Download or read book Improving the Productivity of American Farms written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Agriculture and published by . This book was released on 1983 with total page 48 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Improving the Productivity of American Farms written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Agriculture and published by . This book was released on 1983 with total page 43 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Improving the Productivity of American Farms December 9 1983 Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and Ordered to be Printed written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Agriculture and published by . This book was released on 1983 with total page 43 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Productivity in Farming written by Farming Productivity Team and published by . This book was released on 1951 with total page 62 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book An American Success Story written by American Society of Agricultural Engineers and published by . This book was released on 1976 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: I Don't buy letting people die; Higher plateaus of productivity; Striking a balance; New thrusts in productivity; Farming practices and research needs in tillage and water management; Recognizing productive energy-efficient agriculture in the complex; Balancing energy and food production; Photosynthesis; Potential uses of mathematical models; Environment as a limiting constraint to maximizing livestock production.
Download or read book Eating Tomorrow written by Timothy A. Wise and published by The New Press. This book was released on 2019-02-05 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A powerful polemic against agricultural technology." —Nature A major new book that shows the world already has the tools to feed itself, without expanding industrial agriculture or adopting genetically modified seeds, from the Small Planet Institute expert Few challenges are more daunting than feeding a global population projected to reach 9.7 billion in 2050—at a time when climate change is making it increasingly difficult to successfully grow crops. In response, corporate and philanthropic leaders have called for major investments in industrial agriculture, including genetically modified seed technologies. Reporting from Africa, Mexico, India, and the United States, Timothy A. Wise's Eating Tomorrow discovers how in country after country agribusiness and its well-heeled philanthropic promoters have hijacked food policies to feed corporate interests. Most of the world, Wise reveals, is fed by hundreds of millions of small-scale farmers, people with few resources and simple tools but a keen understanding of what and how to grow food. These same farmers—who already grow more than 70 percent of the food eaten in developing countries—can show the way forward as the world warms and population increases. Wise takes readers to remote villages to see how farmers are rebuilding soils with ecologically sound practices and nourishing a diversity of native crops without chemicals or imported seeds. They are growing more and healthier food; in the process, they are not just victims in the climate drama but protagonists who have much to teach us all.
Download or read book Agricultural Productivity and Producer Behavior written by Wolfram Schlenker and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2019-11-13 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Agricultural yields have increased steadily in the last half century, particularly since the Green Revolution. At the same time, inflation-adjusted agricultural commodity prices have been trending downward as increases in supply outpace the growth of demand. Recent severe weather events, biofuel mandates, and a switch toward a more meat-heavy diet in emerging economies have nevertheless boosted commodity prices. Whether this is a temporary jump or the beginning of a longer-term trend is an open question. Agricultural Productivity and Producer Behavior examines the factors contributing to the remarkably steady increase in global yields and assesses whether yield growth can continue. This research also considers whether agricultural productivity growth has been, and will be, associated with significant environmental externalities. Among the topics studied are genetically modified crops; changing climatic factors; farm production responses to government regulations including crop insurance, transport subsidies, and electricity subsidies for groundwater extraction; and the role of specific farm practices such as crop diversification, disease management, and water-saving methods. This research provides new evidence that technological as well as policy choices influence agricultural productivity.
Download or read book Directing the Secretary of Agriculture To Take Certain Actions To Improve the Productivity of American Farmers written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Agriculture and published by . This book was released on 1985 with total page 19 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Regulation and the Revolution in United States Farm Productivity written by Sally H. Clarke and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2002-07-25 with total page 332 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explains how US government activity in the 1930s led to gains in farm productivity.
Download or read book Farming Systems and Poverty written by John A. Dixon and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2001 with total page 424 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A joint FAO and World Bank study which shows how the farming systems approach can be used to identify priorities for the reduction of hunger and poverty in the main farming systems of the six major developing regions of the world.
