Food supply

Introduction A view held by arguably a majority of food experts is that meat production is a far less efficient means of producing food than crop-based agriculture. The USDA estimates that it takes 20 times more land to get the…

The processed food industry – producing fast food, soft drinks, and ultra-processed additives is an enormous enterprise. 3% of all beverages consumed in the world are coca cola products. McDonald’s accounts for 7% of the US’s total potato production, contributing…

Vertical farming refers to growing crops in stacked trays or platforms. Predominantly housed indoors, vertical farms require lighting and control systems for temperature, humidity, and air circulation that are autonomous from the natural environment. Though greenhouses are slowly adopting hydroponics,…

Introduction Farming-associated activities are a leading cause of environmental degradation. From the use of agrichemicals, and clearing of forests to make way for cropland, to the degradation of soil due to unhealthy farming practices, agriculture has so far grossly failed…

Greenhouse farming is a form of Controlled environment agriculture, more commonly known as CEA. CEA may mean different things to different agricultural practices. The overriding definition, however, is that CEA seeks to control the way plants are exposed to the…

Aquaculture is the farming of fish and other aquatic organisms in controlled aquatic environments. Fisheries, on the other hand, refers to natural habitat of fish and aquatic organisms such as lakes, rivers, and oceans. Since 1961, the global consumption of…

Introduction Irrigation has helped the Great Plains spring into life, propelling the US to become one of the world’s biggest producers of grains, with a net surplus of food. The center-pivot irrigation system has been instrumental in converting land that…

Outdoor farming refers to the cultivation of land without the assistance of a controlled environment. By controlled environment, we mean a system that can help the farmer control temperature, humidity, lighting, and substrate (soil). Outdoor farming can be reliant on…

Introduction Some crops grow well in woodlands, requiring moderate access to sunlight to do well. Such crops include raspberries, blackberries, gooseberries, pecans, hazelnuts, and currants. These crops still need to grow in soil, at least for the foreseeable future, due…