, greatly increasing their load of unpaid care work. Also, as limited natural resources grow even scarcer due to climate change, women and girls must also walk further to collect food, water or firewood, which heightens their risk of being subjected to gender-based violence. This implies, for example, longer journeys to get primary necessities and greater exposure to the risks of human trafficking, rape, and sexual violence. One major component of environmental degradation

4653-484: The amount of water available to replenish groundwater supplies. Transpiration from plants can be affected by a rise in atmospheric CO 2 , which can decrease their use of water, but can also raise their use of water from possible increases of leaf area. Temperature rise can reduce the snow season in the winter and increase the intensity of the melting snow leading to peak runoff of this, affecting soil moisture, flood and drought risks, and storage capacities depending on

4752-530: The annual work-related death toll among agricultural employees is at least 170,000, twice the average rate of other jobs. In addition, incidences of death, injury and illness related to agricultural activities often go unreported. The organization has developed the Safety and Health in Agriculture Convention, 2001 , which covers the range of risks in the agriculture occupation, the prevention of these risks and

4851-417: The area. Warmer winter temperatures cause a decrease in snowpack , which can result in diminished water resources during summer. This is especially important at mid-latitudes and in mountain regions that depend on glacial runoff to replenish their river systems and groundwater supplies, making these areas increasingly vulnerable to water shortages over time; an increase in temperature will initially result in

4950-508: The assumptions of the current climate, and built to accommodate existing river flows and flood frequencies. Reservoirs are operated based on past hydrologic records, and irrigation systems on historical temperature, water availability, and crop water requirements; these may not be a reliable guide to the future. Re-examining engineering designs, operations, optimizations, and planning, as well as re-evaluating legal, technical, and economic approaches to manage water resources are very important for

5049-412: The atmosphere form layers that are eventually absorbed into the atmosphere. Organic compounds such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) have generated an opening in the ozone layer, which admits higher levels of ultraviolet radiation, putting the globe at risk. The available fresh water being affected by the climate is also being stretched across an ever-increasing global population. It is estimated that almost

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5148-553: The available work force, were employed in agriculture. This constitutes approximately 70% of the global employment of children, and in many countries constitutes the largest percentage of women of any industry. The service sector overtook the agricultural sector as the largest global employer in 2007. In many developed countries, immigrants help fill labor shortages in high-value agriculture activities that are difficult to mechanize. Foreign farm workers from mostly Eastern Europe, North Africa and South Asia constituted around one-third of

5247-580: The central west coast and eastern central, early farmers cultivated yams, native millet, and bush onions, possibly in permanent settlements. In the Middle Ages , compared to the Roman period , agriculture in Western Europe became more focused on self-sufficiency . The agricultural population under feudalism was typically organized into manors consisting of several hundred or more acres of land presided over by

5346-468: The cultivation of useful plants, and animal agriculture , the production of agricultural animals. The development of agriculture enabled the human population to grow many times larger than could be sustained by hunting and gathering . Agriculture began independently in different parts of the globe, and included a diverse range of taxa , in at least 11 separate centers of origin . Wild grains were collected and eaten from at least 105,000 years ago. In

5445-626: The distribution of precipitation across the planet is very uneven, causing constant variations in water availability in respective locations. Changes in precipitation affect the timing and magnitude of floods and droughts, shift runoff processes, and alter groundwater recharge rates. Vegetation patterns and growth rates will be directly affected by shifts in precipitation amount and distribution, which will in turn affect agriculture as well as natural ecosystems. Decreased precipitation will deprive areas of water causing water tables to fall and reservoirs of wetlands, rivers, and lakes to empty. In addition,

5544-656: The domestication of squash (Cucurbita) and other plants. Coca was domesticated in the Andes, as were the peanut, tomato, tobacco, and pineapple . Cotton was domesticated in Peru by 3,600 BC. Animals including llamas , alpacas , and guinea pigs were domesticated there. In North America , the indigenous people of the East domesticated crops such as sunflower , tobacco, squash and Chenopodium . Wild foods including wild rice and maple sugar were harvested. The domesticated strawberry

