CONCEPTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE
FAQ’S
❖ A soybean boom is sweeping across South America.
❖ The center of this rapid expansion is the Cerrado, a huge area of grassland and tropical forest
stretching from Bolivia and Paraguay across the center of Brazil almost to the Atlantic Ocean
❖ Biologically, this rolling expanse of grasslands and tropical woodland is the richest savanna in the
world, with at least 130,000 different plant and animal species, many of which are threatened by
agricultural expansion.
❖ Cerrado is unsuitable for cultivation because of its red iron-rich soils are highly acidic and poor in
essential plant nutrients.
❖ Furthermore, the warm, humid climate harbors many destructive pests and pathogens.
❖ For hundreds of years, the Cerrado was primarily cattle country with many poor-quality pastures
producing low livestock yields.
❖ Brazilian farmers have learned that modest applications of lime and phosphorus can quadruple
yields of soybeans, maize, cotton, and other valuable crops.
❖ Brazil is now the world’s top soy exporter, shipping some 27 million metric tons per year, or
about 10 percent more than the United States
❖ In addition to soy, Brazil now leads the world in beef, corn (maize), oranges, and coffee exports.
❖ The pressure for more cropland and pasture is a leading cause of deforestation and habitat loss,
most of which is occurring in the “arc of destruction” between the Cerrado and the Amazon.
❖ On one hand, more high-quality food is now available to feed the world. The 2 million km² of the
Cerrado represents one of the world’s last opportunities to open a large area of new, highly
productive cropland.
❖ On the other hand, the rapid expansion and mechanization of agriculture in Brazil is destroying
biodiversity and creating social conflicts as people move into formerly pristine lands.
FOOD SECURITY
❖ FOOD SECURITY is the ability to obtain sufficient, healthy food on a day-to-day basis.
❖ In 1960, nearly 60 percent of people in developing countries were chronically undernourished,
and the world’s population was increasing by more than 2 percent every year
❖ An estimated 854 million people—almost one in every eight people on earth—suffer chronic
hunger
❖ This number is up slightly from a few years ago, but because of population growth, the
percentage of malnourished people is still falling
❖ About 95 percent of hungry people are in developing countries.
❖ Hunger is especially serious in sub-Saharan Africa, a region plagued by political instability
❖ Even in wealthy countries such as the United States, millions lack a sufficient, healthy diet.
❖ Poverty, job losses, lack of social services, and other factors lead to persistent hunger—and even
more to persistent poor diets—despite the fact that we have more, cheaper food (in terms of the
work needed to acquire it) than almost any society in history
FAMINES
, ❖ FAMINES are large-scale food shortages, with widespread starvation, social disruption, and
economic chaos
❖ Globally, widespread hunger arises when political instability, war, and conflict displace
populations, removing villagers from their farms or making farming too dangerous to carry on
❖ Starving people are forced to eat their seed grain and slaughter breeding livestock in a desperate
attempt to keep themselves and their families alive.
❖ Famines often trigger mass migrations to relief camps, where people survive but cannot maintain
a healthy and productive life
How Much Food Do We Need?
❖ A good diet is essential to keep you healthy.
❖ You need a balance of foods to provide the right nutrients, as well as enough calories for a
productive and energetic lifestyle.
❖ The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that nearly 3 billion
people (almost half the world’s population) suffer from vitamin, mineral, or protein deficiencies.
These shortages result in devastating illnesses and death, as well as reduced mental capacity,
developmental abnormalities, and stunted growth.
FOOD PYRAMID
Common Problems..
❖ Malnourishment is a general term for nutritional imbalances caused by a lack of specific
nutrients.
❖ Kwashiorkor is a West African word meaning “displaced child.” (A young child is displaced—and
deprived of nutritious breast milk—when a new baby is born.)
❖ Kwashiorkor refers to extreme food shortages, a lack of protein in young children, which is
usually characterized by a bloated belly and discolored hair and skin.
❖ Marasmus (from Greek, “to waste away”) is another severe condition in children who lack both
protein and calories.
❖ A child suffering from severe marasmus is generally thin and shriveled, like a tiny, very old,
starving person
❖ Children with these deficiencies (Kwashiorkor and Marasmus) have low resistance to disease
and infections, and they may suffer permanent debilities in mental, as well as physical,
development.
❖ Deficiencies in vitamin A, folic acid, and iodine are more widespread problems. Both are found
in vegetables, especially dark green leafy vegetables.
o Deficiencies in folic acid have been linked to neurological problems in babies.
o Effects of vitamin A shortages cause an estimated 350,000 people to go blind
every year
o Iodine deficiencies can cause goiter, a swelling of the thyroid gland.
It’s a MUST:
❖ The best way to stay healthy is to eat lots of vegetables and grains, moderate amounts of eggs and
dairy products, and sparing amounts of meat, oils, and processed foods.
