The Need for Sustainable Food Production Systems - Agroecology: The Ecology of Sustainable Food Systems - page 3

1 The Need for Sustainable Food

Production Systems

On a global scale, agriculture was very successful in
meeting a growing demand for food during the latter half
of the 20th century. Yields per hectare of staple crops such
as wheat and rice increased dramatically, food prices
declined, the rate of increase in food production generally
exceeded the rate of population growth, and chronic hun-
ger diminished. This boost in food production was due
mainly to scientific advances and technological innova-
tions, including the development of new plant varieties,
the use of fertilizers and pesticides, and the growth of
extensive infrastructure for irrigation.
Now, in the first decade of the 21st century, our
system of global food production must grapple with a
sobering fact as it attempts to feed a world population
that continues to grow: the techniques, innovations,
practices, and policies that have allowed increases in
productivity have also undermined the basis for that
productivity. They have overdrawn and degraded the
natural resources upon which agriculture depends —
soil, water resources, and natural genetic diversity. They
have also created a dependence on nonrenewable fossil
fuels and helped forge a system that increasingly takes
the responsibility for growing food out of the hands of
farmers and farm workers, who are in the best position
to be stewards of agricultural land. In short, our system
of agricultural production is unsustainable — it cannot
continue to produce enough food for the global popula-
tion over the long term because it deteriorates the con-
ditions that make agriculture possible.
At the same time, our global food system faces threats
not entirely of its own making, most notably the emergence
of new agricultural diseases (such as mad cow and Nipah
virus) and climate change. These threats underline the
importance of moving towards more sustainable agricul-
tural practices.

irrigation, application of inorganic fertilizer, chemical
pest control, genetic manipulation of domesticated plants
and animals, and “factory farming” of animals — form
the backbone of modern industrial agriculture. Each is
used for its individual contribution to productivity, but
as a whole, the practices form a system in which each
depends on the others and reinforces the necessity of
using all in concert.
These practices are also integrated into a framework
with its own particular logic. Food production is treated
like an industrial process in which plants and animals
assume the role of miniature factories: their output is
maximized by supplying the appropriate inputs, their
productive efficiency is increased by manipulation of their
genes, and the environments in which they exist are as
rigidly controlled as possible.

I NTENSIVE T ILLAGE

Conventional agriculture has long been based on the
practice of cultivating the soil completely, deeply, and
regularly. The purpose of this intensive cultivation is to
loosen the soil structure to allow better drainage, faster
root growth, aeration, and easier sowing of seed. Cultivation
is also used to control weeds and to turn under crop resi-
dues. Under typical practices — that is, when intensive
tillage is combined with short rotations — fields are
plowed or cultivated several times during the year, and in
many cases this leaves the soil free of any cover for
extended periods. It also means that heavy machinery
makes regular and frequent passes over the field.
Ironically, intensive cultivation tends to degrade soil
quality in a variety of ways. Soil organic matter is reduced
as a result of accelerated decomposition and the lack of
cover, and the soil is compacted by the recurring traffic
of machinery. The loss of organic matter reduces soil
fertility and degrades soil structure, increasing the likeli-
hood of further compaction and making cultivation and
its temporary improvements even more necessary. Inten-
sive cultivation also greatly increases rates of soil erosion
by water and wind.

PRACTICES OF CONVENTIONAL
AGRICULTURE

Conventional agriculture is built around two related
goals: the maximization of production and the maximi-
zation of profit. In pursuit of these goals, a host of
practices have been developed without regard for their
unintended, long-term consequences and without consid-
eration of the ecological dynamics of agroecosystems.
Seven basic practices — intensive tillage, monoculture,

M ONOCULTURE

Over the last century, agriculture all over the world has
moved relentlessly toward specialization. Farming once
meant growing a diversity of crops and raising livestock,

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