5643-535: The environment is degraded; direct environmental degradation, such as deforestation, which is readily visible; this can be caused by more indirect process, such as the build up of plastic pollution over time or the buildup of greenhouse gases that causes tipping points in the climate system . Efforts to counteract this problem include environmental protection and environmental resources management . Mismanagement that leads to degradation can also lead to environmental conflict where communities organize in opposition to

5742-432: The farm itself, entire families can be at risk for injuries, illness, and death. Ages 0–6 may be an especially vulnerable population in agriculture; common causes of fatal injuries among young farm workers include drowning, machinery and motor accidents, including with all-terrain vehicles. The International Labor Organization considers agriculture "one of the most hazardous of all economic sectors". It estimates that

5841-687: The forces that mismanaged the environment. Scientists assert that human activity has pushed the earth into a sixth mass extinction event. The loss of biodiversity has been attributed in particular to human overpopulation , continued human population growth and overconsumption of natural resources by the world's wealthy. A 2020 report by the World Wildlife Fund found that human activity – specifically overconsumption, population growth and intensive farming – has destroyed 68% of vertebrate wildlife since 1970. The Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services , published by

5940-430: The forests of New Guinea have few food plants, early humans may have used "selective burning" to increase the productivity of the wild karuka fruit trees to support the hunter-gatherer way of life. The Gunditjmara and other groups developed eel farming and fish trapping systems from some 5,000 years ago. There is evidence of 'intensification' across the whole continent over that period. In two regions of Australia,

6039-424: The future of water management in response to water degradation. Another approach is water privatization ; despite its economic and cultural effects, service quality and overall quality of the water can be more easily controlled and distributed. Rationality and sustainability is appropriate, and requires limits to overexploitation and pollution and efforts in conservation. As the world's population increases, it

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6138-422: The greater use of pesticides and fertilizers. Multiple cropping , in which several crops are grown sequentially in one year, and intercropping , when several crops are grown at the same time, are other kinds of annual cropping systems known as polycultures . In subtropical and arid environments, the timing and extent of agriculture may be limited by rainfall, either not allowing multiple annual crops in

6237-692: The impact of environmental issues which leave lasting impacts on the environment. Environmental degradation is one of the ten threats officially cautioned by the High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change of the United Nations . The United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction defines environmental degradation as "the reduction of the capacity of the environment to meet social and ecological objectives, and needs". Environmental degradation comes in many types. When natural habitats are destroyed or natural resources are depleted,

6336-441: The input of nutrients (fertilizer or manure ) and some manual pest control . Annual cultivation is the next phase of intensity in which there is no fallow period. This requires even greater nutrient and pest control inputs. Further industrialization led to the use of monocultures , when one cultivar is planted on a large acreage. Because of the low biodiversity , nutrient use is uniform and pests tend to build up, necessitating

6435-480: The last two decades, at least in the United States, has also been accompanied by a shift to an increase in urban areas from rural areas, which concentrates the demand for water into certain areas, and puts stress on the fresh water supply from industrial and human contaminants. Urbanization causes overcrowding and increasingly unsanitary living conditions, especially in developing countries, which in turn exposes an increasingly number of people to disease. About 79% of

6534-469: The lower yield associated with organic farming and its impact on global food security . Recent mainstream technological developments include genetically modified food . By 2015, the agricultural output of China was the largest in the world, followed by the European Union, India and the United States. Economists measure the total factor productivity of agriculture, according to which agriculture in

6633-433: The natural enemies of pests, soil organisms and wild food species, are in decline as a consequence of the destruction and degradation of habitats, overexploitation, pollution and other threats" and that "key ecosystems that deliver numerous services essential to food and agriculture, including supply of freshwater, protection against hazards and provision of habitat for species such as fish and pollinators, are declining." On

