Agriculture: Key Issue 4

Why Do Farmers Face Economic Difficulties?

Rubenstein, pp. 329-338

● CHALLENGES FOR COMMERCIAL FARMERS – please look over Figure 10-24!

1. Who was von Thünen?

2. According to this model what two factors does a farmer consider when deciding what to plant?

a.

b.

3. Assuming the climate permits cultivation of two crops – “X” and “Y” - why might a farmer plant “crop X” if he is able to sell “crop Y” on the market for a higher price?

4. Draw a sketch of agricultural land use according to von Thünen.

5. List things that von Thünen did NOT consider in his model, but which influence farmers’ choices of crops. Note, these might be cited as weaknesses, or criticisms, of his model.

6. How could von Thünen’s model be applied at a global scale?

7. How have efficient agricultural practices, fertilizers, and mechanical equipment, etc. created a problem for commercial farmers?

8. How do some governments deal with a surplus of food?

9. What are the two principal practices that distinguish farmers practicing sustainable agriculture from those operating conventionally?

i.

ii.

10. List three advantages of ridge tillage.

a.

b.

c.

11. How does Sustainable Agriculture deal with Chemical use?

12. Explain the four way Sustainable Agriculture is sensitive to crops and livestock.

● CHALLENGES FOR SUBSISTENCE FARMERS

13. Esther Boserup disagreed with Thomas Malthus. She believed that as population grew, agricultural production would grow to keep up. Agriculture would keep up in two ways:

a. Adoption of new farming methods

b. Land is left fallow for shorter periods

Expand on both ideas.

A key point is was Boserup right or was Malthus right?

14. How does the increasing population play both a negative and positive role?

NEGATIVE POSITIVE

15. What is the dilemma that is faced by LDCs as they seek to increase the amount of export crops to sell to MDCs?

16. Some LDCs turn to the production of drug crops for export. The geography of these crops is distinctive. Identity the countries associated with the crops below.

Coca leaf
Marijuana
Opium

● STRATEGIES TO INCREASE FOOD SUPPLY

17. Four strategies have been proposed to increase the world’s food supply in places where populations are underfed.

·  Expand current ______land.

·  Increase agricultural ______.

·  Identify new food ______.

·  Increase ______from other countries.

18. There is little new land actually available for farming. In fact, the current trend is that agricultural land is decreasing. Identify and briefly describe three reasons why land is currently being removed from agricultural use.

a. Desertification -

b. Urbanization -

c. Too much water -

19a. List the two main practices of the Green Revolution. The Green Revolution began the Third Agricultural Revolution.

i.

ii.

19b. Because of the Green Revolution, agricultural productivity at a global scale has ______than ______.

19c. Describe the characteristics of the “miracle wheat seed.”

19d. Describe the characteristics of the “miracle rice seed.”

19e. What specific problems do farmers in LDC’s have which might prevent them from taking full advantage of the green revolution?

20. List and briefly describe one problem with each of the strategies for increasing the world’s food supply by identifying new food sources.

STRATEGY PROBLEM

a. Cultivating Oceans

b. High Protein Cereal

c. Eat rarely consumed foods

21a. What are the three top export grains in the world?

21b. Use the map on p. 338 and list the five largest grain exporting countries.

21c. Shade and label five of the largest grain importing countries AND show what country(ies) the imports are coming from.