Got Food? - the Scientia Review

The search for sustainable agricultural methods that can secure a stable food supply for future
generations inherently places greater demand on food crop production, animal feed, fiber, and fuels. In
recent years, improved genetics have led to crops receiving private research in the hope of dramatically
increasing yields. In nearly all cases, plant genes are moved within or across species, which creates new
combinations based on mutations. The most obvious instance of this has been in U.S. corn production,
which has increased 500% in the last 70 years. Today scientists are able to use market-assisted breeding
and biotechnology to better measure and increase the precision of DNA alterations. Seed development has
the potential to reduce water requirements and fertilizer needed for corn and cotton crops (―Agriculture's
Sustainable Future‖, 2009).
Future Plans
Increasing global awareness of environmental effects of excess carbon has led to plans to reduce
carbon outputs. Five proposed solutions are the end of using tropical land for farming, increasing
productivity of initially low-yield farms, improve water usage and waste, reduce fertilizer use, and reduce
meat consumption. Doing such can reduce economic costs and environmental costs simultaneously. There
are core issues that can be addressed which will have a significant effect on sustainability (Jonathan,
2011).
Three major issues that can be addressed are land use, meat consumption, and food waste. All
three of these can be reduced in order to improve the sustainability of food production. By the year 2050,
the world population is expected to reach nine billion. These people will need to be fed, which will cause
an increase in food consumption and therefore an increase in food production. An extrapolation of current
statistics regarding food production indicates an impending dilemma. Farming is the leading cause of
deforestation, and to some extent, soil erosion. Previous solutions were made without sufficient data of
the situation. Each idea only focused on one problem. The overarching problem is caused by the
combination of the individual factors. Recent research has allowed for informed ideas. The proposed plan
includes slowing and stopping clear-cutting land, increasing food production in developing countries, and
using fertilizers strategically. It was also suggested that individuals start consuming more vegetables and
fruits as opposed to meats. In addition, crops used for animal feed uses a significant amount of the food
produced globally. Reducing this would provide more food for the growing population. (Coren, 2011).
Currently, 38% of global land area (excluding Antarctica and Greenland because of the cold
climates of these regions) is used for farming. Although this is not the majority of the available land, it is
the best portion of land. Naturally, the most arable sections of land were chosen first. The remaining land
comprises deserts, mountains, and tropical rainforests. Although expanding into the rainforests is
possible, and has already occurred, it is not an expedient choice because the rainforests are large
consumers of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Clearing the rain forests would harm the planet greatly
(Jonathan, 2011).
Ideally, food production per unit area should be increased; however, it is not nearly enough to
provide sufficient food for the growing population. Global production has been increased by
approximately 20%. This increase is far less than what is needed and is less than what is reported. In
addition, a portion of the produced food is not being consumed by people. Alternate uses reduce the food
supply by 40%. Also, meat production has a net food loss. The conversion of plant mass to animal mass is
about 30 to one (Jonathan, 2011).
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