6732-544: The number of people on the planet. As the need for new agricultural areas and road construction increases, the deforestation processes stay in effect. Deforestation is the "removal of forest or stand of trees from land that is converted to non-forest use." ( Misplaced Pages-Deforestation ). Since the 1960s, nearly 50% of tropical forests have been destroyed, but this process is not limited to tropical forest areas. Europe's forests are also destroyed by livestock, insects, diseases, invasive species , and other human activities. Many of

6831-534: The output, such as evapotranspiration , surface runoff , drainage, and percolation into groundwater. Changes in climate, especially the changes in precipitation and evapotranspiration predicted by climate models, will directly affect soil moisture, surface runoff, and groundwater recharge . In areas with decreasing precipitation as predicted by the climate models, soil moisture may be substantially reduced. With this in mind, agriculture in most areas already needs irrigation, which depletes fresh water supplies both by

6930-437: The philosophy and culture of the farmer. Shifting cultivation (or slash and burn ) is a system in which forests are burnt, releasing nutrients to support cultivation of annual and then perennial crops for a period of several years. Then the plot is left fallow to regrow forest, and the farmer moves to a new plot, returning after many more years (10–20). This fallow period is shortened if population density grows, requiring

7029-550: The physical use of the water and the degradation agriculture causes to the water. Irrigation increases salt and nutrient content in areas that would not normally be affected, and damages streams and rivers from damming and removal of water. Fertilizer enters both human and livestock waste streams that eventually enter groundwater, while nitrogen, phosphorus, and other chemicals from fertilizer can acidify both soils and water. Certain agricultural demands may increase more than others with an increasingly wealthier global population, and meat

7128-414: The poorest countries, where alternative livelihoods are not available, and they maintain the intensity of their work in conditions of climate-induced weather shocks and in situations of conflict. Women are less likely to participate as entrepreneurs and independent farmers and are engaged in the production of less lucrative crops. The gender gap in land productivity between female- and male managed farms of

7227-433: The population and also makes populations susceptible to economic, social, and political conflict in a number of ways; rising sea levels forces migration from coastal areas to other areas farther inland, pushing populations closer together breaching borders and other geographical patterns, and agricultural surpluses and deficits from the availability of water induce trade problems and economies of certain areas. Climate change

7326-484: The problems sea-level rise causes to fresh-water supply. A rise in air temperature results in a rise in water temperature, which is also very significant in water degradation as the water would become more susceptible to bacterial growth . An increase in water temperature can also affect ecosystems greatly because of a species' sensitivity to temperature, and also by inducing changes in a body of water's self-purification system from decreased amounts of dissolved oxygen in

7425-440: The production of fish for human consumption in confined operations, is one of the fastest growing sectors of food production, growing at an average of 9% a year between 1975 and 2007. During the second half of the 20th century, producers using selective breeding focused on creating livestock breeds and crossbreeds that increased production, while mostly disregarding the need to preserve genetic diversity . This trend has led to

7524-477: The result of conflict, climate extremes and variability and economic swings. It can also be caused by a country's structural characteristics such as income status and natural resource endowments as well as its political economy. Pesticide use in agriculture went up 62% between 2000 and 2021, with the Americas accounting for half the use in 2021. The International Fund for Agricultural Development posits that an increase in smallholder agriculture may be part of

7623-844: The role that individuals and organizations engaged in agriculture should play. In the United States, agriculture has been identified by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health as a priority industry sector in the National Occupational Research Agenda to identify and provide intervention strategies for occupational health and safety issues. In the European Union, the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work has issued guidelines on implementing health and safety directives in agriculture, livestock farming, horticulture, and forestry. The Agricultural Safety and Health Council of America (ASHCA) also holds

7722-474: The salaried agricultural workforce in Spain, Italy, Greece and Portugal in 2013. In the United States of America, more than half of all hired farmworkers (roughly 450,000 workers) were immigrants in 2019, although the number of new immigrants arriving in the country to work in agriculture has fallen by 75 percent in recent years and rising wages indicate this has led to a major labor shortage on U.S. farms. Around

