HILR - Impact of Agriculture Lesson

Impact of Agriculture

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Agriculture is considered the most important human activity as it provides the majority of food for the Earth’s inhabitants. Because of its importance, a significant percentage of the world's land area is used for agriculture. Approximately 11% of the total land area of the world, excluding Antarctica, is used for agriculture; this is an area about the size of South and North America combined.

Agricultural areas have become anthropogenic (human-caused) ecosystems. When considering that humans have been engaging in agriculture for thousands of years and the exponential growth of the population, the impacts on the environment have been and will continue to be a challenge to the human race.

In many nations, farming today is industrial, growing the maximum amount of food for the minimum price, often without much thought as to the long-term social or environmental consequences. These industrial food production plants are a long way from the farms of the past and are having an impact on our ecosystems.

Back in the Day

The history of agriculture records the domestication of plants and animals along with the development of techniques for raising them productively. Agriculture began independently in different parts of the globe with at least eleven separate regions of the Old and New World with recorded farming.

Have We Reached Capacity

Many anthropologists say that the carrying capacity of humans on the planet without agriculture is about 10 million. This world population was reached about 10,000 years ago. At the time, people lived together in small bands of hunters and gatherers. Typically, men hunted and fished; women gathered nuts and vegetables.

Obviously, human populations have blown past this hypothetical carrying capacity. We have been able to manipulate our environment in ways that no other species has ever done. Agriculture, more than anything else, has allowed the population to grow at immense rates. 

A Long, Long Time Ago

About 10,000 years ago, we developed the ability to grow our own food. Farming increased the yield of food plants and allowed people to have food available year round. Animals were domesticated to provide meat. With agriculture, people could settle down, so that they no longer needed to carry all their possessions. People were able to produce enough food to provide for their family and then some. With agriculture, early farmers could settle down to a steady food supply.

When advanced farming practices allowed farmers to grow more food than they needed for their families, then people could move away from farms and start doing other jobs such as shop keeper, teacher, banker etc. There was not a need for a family to grow the food they ate, they could buy it from someone else. A century ago, a single farmer produced enough food for 2.5 people, but now a farmer can feed more than 130 people. The Green Revolution is credited for supplying food for 1 billion people that would not otherwise have been able to live.

In the activity below, click on the Circles to learn more.

While there have been many benefits to agriculture for humans there have been some drawbacks. These drawbacks are being addressed with sustainable farming practices. 

Impact of Agriculture Challenge Activity

Before You Go, You Need To Know

The following key points are from this explore section of the lesson. You must know the following information before moving to the next lesson. This is just a summary of the key points.

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