Industrial agriculture would not be profitable for agricultural corporations and would not produce food that was so cheap for the consumer if corporations had to pay all of these costs. Industrialized agriculture is supported by taxpayer subsidies overtly by way of artificially low grain prices and tax breaks. Animal feed , a key element of industrialized agriculture, is made from corn and soybeans that are cheap for feed companies to purchase owing to government subsidies.
A Tufts University study found that the cost advantages of industrial producers would be significantly or entirely eliminated if they had to pay full production cost for their feed. Many states also provide sales tax exemptions for farm supplies, from animal feed to equipment. The exemptions benefit all farmers, but they provide much greater benefit to large, industrialized farms that purchase many more inputs and bigger implements than to smaller, diversified operations.
State sales tax exemptions are especially common for the construction and operation of concentrated animal feeding operations CAFOs , including livestock bedding, poultry litter and pollution control — which means, in practice, construction and management of manure lagoons. Industrial agriculture consumes finite resources without replenishing them, including the resources on which it depends, including soil nutrients , fossil fuels and water.
Sustainable agriculture produces its own inputs fertilizer from animals, feed grown on the land and manages its outputs crop waste, manure in a closed loop cycle.
It contributes to soil fertility, clean water systems, biodiversity and other ecosystem services, rather than depleting them. There has long been interest in sustainable agriculture, but since the mids traction has been gaining.
Truly sustainable farms do not use chemical pesticides, fertilizers or genetically modified seeds. They do not dispose of vast amounts of untreated manure by spreading it in toxic quantities on cropland. They instead grow a diversity of crops, raise animals primarily on pasture and use techniques such as crop rotation, cover cropping, beneficial insects and other non-synthetic methods of pest control and fertilization.
These practices increase organic matter in the soil, sequester carbon and support biodiversity. Many sustainable farmers see farming as it fits into their local ecosystem, examining how they can support the complex natural interplay of plants, insects, predators and microorganisms on their farm so that the ecosystem will best ward off pests and disease from their crops. Without the use of hazardous chemical pesticides, sustainable farms are much safer and healthier for their farmers, workers and surrounding communities, and the food they produce is free of chemical residues.
Runoff from manure and other agricultural fertilizer is a significant pollutant in many waterways, but sustainable farming practices do not contribute to this pollution. Plus, the high organic matter in the soil of sustainable farms retains more water, leading to less runoff overall.
Industrial livestock farming and ranching has dangerous implications for public health , including several practices that generate toxic amounts of untreated waste and the use of non-therapeutic antibiotics , which is breeding and spreading antibiotic-resistant pathogens.
Sustainable livestock farmers and ranchers raise animals without these practices. Sustainable farmers and ranchers raise their animals in ways that allow them to graze or forage, move outdoors freely and express natural behaviors, without the stress and illness common in factory farms known as CAFOs Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations.
They focus their practices on diminishing as much as possible if not eliminating the pain and suffering that animals experience as they live and are killed through the production process. Pain relief is used for necessary procedures like castration and no unnecessary alterations, like horn removal or tail docking, are used. American farm families want to leave the land better than when it was first entrusted to our care.
We want to protect the planet, feed and clothe people, and promote vibrant communities. Working with our partners, land-grant universities, and policy makers, Farmers for a Sustainable Future and the hundreds of thousands of farmers and ranchers we represent intends to continue finding solutions for the challenges of the future.
Farmers continue to produce more with greater efficiency. In fact, U. More than , operations employ renewable energy sources. The total acres U. This does not include millions of acres in voluntary or state-led conservation practices. These practices help to conserve soil, preserve and increase nutrients, and improve water quality. He began implementing no-till on parts of his soybean fields and then slowly transitioned his corn and wheat fields until, eventually, his whole farm used the method.
In addition to reducing fuel and labor costs, no-till farming also retains nutrients in the soil and sequesters carbon, making it a viable conservation technique. Despite the proven success of sustainable agriculture techniques, many farmers are hesitant to change their practices, citing perceived financial burdens as one of the main reasons. In order to get farmers to try sustainable farming practices, Yoder states economic incentives are vital.
