The Future Of Feeding A Growing Population

[Liberalman]

The Future Of Feeding A Growing Population

http://www.ehow.com/way_5201804_greenhouse-farming.html

"With the agricultural industry suffering from loss of topsoil, sterilization of lands due to overuse of synthetic fertilizers and disruption of eco-systems due to indiscriminate use of pesticides, greenhouse farming may prove to be the most viable solution to the agricultural industry's woes."

“The use of several greenhouses is ultimately more practical than one very large greenhouse for the small farmer.”


The family farm is under attack from the manufacturing and distribution chain by paying them bottom dollar while they get top dollar for finished products.

Agriculture marketing boards are being dismantled for free trade agreements so the family farm needs bigger families to make the farm work with low wages a lot of kids are leaving the farm so the family farms are depending on foreign migrant workers who are working for slave wages.

The court in Ontario already has ruled that farm workers cannot organize and form unions but it is a matter of time when that will change.

Because of changing weather patterns and synthetic fertilizer usage and more diseases wiping out plants smaller crop yields is becoming the norm, it is a matter of time before the whole agriculture industry will collapse.

Greenhouse and veridical farming and improved farming techniques are the last resort to save the food chain that our ever-growing population requires.

The future of farming will include a high amount of automation like more computers and robots to do the work and in a greenhouse or vertical farming model it will be a reality sooner.
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[dumpthemonarchy]

The future of farming in Canada should mean the end of supply management of dairy, chicken and eggs. BC for one would create thousands of local jobs if the supposedly free market conservatives in Ottawa practiced what they preached. This will counter big farms and automation. Could by why the Harperites do nothing for small farmers, they are the flunkies of big biz.

 

[petros]

because of changing weather patterns and synthetic fertilizer
usage and more diseases wiping out plants smaller crop yields is becoming the
norm, it is a matter of time before the whole agriculture industry will
collapse.

100% bull****!

 

[L Gilbert]

Agricorps aren't about to let agriculture go the way of the dodo. Neither are the little businesses like my wife.

 

[MHz]

If companies can gain the control they did in the 'banana republics' in America and the US they wouldn't balk at it, that is how their shareholders would want it as that maximizes profits for them. It appears the American dream was a ploy to take the land in the first place and then they would become the surfs. Exactly the way the Arabs of Palestine were lied to in 1910's by the Brits. Help us win a war and we will give you independence in your own sovereign Nation. Their word was broken by the time 1920 rolled around, why does the biggest victim always think they can never be lied to? In the US and Canada that would be about 300M in total that are basically clueless as to what the facts actually are. Amazing to say the least. It's one thing to know you are ruled by those with an iron fist, it is quite another thing for the victims to be under the delusion that they actually control the fist.

The corporations didn't give up the 'company town system' willingly and they created it in the first place because that is what benefited the owners best. The brief break from that in America was just that, a brief break beccause the lowest paid workers were always broke just before the next payday. Farms are the biggest use of child labor around, nor do they get an even cut of the profits at the end of the year, nor do they get all the standardized safety training that dangerous occupations do (like the oil-patch) so the 'family-farm' certainly needs to be brought up to 21st century worker standards. That would mean they would need more for their product, it is much easier for corps to just move to a country where the slaves already know they are slaves. When a GM crop fails in India it just sucks to be the farmer, the Gov certainly isn't going to help with the financial loss, the new owners are responsible and if they fail the land just keeps getting new owners (workers really as the banks own the land title)

 

[gopher]

The family farm is under attack from the manufacturing and distribution chain by paying them bottom dollar while they get top dollar for finished products.

There are tens of thousands of unused farm lands in the Dakotas and Montana. Farmers can easily go into those lands, grow millions of tons of crops, and sell them on the open market. They don't need to wait for government subsidies to do that. Blaming corporations or anyone else has not actual basis.

 

[damngrumpy]

The biggest problem is, the Farmers have been subsidizing Consumers for far
too long. Supply management is the way to go. In fact the first step is a full
national promotion agency and when a government that is friendly to agriculture
comes back that can be converted to a supply management system.
China and other emerging nations are buying farmland in many parts of the world
including Canada and when the food shortages appear they can ship food form here
to their home country and we won't even be able to access the scraps left over.
Farmers deserve a good living period.
In fact the idea of global village when it comes to food is a joke, do you think the other
nations are going to care about Canada in the event of a food shortage? No and we
should have a national food policy to ensure our interests come first in this country.
I have been involved in agricultural politics for more than half a decade and I have
always pushed to a move toward supply management for the apple sector.
When it comes to food we should demand a Canada first policy when it comes to supply.

 

[gopher]

The biggest problem is, the Farmers have been subsidizing Consumers for far
too long

Not around here. Local farmers sell their ares in the farmers market and reap huge profits. ALL of it in cash. Most likely, they don't pay a cent in taxes while taking subsidies after petitioning the politicians with sob stories about not making enough money. This is true of every metro area in the state and likely the same in every state in the Union.