Download or read book The Federal Role in Increasing the Productivity of the U S Food System written by Guy Henry Miles and published by . This book was released on 1976 with total page 178 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book A Revolution Down on the Farm written by Paul K. Conkin and published by University Press of Kentucky. This book was released on 2008-09-01 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At a time when food is becoming increasingly scarce in many parts of the world and food prices are skyrocketing, no industry is more important than agriculture. Humans have been farming for thousands of years, and yet agriculture has undergone more fundamental changes in the past 80 years than in the previous several centuries. In 1900, 30 million American farmers tilled the soil or tended livestock; today there are fewer than 4.5 million farmers who feed a population four times larger than it was at the beginning of the century. Fifty years ago, the planet could not have sustained a population of 6.5 billion; now, commercial and industrial agriculture ensure that millions will not die from starvation. Farmers are able to feed an exponentially growing planet because the greatest industrial revolution in history has occurred in agriculture since 1929, with U.S. farmers leading the way. Productivity on American farms has increased tenfold, even as most small farmers and tenants have been forced to find other work. Today, only 300,000 farms produce approximately ninety percent of the total output, and overproduction, largely subsidized by government programs and policies, has become the hallmark of modern agriculture. A Revolution Down on the Farm: The Transformation of American Agriculture since 1929 charts the profound changes in farming that have occurred during author Paul K. Conkin's lifetime. His personal experiences growing up on a small Tennessee farm complement compelling statistical data as he explores America's vast agricultural transformation and considers its social, political, and economic consequences. He examines the history of American agriculture, showing how New Deal innovations evolved into convoluted commodity programs following World War II. Conkin assesses the skills, new technologies, and government policies that helped transform farming in America and suggests how new legislation might affect farming in decades to come. Although the increased production and mechanization of farming has been an economic success story for Americans, the costs are becoming increasingly apparent. Small farmers are put out of business when they cannot compete with giant, non-diversified corporate farms. Caged chickens and hogs in factory-like facilities or confined dairy cattle require massive amounts of chemicals and hormones ultimately ingested by consumers. Fertilizers, new organic chemicals, manure disposal, and genetically modified seeds have introduced environmental problems that are still being discovered. A Revolution Down on the Farm concludes with an evaluation of farming in the twenty-first century and a distinctive meditation on alternatives to our present large scale, mechanized, subsidized, and fossil fuel and chemically dependent system.
Download or read book Farming for Our Future written by PETER H.. ROSENBERG LEHNER (NATHAN A.) and published by . This book was released on 2021-12-07 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Farming for Our Future examines the policies and legal reforms necessary to accelerate the adoption of practices that can make agriculture in the United States climate-neutral or better. These proven practices will also make our food system more resilient to the impacts of climate change. Agriculture's contribution to climate change is substantial--much more so than official figures suggest--and we will not be able to achieve our overall mitigation goals unless agricultural emissions sharply decline. Fortunately, farms and ranches can be a major part of the climate solution, while protecting biodiversity, strengthening rural communities, and improving the lives of the workers who cultivate our crops and rear our animals. The importance of agricultural climate solutions can not be underestimated; it is a critical element both in ensuring our food security and limiting climate change. This book provides essential solutions to address the greatest crises of our time.
Download or read book From the Farm to the Table written by Gary H. Holthaus and published by University Press of Kentucky. This book was released on 2006-12-01 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As with other areas of human industry, it has been assumed that technological progress would improve all aspects of agriculture. Technology would increase both efficiency and yield, or so we thought. The directions taken by technology may have worked for a while, but the same technologies that give us an advantage also create disadvantages. It’s now a common story in rural America: pesticides, fertilizers, “big iron” combines, and other costly advancements may increase speed but also reduce efficiency, while farmers endure debt, dangerous working conditions, and long hours to pay for the technology. Land, livelihood, and lives are lost in an effort to keep up and break even. There is more to this story that affects both the food we eat and our provisions for the future. Too many Americans eat the food on their plates with little thought to its origin and in blind faith that government regulations will protect them from danger. While many Americans might have grown up in farming families, there are fewer family-owned farms with each passing generation. Americans are becoming disconnected from understanding the sources and content of their food. The farmers interviewed in From the Farm to the Table can help reestablish that connection. Gary Holthaus illuminates the state of American agriculture today, particularly the impact of globalization, through the stories of farmers who balance traditional practices with innovative methods to meet market demands. Holthaus demonstrates how the vitality of America’s communities is bound to the successes and failures of its farmers. In From the Farm to the Table, farmers explain how their lives and communities have changed as they work to create healthy soil, healthy animals, and healthy food in a context of often inappropriate federal policy, growing competition from abroad, public misconceptions regarding government subsidies, the dangers of environmental damage and genetically modified crops, and the myths of modern economics. Rather than predicting doom and despair for small American growers, Holthaus shows their hope and the practical solutions they utilize. As these farmers tell their stories, “organic” and “sustainable” farming become real and meaningful. As they share their work and their lives, they reveal how those concepts affect the food we eat and the land on which it’s grown, and how vital farming is to the American economy.
