Why Sustainable agriculture Is Important For Rising Global Population
Sustainable agricultural practices are essential to feeding a growing and voracious global population.
Farmers throughout Australia clearly recognise the need for sustainable agriculture. In short, sustainable farms lead to a sustainable business that can be handed down through generations.
There is a strong argument for an industry-based environmental stewardship system that recognises sustainable agriculture practices.
While environmental groups, producer bodies and regional groups in Australia have filled the gap, an umbrella environmental stewardship program would be beneficial.
The industry is in the process of developing a stewardship management system for producers, to allow more effective management and reporting on sustainable agricultural practices.
This system will address five crucial areas: greenhouse gas and energy management; land use and management; soil and water; biodiversity; and feral animals and weeds.
Australian red meat producers actively undertake measures at each stage of production to increase their efficiency, cut greenhouse gas emissions and manage other environmental impacts to help preserve our natural resources.
The domestic red meat industry invests more than $7.5 million each year in research and development (R&D) to find ways to make constant improvements to its environmental performance.
This includes collaborating with other livestock industries and governments in R&D to find practical ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while increasing productivity. Since 1990, emissions from red meat production have decreased by 6.5% per kilogram of product.
Through holistic management of their properties, Australian farmers nurture not only their livestock but the soil, trees, micro-organisms, native animals and vegetation that make up their production system. Not only is this important for sustainable farms but it is important for Australia’s quest to cut overall emissions.
A worldwide analysis of the effects of land management on soil carbon showed there is on average about 8% more soil carbon under well-managed pasture than under native forests.
While sustainable farming practices make good business sense, consumers are also increasingly seeking more information about the sustainability profile of their red meat.
The Australian red meat industry is actively engaged with the Sustainable Agricultural Initiative (SAI) Platform – a unique initiative set up in Europe five years ago by leading food companies with a conviction that a common food and agricultural industry platform can promote sustainable agriculture at a global level.
The SAI Platform is an independent association operating across the agriculture, food and fibre chain and aims to change practices to improve agriculture sustainability outcomes.
The Platform’s business approach is known as the -PPPs’ where three dimensions are considered – people, profit and the planet.
Australian agriculture is in a strong position to meet the growing global demand for food. As an agricultural nation with a strong focus on exports, Australia’s farmers are committed to sustainable agricultural systems.
To continue to harvest the long-term economic benefits of food production, Australia’s farmers need to continue to innovate and invest in sustainable agriculture.
Sustainable agricultural practices should be employed for all Australian farming. Learn more at redmeatgreenfacts.com.au
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[Top]Sustainable Agriculture – Is It In Your Future
With the current buzz regarding sustainability, here’s the big query: Sustainable agriculture — Is it in your future?
These are tumultuous times. World warming and environmental degradation are serious threats to the long run of our world. This economic state of affairs is somewhat bleak and recovery is slow. Worry of the future is ever gift in several minds. The matter is that whether or not we have a tendency to acknowledge the environmental seriousness, the monetary concerns and therefore the reservation we have a tendency to feel hold us back from creating significant movement toward positive change. On the other hand, to try and do nothing spells bound disaster in our future.
Sustainability has many definitions depending upon who is defining it! I outline it as agricultural practices which consider, address, and improve the environmental, social, and economic aspects of the operation. It’s like a 3 legged stool. There should be three legs of the identical length and in some cheap configuration in order to possess balance and stability. To neglect one leg or to place it in the wrong place means the business is possible to collapse.
Keeping that balance has several benefits. If anyone ought to be an environmentalist, it should be the farmer. If farmers use the land and water without regard to the results of management, it means that that those resources can doubtless become degraded and/or depleted. It’s like using a car to induce to figure, however never checking the tires, changing the oil nor putting gas in it. It will not be long before you’re looking at alternative transportation. On the other hand, being proactive, considering the consequences, monitoring, and planning ahead can get you there more quickly and with reliability!
