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Page added on March 21, 2014
The Math of feeding the world
The next time you’re enjoying a meal, take a moment to think about where the food came from. Think about the family farmer or rancher who helped put it on your plate—not only that day but all 365 sunrises a year for you and the other 7 billion and counting people around the world American agriculture feeds. The family farmers and ranchers across the country—less than 2 percent of the U.S. population—produce the food, fuel and fiber people around the world depend on to survive.
Simply put, one farmer today produces enough to help feed and clothe more than 144 people on Earth. They contribute to the food and energy security of the nation, providing the safe, healthy, abundant and affordable food we expect each time we visit the store or restaurant. All without fail.
It’s one reason for the annual celebration of National Ag Day—this year, on March 25 (though any day is a good time to be grateful to America’s farmers)—a nation’s tribute to thousands of farm families.
According to the Agriculture Council of America (ACA), the national organization charged with promoting National Ag Day, it’s important that consumers understand where their food comes from and that many of today’s farmers use the latest technologies and safe, modern, sustainable practices to raise vegetables, fruit, meat, milk, eggs and other foods.
The ACA believes an accurate, basic understanding of how food is produced and how it gets from farms to their family’s plates will give consumers a greater appreciation for farmers who produce it and greater confidence in the wholesomeness of the food they eat.
Farming and ranching take a passion and a dedicated 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week commitment. For farm families, it’s a way of life that requires tremendous knowledge and financial resources and is greatly dependent on weather and market conditions to be successful.
For further information about National Ag Day and how your food is produced, go to www.agday.org.
14 Comments on "The Math of feeding the world"
noobtube on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 2:48 am
I remember back in 2007, when Americans and Europeans were screaming about Mugabe for kicking all the European invader out of the country, how bad it was going to be without them.
Yet, look at that, Zimbabwe didn’t need the United States or the Europeans to produce food, after all. In fact, the Zimbabwean locals farm the land more efficiently and more sustainably than the Americans and Europeans ever could.
So, the world doesn’t need Americans nor Europeans to feed them.
Funny how that works.
Makati1 on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 2:48 am
What a pile of US propaganda!
Let’s see how much food the US exports after a few more drought years. And the US imports 20% of it’s food.
National Ag Day, promoted by Monsanto, etc.
Makati1 on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 2:51 am
If we stopped feeding grains to the billion plus beef cattle around the world, we could feed a few billion more than the 7+ billion we feed poorly now. I love a good steak, but I will be glad when the cost to raise them is too high to be profitable and the grains can go to humans.
Sheila Chambers on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 2:59 am
We wouldn’t be producing so much food if we hadn’t had an abundance of cheap oil & natural gas but that is coming to a end. Then what? As oil declines, food production will also decline as it takes 10 calories of OIL to produce 1 calorie of food.
Expect to see a lot of empty plates in the future.
DC on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 7:39 am
What family farmer? About the only ‘food’ I can buy are made, in large part, by a rather small group of very large uS globalist agri-corps. As for the ‘enjoying’ part, well YMMW on that part too. Most ‘food’ these days is rather bland and starchy, whose principal constituents consist of corn mash, sugar and salt and mystery chemicals. The ‘family farm’ in the west is quickly fading as both a tangible reality, and as a memory.
But this article is a great example of the inverted reality we live in. But I guess National Vertically Integrated Corporate Agri-biz Day doesn’t quite give people the same warm fuzzy feeling talking about whole family-run farms I suppose…
Davy, Hermann, MO on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 10:32 am
BS, Makati, The US and Brazil are the biggest exporter overall of the basics of the food chain corn, soy, and wheat. I might add several others. We are talking exports. Yes we import lots of food we could do without and need to do without because of the imbedded energy intensity. “And” Makati, food is as much about economics as taste. I agree too much meat is grown especially fattened beef. Pork and chicken are better choices. Grass fed beef and milk has its place because some land should stay pasture. The problem with the 3rd world poor and food is plain and simple “overshoot of population and carrying capacity. I might add should we just give this food away? That is a great moral stance but when the decent comes and we turn local this food will remain here. Global exports will be greatly diminished.
As usual I buy some of what you say DC “BUT” I am a family farm here. I was a corporate farm. I know the business. Many farms here are family but organized as a corporation to survive. There are many hobby farms that are small but still produce. “And”, yes lots of “Broad Acre” corporate farms expanding all the time by the “corrupt and manipulative trend of Wall Street, government policy, and concentration of power. That will diminish as the energy decent intensifies. I hope they diminish in an orderly fashion because like it or not that is our support system and contrary to what Makati says the global support system. The rest of the globe produces lots of food for internal use but if you remove a significant exporter the whole system destabilizes and chaos will reign in our global food support system.
meld on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 11:27 am
Farmers – Bringing about global famine one meal at a time!