Download or read book Strengthening Rural Communities written by Executive Office of the President and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2014-09-23 with total page 30 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The agricultural economy is more resilient today than it was thirty years ago during the farm crisis that spilled over into rural America. At that time, interest rates hikes driven by the Federal Reserve and other Western central banks led to a sharp slowdown in economic activity domestically and abroad. As rising debt-service burdens and plummeting exports squeezed economies, developing countries' demand for U.S. agricultural products collapsed. American farmers had borrowed large sums in the hopes of selling into an ever-growing international market, and then found their own debt payments escalating as their revenues declined. Farm foreclosures soared, and farmers sharply reduced their investment expenditures on new farm equipment. The value of U.S. agricultural exports fell by a third between 1980 and 1986. Real farm sector asset values fell by nearly half in that period. A full recovery from that crisis took nearly two decades. During those lean years, the less efficient farms-the ones with higher costs and lower output per unit of input-simply could not survive. The most productive farms became a larger and larger part of the total industry, while the least productive farms disappeared. This made the industry as a whole much more productive. It was a difficult process, but at its end America had a more efficient, more resilient agricultural system. Investments in rural America benefited farm families and helped boost production. Farmers diversified income streams and hedged against risks by renting lands, specializing in management of farming operations, contracting capital-intensive services requiring expensive machinery and information services, and making greater use of output contracts and financial risk mitigation strategies. Moreover, production has shifted to farm corporations and partnerships. Those factors have spread risk across a wider set of stakeholders. Farms have become more efficient and productive, increasing output without increasing inputs. The resulting resilience and increased productivity has helped the agricultural economy rebound quickly from the recent recession. Since the farm crisis of the mid-1980s, real farm assets (including land and buildings) have risen in both nominal and real (inflation-adjusted) terms (see Figure 1). In real terms, farm assets had not reached their 1980 level until this year. Similarly, agricultural land values are now at record highs today. Today, the real equity of farms is expected to establish a new nominal record in 2012, with the real value of farm assets at the highest level since 1980. In 2007, 31% of farms used debt financing, as compared to 60% in 1986 (Henderson and Akers, 2010). Current levels of debt are well below debt repayment capacity, with larger farms making more use of their debt capacity (Sundell and Shane, 2012).
Download or read book What I Know Of Farming written by Horace Greeley and published by . This book was released on 2024-04-23 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "What I Know of Farming" is a book written by Horace Greeley, an American newspaper editor and publisher, as well as a prominent advocate for agrarianism and agricultural reform. The book, first published in 1871, reflects Greeley's personal experiences and insights gained from his own experiments in farming. In "What I Know of Farming," Greeley shares practical advice and observations on various aspects of agriculture, drawing from his firsthand experiences as a farmer. He covers topics such as soil management, crop rotation, livestock care, and agricultural economics. Greeley's writing is straightforward and accessible, aimed at helping fellow farmers improve their practices and increase their productivity. While Greeley was not a professional farmer himself, he was deeply passionate about agriculture and believed strongly in the importance of farming as a foundation of American society. Through his writing and advocacy, he sought to promote the ideals of agrarianism and self-sufficiency, encouraging Americans to embrace farming as a noble and rewarding occupation. In addition to practical advice, "What I Know of Farming" also reflects Greeley's broader vision for agrarian reform and social progress. He believed that a strong and prosperous agricultural sector was essential for the health and stability of the nation, and he advocated for policies that would support small farmers and promote sustainable farming practices. Overall, "What I Know of Farming" is a valuable historical document that provides insights into 19th-century farming practices and the challenges faced by American farmers of the time. Greeley's passion for agriculture and his commitment to agrarian ideals continue to resonate with readers interested in the history of farming and agricultural reform.
Download or read book Harvesting Prosperity written by Keith Fuglie and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2020 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book documents frontier knowledge on the drivers of agriculture productivity to derive pragmatic policy advice for governments and development partners on reducing poverty and boosting shared prosperity. The analysis describes global trends and long-term sources of total factor productivity growth, along with broad trends in partial factor productivity for land and labor, revisiting the question of scale economies in farming. Technology is central to growth in agricultural productivity, yet across many parts of the developing world, readily available technology is never taken up. We investigate demand-side constraints of the technology equation to analyze factors that might influence producers, particularly poor producers, to adopt modern technology. Agriculture and food systems are rapidly transforming, characterized by shifting food preferences, the rise and growing sophistication of value chains, the increasing globalization of agriculture, and the expanding role of the public and private sectors in bringing about efficient and more rapid productivity growth. In light of this transformation, the analysis focuses on the supply side of the technology equation, exploring how the enabling environment and regulations related to trade and intellectual property rights stimulate Research and Development to raise productivity. The book also discusses emerging developments in modern value chains that contribute to rising productivity. This book is the fourth volume of the World Bank Productivity Project, which seeks to bring frontier thinking on the measurement and determinants of productivity to global policy makers.
