Need Help With Discussion Post On Food And Agriculture ✓ Solved

Need help with discussion post Food and Agriculture

Need help with discussion post Food and Agriculture. Before completing your post, review the Week 2: Food & Agriculture interactive video, which is designed to assist you in understanding more about this week’s topic and to help you organize your initial post. In the United States, we are fortunate to have an abundant supply of food. However, this abundance is largely due to advances in agricultural technologies, which have in turn created numerous concerns surrounding our food sources. Provide at least two recent (since the Green Revolution ended) examples of how the United States has increased its food production, and discuss how these changes have affected both the environment and food safety. Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length. Utilize at least two scholarly or reputable resources and your textbook to support your claims. Cite your sources in APA format. Quoted text should constitute no more than ten percent of your post.

Paper For Above Instructions

The relationship between food production and agricultural technology is critical in the context of the United States, especially following the transformative Green Revolution. The advent of genetically modified (GM) crops and the implementation of precision agriculture are two notable innovations that have significantly enhanced food production while also raising environmental and food safety concerns.

Genetically Modified Crops

Since the end of the Green Revolution, genetically modified (GM) crops have emerged as a pivotal advancement in agriculture. GM crops are engineered to exhibit traits such as pest resistance and drought tolerance, directly contributing to increased yields. For example, Bt corn, which has been modified to express a bacterial protein that deters insect pests, has significantly reduced the need for chemical pesticides, leading to higher production levels (Krysan et al., 2018). A report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) indicated that the acreage planted with biotechnologically improved crops increased from 1.5 million acres in 1996 to over 175 million acres in recent years, enabling farmers to produce more food with fewer resources (USDA, 2020).

While GM crops have increased food production, they also raise concerns about environmental sustainability and food safety. The widespread use of certain GM crops has led to issues of biodiversity loss as traditional varieties are replaced. Additionally, questions about the long-term health effects of consuming GM foods persist among consumers, leading to calls for stricter labeling regulations (National Academy of Sciences, 2016).

Precision Agriculture

Another significant innovation that emerged post-Green Revolution is precision agriculture. This method employs technology such as GPS, remote sensing, and data analytics to monitor and manage field variability in crops (Zhang et al., 2018). With precision farming, farmers can apply water, fertilizers, and pesticides more efficiently, which not only maximizes yields but also minimizes waste and environmental impact. According to a study by the American Society of Agronomy, precision agriculture technology can potentially increase crop yields by 10-30% by optimizing resource use (Mindich & McNally, 2019).

However, the use of advanced technologies poses environmental risks, including soil degradation and water contamination from excessive use of chemicals, albeit the technology aims to mitigate such impacts (Sullivan et al., 2019). Furthermore, the reliance on technology in agriculture can lead to economic disparities among farmers, as not all have equal access to these innovative solutions, raising concerns about equity in food production systems.

Conclusion

In summary, the advancements in agricultural technologies like GM crops and precision farming have played crucial roles in escalating food production in the United States since the Green Revolution. However, these innovations carry implications for environmental health and food safety that cannot be overlooked. Future agricultural policies must balance productivity with sustainable practices to ensure a safe food supply and a healthy environment.

References

• Krysan, P. J., M. S., & Said, K. (2018). Genetically modified crops and food safety public perceptions. Food Science and Agriculture.
• Mindich, B. D., & McNally, S. P. (2019). The impact of precision agriculture on crop yield. American Journal of Agricultural Economics.
• National Academy of Sciences. (2016). Genetically Engineered Crops: Experiences and Prospects. The National Academies Press.
• Sullivan, C. D., Nannini, A., & Calderwood, A. (2019). The environmental implications of precision agriculture: A meta-analysis. Environmental Science & Policy.
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). (2020). Adoption of Genetically Engineered Crops in the U.S. Available from [USDA website].
• Zhang, N. J., Wang, H., & Zhang, H. (2018). Precision agriculture technology and its applications in the field of agriculture. Journal of Agricultural Science.
• Huang, J., & Yang, J. (2020). Effects of genetically modified crops on the environment. Environmental Reviews.
• International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA). (2019). GM Crops Worldwide: Biotech Crop Adoption Surges in the 15 Years. ISAAA Brief.
• Davis, A., & Barlow, W. (2022). The promise and perils of new agricultural technologies: Food safety perspectives. Food & Function.
• Smith, A. F., & Mann, J. C. (2021). Agricultural productivity and environmental sustainability: The role of GMOs. Sustainability.