History of Food & Agriculture1800’s
Download
Report
Transcript History of Food & Agriculture1800’s
History of Agriculture
AGR 199
The Question of FOREVER
OR
Agriculture & Food
Which came first??
Food NOT agriculture
- hunter / gatherers
- small food plots
- larger food production for subsistence
- “sellable food”
Agriculture over past 10,000 years
Usable Land Area
Oceans ¾ of earth (1/4 land mass)
1/8 is desert, swamp, artic, etc and cant be
used
Remaining 1/8 is where people live
Slice this remaining 8th into 4 pieces, 3 of
them are cities and unusable soil,
The remainder is what we have left to farm.
Early Civilizations
Egypt – Nile River agriculture
Iraq – Tigris-Euphrates Rivers
Mexico – Ancient Indian civilizations
Europe – Roman Empire
Era’s
1). Agriculture Era’s (1600-1900’s)
2). Industrial Era (1900 – 1970’s)
3). Computer Era (1980 – 2000)
4). Biotechnology Era (2000 - ?)
5). Space ? ? ?
Crop Origins
Broad beans – Europe
Soybeans – China – Ben Franklin
Corn – North American/Central American
Indians (Maize) Most common
Squash – Central – So. America
Tobacco – So. America (Brazil area)
Potato – Andean Highlands (Peru/Ecuador)
Crop Origins
Tomato – South and Central America
Cotton – Mexico area
Peanuts – Brazil (soil like Georgia)
Temp, humidity, soil conditions
Chocolate – Aztecs, Used seed for currency
Origins
1/3 of all crops originated in America’s
Cattle Came to US in 1525
1609 – First corn grown
1611 –First wheat planted in Va.
1612 – First tobacco by English Settlers
Early Ag Developments
Indians used fish and shells as fertilizer
Grass, roots, ashes, etc as well
Other forms of Fertilizer:
Manure
Organic Matter
Other Forms
4 Principal Food Crops
These 4 feed the world in order of greatest to
least:
1.) Rice
2). Wheat
3). Potatoes
4). Corn (Maize)
6 Breadbaskets to the World
1). Central North America (Iowa, etc)
2). Middle East (Syria)
3). Asia (Manchuria)
4). South America (Argentina)
5). Eastern Europe (Ukraine – old USSR)
6). Asia (Mongolia)
AGR Developments
1701- Seed Drill
1786 – Thresher (Wheat)
1793 – Cotton Gin Invented
1797 – Cast Iron Plow
1804 – Canning
1831 – McCormick Reaper invented
AGR Developments
1837 – John Deere Plow built (steel plow)
1839 – Congress made 1st agricultural
appropriation
1858 - Harvester
1874 – Barbed wire invented
1892- Gasoline tractor produced
Land in the 1700-1800’s
Land was sold for $1.00-1.25 per acre by the
government to individuals
40-80 acres was sold at first
Then determined that one needed 150 to stay
profitable in the mid-west
Late 1700’s – 96% of pop. Involved in
agriculture
An acre was / is ?
The amount of land a man or Beast of
Burden could plow in the late 1700’s
About the size of a football field
43,560 sq. ft.
Cost $10.65 acre in 1900 in Calloway Co.
Cost $2,500 acre in 2000 in Calloway Co.
Cost $6,500 acre in 2011 in Calloway Co.
Land Distribution Theories
1) . Alexander Hamilton –
- Large tracts of land (European)
- Wealthy to have land, others to work for
them
- Maximize profit for Government at sale
- Southern plantation style (European)
Land Theories
Thomas Jefferson –
- Small tracts of land (60-80 acres)
- Everybody (family) gets a chance to
own
- Sold at reasonable prices (cheap)
- Promote subsistence farming and
more democratic state in U.S.
- Eventually won out
Land Development
Hamlet – Township – 5000 acre pie shaped
structure in North East – Did not last long
Plantations – South – large tracts owned by
few families, slavery, commodity based
on cotton, corn, tobacco
Western U.S. – 640 ac. Perfect squares
Other Characteristics of Early
Ag.
Subsistence Farming
Surveying became more common
Recording of deeds of land
description/ownership
Fight for water rights in west
Barbed Wire
Cattle Barons
History of Food &
Agriculture1800’s
Much of country on subsistence farms
Robert Reid – 1846, crossbred two
different types of Indian Corn,
Guordseed and Flint Corn and
developed field corn.
Heredity – Gregor Mendel – father
Robert Reid
Utilized principles of heredity from his
knowledge of Gregor Mendel – father of
genetics.
One of the first agriculture and science
integrators!
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1862 – The Department of Agriculture was
established by President Lincoln.
Washington wanted one even earlier
Was called the “Peoples Department”
Two Objectives in the beginning:
Distribute Seeds
Gather, disseminate and distribute information
Agriculture Higher Education
1862- Morrill Land Grant Act
Established Land Grant Universities in States
Primarily for Agriculture and Mechanics
Texas A & M, etc.
Huge sums of land were granted to the states
This was the “study” aspect of agriculture ed.
1890- Land Grants for African Americans
Research
1887 – Hatch Act
Created the Agricultural Experiment Stations
These were a research component attached to Land
Grant Universities
Modeled after German research stations
Practical research for farmers and students- This
was the “research aspect” of education
Started with research on commercial fertilizers.
