Conventional Ag is Energy Intensive Fossil Fuel to Food 4%2%6%5% 17% of total commercial energy use !!! CropsLivestockFood processingFood distribution and preparation Food production Food TypeKilocalories of fossil fuel input per kilocalorie of protein output Feed lot beef20-78 Pigs Broiler chicken Rangeland Beef Sheep Vegetables How Much Energy for Our Food Food TypeKilocalories of fossil fuel input per kilocalorie of protein output Feed lot beef20-78 Pigs Broiler chicken Rangeland Beef Sheep Vegetables How Much Energy for Our Food Monocropped soybeans Pesticides applied to crops Outline for Today Pests & Pesticides Pesticides applied to soil Consider impact of erosion following spraying Check out the farm worker near the plane Biomagnification Fat-soluble compounds remain in organism are not excreted As food moves up the food chain, the compounds are increasingly concentrated Reach levels toxic to higher organisms Even if not toxic to organisms low on food chain Pesticide Resistance leads to Pesticide Treadmill Increase tolerance, increase in resistance What does this mean? Need this amount of pesticide to Kill 50% x to Kill 90% 10x to Kill 99% 100x to Kill 99.9%1000x - hardiest ones live - next generations very resistant - increase dosage or find new pesticide -time-consuming -costly 2 nd generation Number of Species Resistant Most major pests are resistant to many pesticides that were originally very effective! Pesticides and Food Production US Food Production Pesticides Million tons% increaseMillion lbs% increase 2 nd generation Rachel Carson - persuasive argument for the case against DDT & related pesticides discredited by other scientists & chem companies as an alarmist & radical woman scientist? -persevered & convinced public & Congress - DDT ban -championed concept of there is no away people couldnt fathom the idea that a pesticide would go into water, travel up food chain, & be concentrated at top power of good writing humanist viewpoint, not technical Fertilizer Use N, P important plant nutrients Add nutrients Increase Plant Growth (why arent native levels of soil N and P sufficient for high plant growth?) Bare fields Bare fields w/ no windbreaks & no buffers on edges are the norm in corporate Industrial Agriculture Outline for Today Farmers are losing their most important asset!! Outline for Today Sheet erosion from bare-field runoff during storms Outline for Today Chocolate rivers choked in sediment Which plant nutrient tends to stick to sediments? Why N&P? Nutrient inputs to large rivers from agriculture very high What type of stream pollution results from nutrient overload? Gulf Hypoxia Dead ZoneN, P added to water Increase algae growth Algae die Bacteria consume dead algae What happens to oxygen levels in water? What happens to fish? Strip Cropping Prevents Erosion Reduces Pest infestations Strip Cropping Note the diversity of crops planted in one field Per capita calorie intake Vertical Integration Summary Industrialized Agriculture Characterized by: Mechanization, Monocropping, Hybrids High Inputs Commercialization Vertical Integration Globalization Increased food production, cheap food prices, but greater costs Organic Foods No pesticides Natural pesticide control Reduced fertilizer use Use natural means = N-fixing plants More costly, but Compare Price v. Cost Buy Local Check out the local farmers markets.