Thanks for using your unscientific antiquated pre historic methods to grow nutrition free food, destroy topsoil, kill billions of life forms and acidify the oceans! oh thank you so much wanky farmers!
Davy, Hermann, MO on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 11:54 am
Yea, Meld, I was in production AG. My operation was a small corporate farm. I thought I could get into this business and work in permaculture, resilience, and sustainable practices. This of course would have been done slowly over time. What happened is I got my ass kicked. There is no reforming that system. The disregard for nature and our human food chain is remarkable. I was not in large scale animal production but that is even worse. That business is a crime against Mother Nature. I made it 4 years and got out. It was stress I did not need. I felt spiritually drained. I now have a much smaller operation with grass fed cattle. Many parts of the farm are wildlife based. Brushy areas, native grasses, and woody creek draws. I have a balance going here that is working out well. I am building a lifeboat here with garden, AltE, and prep items. I will say this to all thinking about this lifestyle but not yet active, it is hard, it is a long time frame, and it takes total dedication. The other leisure’s and activities in your life have to bend to this focus. That is unless you have the money to throw at it. I will also say I understand why people had big families in the past. I could use two or three more people. I am managing 400 acres alone and it takes 12 hour days when the weather permits. Work is constant. Equipment is always breaking and very expensive to fix. My body gets hurt. Of the top 10 most dangerous occupations I am involved with three, large equipment, forestry, and building maintenance. Yet, I love it and would not look back. I gave up a 1%er life to be closer to nature.
Makati1 on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 11:58 am
I wonder if nationalizing the farms is in the works for the US? The thought is not as far out as it seems. As most farmland is now in the hands of corporate farms, it would be easy to annex those few still privately owned.
As for the 3rd world, yes, they need to quit sending their food to the West. Most of the US food imports come from 3rd world countries because Western corporations are there from Western colonial days and the plunder still goes on under the name of Capitalism.
I see mass starvation in the Western countries being on the same level as the 3rd world eventually. Especially as climate change is going to take the current grain belts into other countries and maybe they will disappear totally. Ask California how fast it can happen. Or anyone who experienced the dust bowl of the early 20th. The past is no indication of the future.
meld on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 1:37 pm
@ Davy – I’ve been working on a system that grows itself for a few years. No digging, self seeding, All I do is keep it trimmed with hedge trimmers and transplant. Yeah sure you have to eat nettles, dandelions and other edible weeds alongside the squash, tomatoes, turnips and brassicas, but it’s a small price to pay for only about 30 minutes work a week.
Basically here in the UK nettles are the number 1 crop everyone needs to be growing. I seem to have discovered that they confuse pests (smell wise) to such a degree that you can plant a cabbage right in the middle of a few nettles and it will quite happily grow there unharmed, give it a bit of chicken shit and keep the nettles trimmed lower than it and away you go. In fact the rabbits don’t even seem to be bothered at the moment either.Oh and My mole basically goes around cultivating the subsoil and eating all the slugs and snails too.
Yeah ok it looks a mess and I could never make money off it but it quite easily sustains me with minimum effort
Davey on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 1:58 pm
Cool, meld, got wild blackberries we harvest here. I will have to focus on edibles like nettles. I am sure there is something similar here. I definitely need more low maintenance food sources
paulo1 on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 3:10 pm
We have about 9 fruit trees right now, and will be putting in another 10 behind some 7′ elk fence. I can’t recommend fingerling potatoes, enough. We grow about 4 types, but fingelings are the best for yield and keeping. If times get tough it doesn’t take much ground to feed a family. Plus, fish, broilers, layers and a kichen garden keeps us busy and in ‘vittles. We are also letting some blackberry patches grow as well as raspberries, blueberries, etc. By the way, Italian prune plums makes and excellent rose dry wine.
Paulo
Davey on Fri, 21st Mar 2014 3:32 pm
Paulo, I put in 15 apple trees next to garden last fall. I have two electric fences one for rabbits another for deer for garden and fruit trees. Damn deer will kill an apple tree in one night
FriedrichKling on Sat, 22nd Mar 2014 3:37 am
Meld,
Great comments. Do you have any information that you can share regarding your approach to agriculture? Your methodology sounds compelling and I would like to investigate more. Thank you.