1870’s
53% of U.S. population involved in
agriculture
Average farm was 153 acres
Agricultural Extension
1914 – Smith Lever Act
Created Agricultural Extension Service
Attached to Land Grant Universities
Carry information and research to the farmer
“Outreach aspect” of education in agriculture
1800’s Transportation
Turnpikes
Canals
Steamboats
Railroads – fast & cheap
Refrigeration – beef industry
Interstates – Military,Germany, after WWII
1900’s
1890-1920
Called Golden Age of American Farmer
1910 – Agriculture was 31% of labor
Good production for the most part
Farmers were “labor” and “management”
What are they now?
Early 1900’s in Agriculture
1916- Federal Farm Loan Act – land banks
1926- Commercial hybrid seed corn
1920’s – Overproduction in agriculture
1929 – Stock Market Crash
Early 1930’s- Dust Bowl
1933 – Soil Erosion (Conservation) Service
Prior to Depression
Wheat acreage up 42%
within 6 years.
Wheat production up
27%
Wheat prices tripled!
1919 – 33 million more
acres than 5 years earlier.
Livestock were up 29
million head.
Land was 5 times greater
than 1900.
Dust Bowl
Aftermath of the Depression
Diversified Farming
Federal Farm Loan Act
Marketing Acts
Farm Credit Administration
Soil Conservation
The Beginning of Urban Sprawl
American Farm Bureau
1919 – American Farm Bureau Federation
Founded to help formulate a national farm
policy
Conservative
Believes in free trade among countries
Supports all aspects of agriculture
1920-30’s
WPA – Works Projects Administration
CCC – Civilian Conservation Corps – improving
soil conditions
1920’s – Food, Drug and Insecticide
Administration – protected farmers from false
labeling of chemicals, and consumers from false
labeling
Start of Social Programs and Work Programs
Structured Ag Policy
The three beginnings of organized farm policy:
American Farm Bureau – producer side
Agricultural Adjustment Act – gov. side
Farm Credit Administration – financial side
Ag Adjustment Act of 1933
1933- Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA)
Roosevelt Administration
Raised money from taxes on commodities
bought by processors and consumers
Cash relief payments to farmers for debt,
farmers had to limit their production
Goal was to raise prices by making commodities
scarce
Beginnings of modern day agricultural policy
Mid 1900’s in Agriculture
Labor and Credit were scarce during WWII
Women helped fill the gaps in agriculture
WWII
GI’s did not return to the farm (suburbs)
1947- General Agreement on Tariffs/Trade
(GATT)
1950’s- Massive farm subsidies
1950-1960’s
1950 – Farmers were 12.2% of labor force
1956- Food Stamp Program (social program)
1957 – 4 wheel drive vehicles
1960’s – Chemicals and fertilizers cause
explosion in crop production
Malthus Theory
Thomas Malthus
Predicted large scale starvation as the population
grew faster than the food supply.
Malthus was wrong!
The advances in agriculture allowed food
production to outpace the population explosion.
Green Revolution
1950-1960’s
Norman Borlaug
Creation of new varieties, higher yields
Boosted by: GENETICS, fertilizers, pesticides,
technology and early biotech
World wide boom in agriculture production
Targeted Mexico, Brazil
Thanks Norman!
1960’s
Chemicals, fertilizers and genetics cause an
explosion in crop productivity
Known as “The Green Revolution”
Agriculture was good
Good access to capital ($)
Expansion mentality
1970’s Agriculture
Farmers were 4.6% of labor force
Large scale production-industrial agriculture
Corporations
Modest profits – high commodity prices
Large scale expansion
Fence Row to Fence Row Philosophy (Its Back)
Land prices soared!
Late 70’s interests rates soared (18% +)
1980’s Agriculture
CRASH! Did we not learn our lesson?
1981-82 – Ag Economy Plunged
Bankruptcy, foreclosures, auctions
Land was to high, commodity prices plunged due to
overproduction of the 1950, 60 & 70’s
People expanded too fast
Rest of the 80’s spent digging out of debt, for those
left
No-till farming became widely used
1990’s Agriculture
1993 – NAFTA
1993- GPS adapted to agriculture
Lots of mergers and integration after 1980’s
Agriculture was up and down for most commodities
It depended on which commodity as to how
profitable. Hogs 10c lb., cattle plummeted
poultry rose, tobacco steady
Agriculture Today
2% (1.8%) involved in Production Agr.
(U.S.)
20% involved in Agriculture/Agribusiness
(U.S.)
Food and Fiber ------ 1 U.S. Farmer Feeds
155 people + worldwide
Modern Definitions
Definition of Agriculture: Biological Control
of Plants and Animals for Human and Food
Production
Definition of a Farm: (IRS) any entity that
produces and sells $1,000 of commodities
(no limits on land acreage)
How has Norman Borlaug’s impact played a key
role in the issues that the agriculture sector is
currently facing?
How has Agricultural Education from the 1700’s
until now, advanced the society?
Why should we study and be aware of history?
1920’s? 1970’s?
Will there be more of this pattern in Agriculture?