The Town That Food Saved

Thursday, 16 September 2010

 The Town That Food Saved: How One Community Found Vitality in Local Food
Through the last decade the Northern Vermont town of Hardwick, population 3200, gradually evolved into a nationally respected source of local food and began to reap benefits. Hewitt, an area resident and family farmer, previously wrote about the area as a potential example of localized agriculture and economics, especially for a population whose residents' median income was below state average. But curiosity and healthy skepticism, along with his own investment, spurred him to this deeper investigation into the local personalities (and characters) driving the movement, and to observe, participate and reflect upon such odiferous activities as pig slaughtering. The resulting blend of analysis and reflection highlights the possibilities and perils of what Hewitt argues will impact the agricultural and economic future for better or worse. (Apr.) 
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Revolution Down on the Farm

 A Revolution Down on the Farm: The Transformation of American Agriculture since 1929
Author and Vanderbilt University history professor Conkin (The State of the Earth: Environmental Challenges on the Road to 2100) grew up on a subsistence farm in Tennessee, working summers as a harvest hand, and members of his family still farm. As such, he's personally witnessed many of the radical changes he covers in this practical, thorough and clearly-written story of the American farm's 20th century transformation into the world's breadbasket. Along the journey from family homestead to hyper-efficient industrial farm, the most useful chapters explain the origin and development of convoluted federal and state farm policy (and why attempts at reforms so often fail) for both rural and urban taxpayers. Throughout, Conkin documents from all sides the clever advances that began mechanizing agriculture right after the Civil War, driving spectacular improvements in efficiency, but also a complete dependence on cheap oil and a cycle of debt many farmers cannot escape. A final chapter examines even-handedly various types of "alternative" farming, proving Conkin no dreamy devotee of "organic" trends. This cogent, thorough history should prove fascinating for anyone interested in the changing landscape of American agriculture. 198 photographs. 
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc.

Information Technology in Agriculture

Saturday, 21 August 2010

Today's Scenario

Agriculture is the sector which continues to sit on the driver's seat and will remain so forever as long as we don't get rid of stomachs; So it becomes fairly important for any reform or revolution to address this sector and in this race information technology has been the front runner.

Information technology has led from the front in the information sharing process among the Agro scientists, Engineers, Farmers and Students. Because of the core dependency of information technology on Internet might have restricted the reach of the information but situation will not remain so for long.

Now scientists from all over the world collaborate over the internet, for sharing the information about the research on land fertility, seed hybridization, reducing the man efforts and making the farming environment less challenging and cost effective.

Future Guidelines

In an edition of "The economist", I encountered something which could trigger anxiety in anyone when it states "1974 Henry Kissinger, then America's secretary of state, told the first world food conference in Rome that no child would go to bed hungry within ten years. Just over 35 years later, in the week of another United Nations food summit in Rome, 1 billion people will go to bed hungry. This failure, already dreadful, may soon get worse. None of the underlying agricultural problems which produced a spike in food prices in 2007-08 and increased the number of hungry people has gone away. Between now and 2050 the world's population will rise by a third, but demand for agricultural goods will rise by 70%." Usual business is not going to better the estimates, as the panacea lies in the maximum involvement of information technology in agricultural research and knowledge transfer.

Agriculture sector has stood against the time and achieved green, white, yellow, blue and cyber revolutions over the time.

Availability of information and effectively using this information is crucial for successful economic development. Information about expert suggestions, material inputs, financial support, technological innovations and changing market conditions have huge impact on agriculture equally as the case with any other sector.

How well the Agriculture involves information technology in itself, will play a major role in determining the future well being of those who have direct dependency on agriculture for livelihood, especially in developing countries like India.

In this context, it is most prudent to extend the benefits of IT to agriculture and not to underestimate the tremendous growth potential to be unleashed in this sector.

Introduction of Agriculture

The practice of agriculture is also known as "farming", while scientists, inventors and others devoted to improving farming methods and implements are also said to be betrothed in agriculture. The Agricultural Wages Board has been abolished in a guano cull announced by the sector for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Agriculture is the course of producing food, feed, fiber and many other desired products by the cultivation of certain plants and the raising of domesticated animals (livestock). Agriculture encompasses a wide variety of specialties and techniques, consisting ways to expand the lands suitable for plant rising, by digging water-channels and other forms of irrigation.

The suitability of these agriculture and environmental articles has been rated between 90-100 per cent by a large sample number drawn from various sections of the inhabitants who have used these articles. The system is based on eight principles which are different to usual rice cultivation.

These operations generally attempt to maximize financial income from grain, generate, or livestock. The move has angered Unite, which nominates eight of the board 21 representatives, and claims its call for a consultation on plans to scrap the organization was disregarded. Agriculture sometimes refers to subsistence agriculture, the production of sufficient food to meet just the needs of the farmer/agriculturalist and his/her family.

Modern agronomy, plant breeding, pesticides and fertilizers, and technological improvements have sharply increased yields from cultivation, and at the same time have caused widespread ecological harm and negative human health effects. The report More Rice with Less Water was released at a seminar held 3-5 October in India.