7821-439: The same size is 24 percent. On average, women earn 18.4 percent less than men in wage employment in agriculture; this means that women receive 82 cents for every dollar earned by men. Progress has been slow in closing gaps in women's access to irrigation and in ownership of livestock, too. Women in agriculture still have significantly less access than men to inputs, including improved seeds, fertilizers and mechanized equipment. On

7920-488: The solution to concerns about food prices and overall food security , given the favorable experience of Vietnam. Agriculture provides about one-quarter of all global employment, more than half in sub-Saharan Africa and almost 60 percent in low-income countries. As countries develop, other jobs have historically pulled workers away from agriculture, and labor-saving innovations increase agricultural productivity by reducing labor requirements per unit of output. Over time,

8019-400: The synthesis of ammonium nitrate fertilizer on an industrial scale, greatly increasing crop yields and sustaining a further increase in global population. Modern agriculture has raised or encountered ecological, political, and economic issues including water pollution , biofuels , genetically modified organisms , tariffs and farm subsidies , leading to alternative approaches such as

8118-655: The transition from hunter-gatherer to agricultural societies indicate an initial period of intensification and increasing sedentism ; examples are the Natufian culture in the Levant , and the Early Chinese Neolithic in China. Then, wild stands that had previously been harvested started to be planted, and gradually came to be domesticated. In Eurasia, the Sumerians started to live in villages from about 8,000 BC, relying on

8217-406: The tropics and higher latitudes, other areas are expected to see a decrease, such as in the subtropics. This will ultimately cause a latitudinal variation in water distribution. The areas receiving more precipitation are also expected to receive this increase during their winter and actually become drier during their summer, creating even more of a variation of precipitation distribution. Naturally,

8316-476: The water and can cause degradation in various levels. Climate change affects the Earth's water supply in a large number of ways. It is predicted that the mean global temperature will rise in the coming years due to a number of forces affecting the climate. The amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) will rise, and both of these will influence water resources; evaporation depends strongly on temperature and moisture availability which can ultimately affect

8415-422: The water due to rises in temperature. A rise in global temperatures is also predicted to correlate with an increase in global precipitation but because of increased runoff, floods, increased rates of soil erosion , and mass movement of land, a decline in water quality is probable, because while water will carry more nutrients it will also carry more contaminants. While most of the attention about climate change

8514-520: The way biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation impact livelihoods, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations finds also that in contexts of degraded lands and ecosystems in rural areas, both girls and women bear heavier workloads. Women's livelihoods, health, food and nutrition security, access to water and energy, and coping abilities are all disproportionately affected by environmental degradation. Environmental pressures and shocks, particularly in rural areas, force women to deal with

8613-656: The wild aurochs in the areas of modern Turkey and Pakistan some 10,500 years ago. Pig production emerged in Eurasia, including Europe, East Asia and Southwest Asia, where wild boar were first domesticated about 10,500 years ago. In the Andes of South America, the potato was domesticated between 10,000 and 7,000 years ago, along with beans, coca , llamas , alpacas , and guinea pigs . Sugarcane and some root vegetables were domesticated in New Guinea around 9,000 years ago. Sorghum

8712-744: The world consist of fewer than 2 hectares (4.9 acres), and take up only around 12% of all agricultural land. Farms and farming greatly influence rural economics and greatly shape rural society , affecting both the direct agricultural workforce and broader businesses that support the farms and farming populations. The major agricultural products can be broadly grouped into foods , fibers , fuels , and raw materials (such as rubber ). Food classes include cereals ( grains ), vegetables , fruits , cooking oils , meat , milk , eggs , and fungi . Global agricultural production amounts to approximately 11 billion tonnes of food, 32 million tonnes of natural fibers and 4 billion m of wood. However, around 14% of

8811-774: The world's agricultural land is seriously degraded. In recent years there has been a backlash against the environmental effects of conventional agriculture, resulting in the organic , regenerative , and sustainable agriculture movements. One of the major forces behind this movement has been the European Union , which first certified organic food in 1991 and began reform of its Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in 2005 to phase out commodity-linked farm subsidies, also known as decoupling . The growth of organic farming has renewed research in alternative technologies such as integrated pest management , selective breeding, and controlled-environment agriculture . There are concerns about