 

[MHz]

That's odd, the ones around here charge GST and they keep all the sales reciepts and expenses so they can claim the expenses at year end, including the red gas to go to town on business with the farm plates on the Escalade. A garden now brings in money rather than costing some so the farmers food just became free.

 

[Bar Sinister]

The future of farming in Canada should mean the end of supply management of dairy, chicken and eggs. BC for one would create thousands of local jobs if the supposedly free market conservatives in Ottawa practiced what they preached. This will counter big farms and automation. Could by why the Harperites do nothing for small farmers, they are the flunkies of big biz.

The Harper government is in a bit of a corner when it comes to doing away with marketing boards, seeing as most rural voters tend to vote Conservative. The Conservatives already made one very bad mistake in getting rid of the Canadian Wheat Board, an organization that gave Canada a considerable advantage in negotiating grain deals with overseas buyers. Eliminating marketing boards might just be a bit too much.

 

[dumpthemonarchy]

The Harper government is in a bit of a corner when it comes to doing away with marketing boards, seeing as most rural voters tend to vote Conservative. The Conservatives already made one very bad mistake in getting rid of the Canadian Wheat Board, an organization that gave Canada a considerable advantage in negotiating grain deals with overseas buyers. Eliminating marketing boards might just be a bit too much.

The Tories may have shot their rural bolt by doing away with the Wheat Board, angering people who support farmers, so they don't want to go after marketiing boards. But there aren't many votes from chicken farmers, mkgt boards or not. The Tories ain't got no real free market jam here.

Most rural voters are no longer farmers, so I wonder what the Tories are fretting about. Part of the problem is that city votes are worth about 30% less than rural votes. Most city people don't care about the Wheat Board, it is a prairie and international issue. To get trade deals with Asia, mktg boards are gone. City people will cheer as food will get cheaper, and many new jobs will be created. Most of the quota is held in Quebec and there's few Tory votes there these days.

 

[petros]

City people will cheer as food will get cheaper, and many new jobs will be
created.

Food isn't going to get cheaper and no new jobs will come of this.

 

[dumpthemonarchy]

====================

This is a slow moving crisis, those countries that successfully work the market will feed themselves, those that don't will suffer. Egypt for example, imports large amounts of food, and with a growing population, and stagnant economic growth, is a big problem in the making. Libya, interestingly, imports most of its food, but they have the oil to pay for it.

 

[petros]

Libya was irrigating the desert from wells but not anymore and Egypt has plenty of land for food but is forced by trade deals to grow cotton.

 

[dumpthemonarchy]

Food isn't going to get cheaper and no new jobs will come of this.

Perhaps, but there will be many more choices for consumers. Getting rid of mktg boards will allow dairy farmers to produce more kinds of cheese and butter, this is a fact. Same for chickens.

Plus, export markets will be created, food is something we produce plenty of, and countries want to buy it from us. We are the clean country of nature, mountains, lakes etc. We are letting huge markets slip away because the govt of the day is worried about a few rural votes. Very lame. New Zealand ended subsidies for their farmers 30 years ago and they are making more money than ever. The old special economic laws for agriculture are obsolete in the modern world.

Libya was irrigating the desert from wells but not anymore and Egypt has plenty of land for food but is forced by trade deals to grow cotton.

Oooh, all that pressure from the outside world telling that sovereign nation what to do. I am so so sad. Seems like those sand people need another revolution then. Cotton, religion, food, pick one please.

 

[petros]

Farmers don't produce cheese and butter on the farm. This is fact. Dairies do, not dairy farms. What the hell is chicken butter?

Oooh, all that pressure from the outside world telling that sovereign nation what to do. I am so so sad. Seems like those sand people need another revolution then. Cotton, religion, food, pick one please.

Why do you have a thread crossing over two topics you have no clue about?

 

[dumpthemonarchy]

Farmers don't produce cheese and butter on the farm. This is fact. Dairies do, not dairy farms. What the hell is chicken butter?

Why do you have a thread crossing over two topics you have no clue about?

Dear clueless, try to stay on topic, try to write meaning things, try to show you have a brain. Your exposure to cheap BC Bud is obvious.

 

[petros]

I'm on topic.

BC bud? Why would I have that mold and mildew infested crap?

 

[Walter]

The Harper government is in a bit of a corner when it comes to doing away with marketing boards, seeing as most rural voters tend to vote Conservative. The Conservatives already made one very bad mistake in getting rid of the Canadian Wheat Board, an organization that gave Canada a considerable advantage in negotiating grain deals with overseas buyers. Eliminating marketing boards might just be a bit too much.

Most polls, except those sponsored by the wheat board, showed that farmers are in favour of not belonging to the wheat board.

 

[Liberalman]

Most polls, except those sponsored by the wheat board, showed that farmers are in favour of not belonging to the wheat board.

Can you back that up with a link?