If it pays for itself, then he will consider it. Unfortunately, economic issues are not the only ones standing in the way of farmers adopting sustainable practices. According to a report from the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, the politicization of climate change has turned many farmers away from the subject altogether.
This politicization often leads to unrepresentative environmental policy. Ernie Shea, president of the nonprofit Solutions from the Land , said that those in the environmental community often focus solely on the problems in the agriculture industry and demand that all farmers make sweeping changes that may not actually work for each region.
Solutions from the Land is working to break down these walls to create integrated solutions that address food production, economic development, and climate change while ensuring that all stakeholders have a part in environmental policy conversations. Figure 2 A clover and grass cover crop adds biodiversity to an almond orchard, which aids in nutrient cycling and provides habitat for beneficial insects, while also building soil organic matter.
Conservation of resources critical for agricultural productivity also means taking care of soil so that it maintains its integrity as a complex and highly structured entity composed of mineral particles, organic matter, air, water, and living organisms. Farmers interested in long-term sustainability often prioritize caring for the soil, because they recognize that a healthy soil promotes healthy crops and livestock.
Maintaining soil functioning often means a focus on maintaining or even increasing soil organic matter. Soil organic matter functions as a crucial source and sink for nutrients, as a substrate for microbial activity, and as a buffer against fluctuations in acidity, water content, contaminants, etc.
Furthermore, the buildup of soil organic matter can help mitigate the increase of atmospheric CO 2 and therefore climate change. Another important function of soil organic matter is inducing a better soil structure, which leads to improved water penetration, less runoff, better drainage, and increased stability, thereby reducing wind and water erosion. Due to a high reliance on chemical fertilizers, agroecosystem functioning has been disconnected from the internal cycling of key plant nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus.
Phosphate minerals for fertilizer are currently mined, but global reserves are predicted to sustain food production for only another 50 to years.
Consequently, phosphate prices are anticipated to rise unless new reserves are discovered and innovations in recovery of phosphates from waste are developed. The recycling of nitrogen and phosphorus at the farm and regional scale , improving efficiencies of fertilizer applications, and relying on organic nutrient sources animal and green manures are important elements of sustainable agriculture Figure 3.
Recycling of nutrients is facilitated by a diversified agriculture in which livestock and crop production are more spatially integrated.
For these reasons, extensive mixed crop-livestock systems, particularly in developing countries, could significantly contribute to future agricultural sustainability and global food security.
The practice has been shown to reduce soil erosion, increase yield, increase biotic activity, improve soil structure, and enhance soil organic matter accumulation. Overdraft of surface waters results in disturbance of key riparian zones, while overdraft of groundwater supplies threatens future irrigation capacity. Salinization, nutrient overloads, and pesticide contamination are widespread water quality issues. Selection and breeding of more drought- and salt-tolerant crop species and hardier animal breeds, use of reduced-volume irrigation systems, and management of soils and crops to reduce water loss are all ways to use water more efficiently within sustainable agroecosystems.
Modern agriculture is heavily dependent on non-renewable energy sources, especially petroleum. The continued use of these non-renewable sources cannot be sustained indefinitely, yet to abruptly abandon our reliance on them would be economically catastrophic.
In sustainable agriculture, the goal is to reduce the input of external energy and to substitute non-renewable energy sources with renewable sources e. Feenstra, G. What is Sustainable Agriculture? Altieri, M. Agroecology: The Science of Sustainable Agriculture. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, Gliessman, S.
Agroecology: Ecological Processes in Sustainable Agriculture. Hinrichs, C. Soil: The Foundation of Agriculture. Sustainable Agriculture. What Are Soils? Food Safety and Food Security. Introduction to the Sorption of Chemical Constituents in Soils. Pests and Pollinators. Soil erosion controls on biogeochemical cycling of carbon and nitrogen. The Influence of Soils on Human Health.
0コメント