8910-664: The world's food is lost from production before reaching the retail level. Modern agronomy , plant breeding , agrochemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers , and technological developments have sharply increased crop yields , but also contributed to ecological and environmental damage . Selective breeding and modern practices in animal husbandry have similarly increased the output of meat, but have raised concerns about animal welfare and environmental damage. Environmental issues include contributions to climate change , depletion of aquifers , deforestation , antibiotic resistance , and other agricultural pollution . Agriculture

9009-577: The world's land area and 40% of land in developing countries. The implications of these losses for human livelihoods and wellbeing have raised serious concerns. With regard to the agriculture sector for example, The State of the World's Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture , published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 2019, states that "countries report that many species that contribute to vital ecosystem services , including pollinators,

9108-399: The world's population is in developing countries, which lack access to sanitary water and sewer systems, giving rises to disease and deaths from contaminated water and increased numbers of disease-carrying insects. Agriculture is dependent on available soil moisture , which is directly affected by climate dynamics, with precipitation being the input in this system and various processes being

9207-419: The world's terrestrial biodiversity can be found living in the different types of forests. Tearing down these areas for increased consumption directly decreases the world's biodiversity of plant and animal species native to those areas. Along with destroying habitats and ecosystems, decreasing the world's forest contributes to the amount of CO 2 in the atmosphere. By taking away forested areas, we are limiting

9306-435: The world, women make up a large share of the population employed in agriculture. This share is growing in all developing regions except East and Southeast Asia where women already make up about 50 percent of the agricultural workforce. Women make up 47 percent of the agricultural workforce in sub-Saharan Africa, a rate that has not changed significantly in the past few decades. However, the Food and Agriculture Organization of

9405-495: The world. In the 20th century, industrial agriculture based on large-scale monocultures came to dominate agricultural output. As of 2021 , small farms produce about one-third of the world's food, but large farms are prevalent. The largest 1% of farms in the world are greater than 50 hectares (120 acres) and operate more than 70% of the world's farmland. Nearly 40% of agricultural land is found on farms larger than 1,000 hectares (2,500 acres). However, five of every six farms in

9504-621: The world. Production is listed in millions of metric tons, based on FAO estimates. Animal husbandry is the breeding and raising of animals for meat, milk, eggs , or wool , and for work and transport. Working animals , including horses, mules , oxen , water buffalo , camels, llamas, alpacas, donkeys, and dogs, have for centuries been used to help cultivate fields, harvest crops, wrangle other animals, and transport farm products to buyers. Livestock production systems can be defined based on feed source, as grassland-based, mixed, and landless. As of 2010 , 30% of Earth's ice- and water-free area

9603-621: Was domesticated by the Mayo Chinchipe of the upper Amazon around 3,000 BC. The turkey was probably domesticated in Mexico or the American Southwest. The Aztecs developed irrigation systems, formed terraced hillsides, fertilized their soil, and developed chinampas or artificial islands. The Mayas used extensive canal and raised field systems to farm swampland from 400 BC. In South America agriculture may have begun about 9000 BC with

9702-548: Was domesticated in the Sahel region of Africa by 7,000 years ago. Cotton was domesticated in Peru by 5,600 years ago, and was independently domesticated in Eurasia. In Mesoamerica , wild teosinte was bred into maize (corn) from 10,000 to 6,000 years ago. The horse was domesticated in the Eurasian Steppes around 3500 BC. Scholars have offered multiple hypotheses to explain the historical origins of agriculture. Studies of

9801-584: Was used for producing livestock, with the sector employing approximately 1.3 billion people. Between the 1960s and the 2000s, there was a significant increase in livestock production, both by numbers and by carcass weight, especially among beef, pigs and chickens, the latter of which had production increased by almost a factor of 10. Non-meat animals, such as milk cows and egg-producing chickens, also showed significant production increases. Global cattle, sheep and goat populations are expected to continue to increase sharply through 2050. Aquaculture or fish farming,

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