Unit 1
Our Food Systems Today
Agriculture is the primary way that human beings interact with the natural world. Today, our industrial approach to agriculture is maximizing short-term profits by extracting and degrading natural resources faster than they can be replenished. However, there is a better way. Regenerative agriculture works with Earth’s natural systems to create a productive and resilient food system with multiple environmental, economic, and social benefits.
Let’s start here - History of Our Food System
Going back in time to understand how the world found itself deeply dependent on chemical agriculture.
Articles:
“Where did agriculture begin? Oh boy, it’s complicated”
“Sometime around 12,000 years ago, our hunter-gatherer ancestors began trying their hand at farming…”
Source: “Food for Thought” NPR
“History of Agriculture”
“Agriculture, the cultivation of food and goods through farming, produces the vast majority of the world’s food supply.”
Source: Johns’ Hopkins Food Span
Videos:
TED Ed
“Trace the 9,000 year old history of the domestication of corn, or maize, and its effects on global agriculture.”
How Food Is Grown
Organic - A Step In the Right Direction
Articles:
Sustainable Agriculture vs. Industrial Agriculture
“US policy changes shifted agriculture towards ever more consolidation and industrialization. But there are sustainable alternatives that are gaining ground.”
Source: Source: FoodPrint
What is Organic Farming?
“The USDA defines organic agriculture as ‘a production system that is managed to respond to site-specific conditions by integrating cultural, biological, and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources, promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity.’“
Source: SARE (Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education)
Organic Livestock Management
“With an emphasis on pasture and restrictions on the use of antibiotics and hormones, organic livestock benefit people and the environment.”
Source: Rodale Institute
Natural and Organic Beef
“To produce, market, label or advertise beef using the term “organic,” producers and processing companies must each be certified by the USDA as organic producers.”
Videos:
NRCS
NRCS outlines what it takes to meet the standards of USDA’s National Organic Program.