Here are ten basic steps to include sustainability into your farm operation:
1. Assess your current scenario
2. Outline specifically what it is that you’re managing
3. Confirm what resources you have offered
4. Write down what you wish to achieve — obtaining to your core principles
5. Arrange your strategy to deal with the setting, finances, and social aspects
6. Check your choices and actions
7. Monitor your progress — think about that you could are wrong
8. Retreat to not off course if you’re off course
9. Completely re-plan when necessary
10. Revisit your goal and your set up
The clock is ticking, however there is still time to form a difference. Each epic journey starts with one small step,and then another. Agriculture is the foundation of civilizations. If agriculture fails, thus does everything else. What are some steps you can take to move toward additional sustainable agriculture? Is it in your future?
[Top]Diseases Wreak Havoc in Cassava Fields in Africa
NAIROBI, KENYA – In Africa, demand for the cassava plant has grown significantly over the years. The continent produces 60 percent of the crop in the world. But the crop is drastically declining in East and Central Africa due to diseases that reduce production.
More than 160 million people in east, central and southern Africa depend on cassava as a stable food and a source of income.
Production of the crop has significantly dropped due to the cassava mosaic and cassava brown streak diseases.
According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization [FAO], the brown streak disease is worse since it affects the root of the crop. These two diseases are creating havoc in Africas agricultural lands.
Improvements necessary
The acting head of the FAO in eastern and central Africa, Luca Alinovi, said the agency has invested to improve the situation in the African fields, but it is not getting better.
Doing right or wrong on cassava has a huge impact on the food security of the people in this region, has such a relevance in our daily lives that we tend to forget it because it appeared in a kind of technical discussion. And I want to bring to your attention that, although it is a technical issue it requires knowledge and requires research, said Alinovi.
The head of the European Union Rural Development and Agriculture program in Kenya, Dominique Davoux, said that over the years the cassava diseases have evolved, and there is need to invest in research to fight the diseases.
We supported the cassava initially, there has been [a] stop in the support, the research slugged [lagged] behind, and the disease reinvented itself [and] propagated again. We have to re-address the issue, said Davoux.
The FAO says a minimum of $100 million is needed to support clean farm production, disease surveillance and research, and market and micro-finance development across the cassava production chain.
Experts warn failure to do so means the cassava disease likely will reach Nigeria, the biggest producer of cassava in Africa.
[Top]Agriculture Playing Important Tole In The Life Of People
India is a land of traditions and beliefs. Indian tradition is very much found of scriptures and mythology and also of art & literature, painting & folklore. India is the country where 60% of the wealth comes from farming. Agriculture and farming are the only two aspects which gives the Indian farmers health and wealth. It plays a very vital role in the economy of the country as it is the only practice which the farmers can do as it can be done on large as well as on small scale.
The word agriculture is short but its need is very vast as it plays a great role on different aspects of our lives. It provides the foundation through which people survive through the provision of food to both humans and their animals. Without agriculture, chances of survival would be minimal as both people and livestock would die out of starvation. As a result of this, agriculture has gained interest among many people, ordinary, policymakers and even researchers due to its important contribution to humanity.
Farming is done in three different categories such as Primitive Farming, Intensive Subsistence Farming, and commercial Farming. As the name suggests primitive subsistence farming is done on a small piece of land with the help of the small farming tools such as hoe and digging sticks including the family members as the labours and sometimes the community members play the part of the labours. Intensive Subsistence farming is done on high intensive area and a huge land with the help of the huge labour intense and high doses of biochemical fertilizers with the help of spraying machines and with the advanced agriculture tools and machines for the higher productivity. Commercial Farming uses the higher doses of fertilizers, high yielding variety seeds, pesticides and insecticides for the higher productivity
Agriculture industry is the basic need for many other industries such as food industry, ecosystem, and the main which is economic sector. Any country in the world that wants to be stable must provide its citizens with the food supplements. Through the different agricultural practices that are there, agriculture is the main source through which countries are able to feed their people. Through crop and livestock production, we are able to get food which is rich in nutrients needed by our bodies. As a result of agriculture, people are able to live free from deficiency diseases.The extent of destruction is influenced by the activities going on in a particular ecosystem. As population grows, more land and forests are now being cleared to create space for agricultural activities.
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