From Extensive to Intensive Agriculture

From Extensive to Intensive Agriculture

Modern interplay between QUALITY and QUANTITY.

Decline of Rural Society:

In England, destruction of rights to common land from the enclosure laws of 1760 to 1820. Growing urbanization at the end of the 18^th century changed the composition of England, as industry could offer 50% more then agriculture. Some people migrated and became impoverished, and on the other side less people in rural settings hurt the economy and reduced it soley to agriculture in these areas – making them even less attractive. There was also competition with grains produced in North America. The only thing you own becomes your dependents – less property. No services in many poor towns. Some of the trends. The first time competition in markets begins to appear, in the context of North America.

Decline of Rural Society II –

Between the two wars, states encourage people to cultivate land. Family farms depend on agriculture and other income too, women ofen supplementing additional farm work. The possibility of high yields in agriculture pushes owners to a step towards agro-industry or to abandon agriculture entirely. Urbanization and the proletarization occurs, a migration of groups formerly employed in agriculture.

Not everyone moved to urban settings, but many people tried to keep agricultural activities, which progressively shrunk to mere subistence and less as a money maker. The household economy of this new era meant women took care of more of the agricultural activity as the man went and worked in industrial areas. Women became more and more responsible for agriculture but did not gain power over production as part of the bargain.

Decline of Rural Society III

In a North American context, advancement in mechanical equipment and technologies for working land optimizied human resources and greatly increased yield – this change occurred from the end of the 18^th century until around 1930.

At the same time in Europe, studies concentrated on chemisty for providing fertilizers, pesticides, and other chemical inputs to greatly increase yield.

Chemical science first – and genetics later – were applied to agriculture. This marked the passage from EXTENSIVE (the model used til’ 1930 to increase production to meet increased consumption) to INTENSIVE agriculture – how to make land more productive?

This model of development compels farmers to make a choice: higher investment in existing means of production, or scale down – become a contractor for a bigger farmer. A critical shift in these pressures on farmers in a very big way. The system chokes small farmers who cannot modernize.

In Europe, much production of chemicals, more so then of tractors.

We often think that genetic manipulation is a recent thing, but it began at the beginning of the 1900’s, a transformation in science from physics to a study of life.

The Contradictions of New Agriculture

As productivity and world competition in basic vegetable commodities grew, prices began to go down.

Was the 1929 depression worsened by an independent depression in agriculture?

Often the State would intervene with fixed minimum prices (US), non commercial government exports (US Food Aid PL480 Food for Peace 1954) and protectionism (France, which ended up institutionalizing overproduction).

WWII contracted production again for a few years, as there then existed a direct opposition between states and producers.

Exporting became the straightforward solution in the 1970’s. By this time, we begin to first realize that oil is limited and that perhaps our agricultural system – funded by Transnationals – may not be sustainable and that there is a limit to outward expansion. By the 80’s, concerns begin to be seriously levied about the uses of chemicals in agriculture.

How did we begin to subsidize agriculture? At some point, everything points towards much higher yields – not a new value. What is new are the means put into producing high yields and the marketing of these results. This changes our expectations and produces a domino effect, putting some in the position of investment and forcing others to downscale. If we look at the 1929 crisis, the decrease in prices had an effect on the producers, who could not keep up with input costs. Thus we begin to experience the basic contradiction of new agriculture: incredible production, but no sustainability in terms of price.

The Farm Bill, guaranteeing a price floor, began the cycle of increase in production followed by a drop in production, and so on.

Often Food for Peace diminished the food independence of the country, having unforeseen consequences.

The Rise of Agro-Industry

Starting from WWII, a dramatic increase in productivity (which also means a crisis in price) occurs due to higher and higher inputs.

Features of the Green Revolution

Responding to a request from the Mexican government, N. Barlaug (agronomist, Phd in plant pathology) from 1943 develops species (dwarf wheat) with high yield and disease resistance.

The Rockefeller Foundation and the Ford Foundation largely sponsored the programee, and in around around 20 years, Mexico became self sufficient in its export of wheat.

An increase in yield occurred: a four fold production in the case of wheat.

- New species were bred for dwarfism ( wheat and corn) or for height (rice): this optimizes photosynthesis and rice’s exposure to the sun.

- Hybrid seeds are patented and classified, causing a reduction in the number of species cultivated.

- This is combined with the use of pesticides and herbicides, such as Round Up resistant seeds.

- In the case of Terminator, from Delta and Pine, acquired by Monsanto – this was opposed by the UN and Civil Society and was never commercialised. GMO’s, patented high yields, very resistant to pesticides. Violated the precepts of food sovereignty.

- William Gaud, USAID in 1968 to SID: “These and other developments in the field of agriculture contain the makings of a new revolution. It is not a violent Red Revolution like that of the Soviets, nor a White Revolution like that of the Shah of Iran. I call it the Green Revolution. “

- A shifting of mankind’s vision of how to treat plants as a means of production. After Mexico, Gaud’s approach and the idea of “patenting” new modified seeds was the first time someone did breeding in a laboratory with the intention of producing super high yields.

Fordist Food

- Fordist Model mainstreamed in food production after WWII.

- - Objective is mass production and gurantee of high wages to workers, allowing them to buy the same products they produce.

- Highly segmented the assembly line or supply chain.

- Highly standardized product and the convergence of different lines – creating the potential for displacing segments of production. You don’t need everyone in the same factory or even the same country anymore.

- - Reduced skills needed at all steps.

Three Stages of Transformation of Agriculture in the Food Industry

Vertical Integration:

- A firm contracts smaller farms to cover one part of the supply chain.

- Less and less independent producers progressively across different types of commodities.

- The process was first tested on broiler chickens. Aruond 1960 and 1980, huge changes occurred in turkey and egg production.

Congolomerate Integration

Firms concentrate the production of more and more commodities (decreased antitrust enforcement by Reagan administration is one of the drivers of this change).

Global Integration

Firms with broad international activities.

Very difficult to map their production, scarce and unreliable (1990’s) market information is dislocated and adaptable to different state’s regulations. Consult Fiedland, D. Heffernan, H. Constance.

With the emergence of new needs from consumers and a growing interest in organic food, the USDA released biologic standards (1997 draft, 2002 implementation in 2002, in European Union, 1991 to 1992 implementation). This produced a number of acquisitions and entries into the market.