Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Several reasons for this worldwide industry can be
given:
X
Popular beyond where they can be grown
.
Some fruit such as
bananas
, which are popular
in temperate climates (and the most popular fruit
in the world), are only able to grow in tropical
countries (e.g. Ecuador). Acid soil-loving species
such as
blueberries
are produced in countries
such as USA that have suitable soils.
X
Continuity of supply
. Consumers in countries
such as Britain and Ireland located in northern
temperate regions like to eat fresh vegetables (such
as runner beans), and fruit (such as strawberries)
all
year round
, even during the winter months when
such crops cannot be grown there. Kenya is a major
exporter of runner beans during Britain and Ireland
winter period. The USA exports strawberries to
Britain and Ireland at this time.
X
Specialism of the country
. Some countries such
as Holland have developed
large-scale
industries
of glasshouse food crop and fl ower production
(such as tomatoes and chrysanthemums) and of
nursery stock, and is able to compete well for
price and quality with produce grown in the other
nations.
Table 2.3
World's nine major producers of vegetable,
representing about 65% of world production (millions of
tonnes)
Producer
Tonnes (m)
China
680
India
150
Nigeria
85
USA
60
Russia
50
Brazil
45
Indonesia
35
Thailand
35
Turkey
32
(a)
World production levels
Some examples of
total
world production per year
(and the major producers) for vegetables, fruit, and
decorative plants are listed below.
(b)
Vegetables
Total annual world production
of vegetable was
estimated to be about 1,800 million tonnes per year in
2009.
Table 2.2
Annual world production of major
vegetables (million tonnes)
Vegetable
Tonnes (m)
(c)
Potatoes
330
Cassava
230
Tomatoes
150
Onions and garlic
100
Sweet potatoes
100
Legumes
100
Watermelons
100
Brassicas
85
(d)
Root vegetables
70
Others (such as carrots, chillies,
pumpkins and aubergines
480
Figure 2.22
(a) Potatoes are the world's most popular
vegetable; (b) tomatoes are the third most popular;
(c) onions are the fourth; (d) brassicas are the eighth