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE
FAQ’S
❖ A soybean boom is sweeping across South America.
❖ The center of this rapid expansion is the Cerrado, a huge area of grassland and tropical forest
stretching from Bolivia and Paraguay across the center of Brazil almost to the Atlantic Ocean
❖ Biologically, this rolling expanse of grasslands and tropical woodland is the richest savanna in the
world, with at least 130,000 different plant and animal species, many of which are threatened by
agricultural expansion.
❖ Cerrado is unsuitable for cultivation because of its red iron-rich soils are highly acidic and poor in
essential plant nutrients.
❖ Furthermore, the warm, humid climate harbors many destructive pests and pathogens.
❖ For hundreds of years, the Cerrado was primarily cattle country with many poor-quality pastures
producing low livestock yields.
❖ Brazilian farmers have learned that modest applications of lime and phosphorus can quadruple
yields of soybeans, maize, cotton, and other valuable crops.
❖ Brazil is now the world’s top soy exporter, shipping some 27 million metric tons per year, or
about 10 percent more than the United States
❖ In addition to soy, Brazil now leads the world in beef, corn (maize), oranges, and coffee exports.
❖ The pressure for more cropland and pasture is a leading cause of deforestation and habitat loss,
most of which is occurring in the “arc of destruction” between the Cerrado and the Amazon.
❖ On one hand, more high-quality food is now available to feed the world. The 2 million km² of the
Cerrado represents one of the world’s last opportunities to open a large area of new, highly
productive cropland.
❖ On the other hand, the rapid expansion and mechanization of agriculture in Brazil is destroying
biodiversity and creating social conflicts as people move into formerly pristine lands.
FOOD SECURITY
❖ FOOD SECURITY is the ability to obtain sufficient, healthy food on a day-to-day basis.
❖ In 1960, nearly 60 percent of people in developing countries were chronically undernourished,
and the world’s population was increasing by more than 2 percent every year
❖ An estimated 854 million people—almost one in every eight people on earth—suffer chronic
hunger
❖ This number is up slightly from a few years ago, but because of population growth, the
percentage of malnourished people is still falling
❖ About 95 percent of hungry people are in developing countries.
❖ Hunger is especially serious in sub-Saharan Africa, a region plagued by political instability
❖ Even in wealthy countries such as the United States, millions lack a sufficient, healthy diet.
❖ Poverty, job losses, lack of social services, and other factors lead to persistent hunger—and even
more to persistent poor diets—despite the fact that we have more, cheaper food (in terms of the
work needed to acquire it) than almost any society in history
FAMINES
, ❖ FAMINES are large-scale food shortages, with widespread starvation, social disruption, and
economic chaos
❖ Globally, widespread hunger arises when political instability, war, and conflict displace
populations, removing villagers from their farms or making farming too dangerous to carry on
❖ Starving people are forced to eat their seed grain and slaughter breeding livestock in a desperate
attempt to keep themselves and their families alive.
❖ Famines often trigger mass migrations to relief camps, where people survive but cannot maintain
a healthy and productive life
How Much Food Do We Need?
❖ A good diet is essential to keep you healthy.
❖ You need a balance of foods to provide the right nutrients, as well as enough calories for a
productive and energetic lifestyle.
❖ The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that nearly 3 billion
people (almost half the world’s population) suffer from vitamin, mineral, or protein deficiencies.
These shortages result in devastating illnesses and death, as well as reduced mental capacity,
developmental abnormalities, and stunted growth.
FOOD PYRAMID
Common Problems..
❖ Malnourishment is a general term for nutritional imbalances caused by a lack of specific
nutrients.
❖ Kwashiorkor is a West African word meaning “displaced child.” (A young child is displaced—and
deprived of nutritious breast milk—when a new baby is born.)
❖ Kwashiorkor refers to extreme food shortages, a lack of protein in young children, which is
usually characterized by a bloated belly and discolored hair and skin.
❖ Marasmus (from Greek, “to waste away”) is another severe condition in children who lack both
protein and calories.
❖ A child suffering from severe marasmus is generally thin and shriveled, like a tiny, very old,
starving person
❖ Children with these deficiencies (Kwashiorkor and Marasmus) have low resistance to disease
and infections, and they may suffer permanent debilities in mental, as well as physical,
development.
❖ Deficiencies in vitamin A, folic acid, and iodine are more widespread problems. Both are found
in vegetables, especially dark green leafy vegetables.
o Deficiencies in folic acid have been linked to neurological problems in babies.
o Effects of vitamin A shortages cause an estimated 350,000 people to go blind
every year
o Iodine deficiencies can cause goiter, a swelling of the thyroid gland.
It’s a MUST:
❖ The best way to stay healthy is to eat lots of vegetables and grains, moderate amounts of eggs and
dairy products, and sparing amounts of meat, oils, and processed foods.
