Importance of Agriculture By: Brad Buckner Chapter 1 2/11/05

Objectives  Explain the meaning of agriculture  Describe why agriculture is important.

 Discuss how agriculture has changed.

 Identify the role of systems in agriculture.

What is agriculture?

 The production and marketing of food and fiber products.

– Crops – Animals

Two areas of Agriculture  Production Agriculture Work done on the farm  Agribusiness work done off the farm.

Production Agriculture  Also known as farming or ranching.

 Crops are plants that are grown for its products.

 Live stock, Cattle poultry, sheep.

 Less than 1% are involved in production agriculture.

Agribusiness  25% of all Jobs are related to agriculture.

 Getting products from the farm to the consumer.

 This area also consist of professionals such as vets and chemist.

Other areas Of Agriculture  Horticulture  Forestry  Natural Resources

Horticulture  The production of plants for their beauty and usefulness.

 Includes ornamentals and food crops.

 Lettuce ,apples , nuts

Forestry  The science and art of growing trees and making them into products.

 Tree farms is a farm that specializes in growing trees.

Natural resources  Water  Minerals  Wildlife  Oil  Air  soil

Why is agriculture important?

We must have food, clothing , and housing.

 The solid and liquid material we eat each day.

 How much food do you eat?

Food  Milk 572 lbs.

 Vegetables 244 lbs.

 Cereal 189 lbs.

 Red meat 163lbs.

 Potatoes 136 lbs.

 Fruit 124 lbs.

 Poultry 61 lbs.

 Fish 15 lbs

Clothing  The covering we wear on our bodies.

 Fiber is a tiny piece of solid material that is like a thread.

 Fiber comes from animals and plants.

Housing  Wood is the product of trees.

 Lumber, plywood, furniture

How has Agriculture Changed?

 Early settlers lived by hunting and fishing.

 They grew few crops and raised a small number of animals.

 Native Americans played an important part in the success of the early settlers.

 Europe desired products such as cotton, flax, tea, and rice.

Assignment  Cotton gin  John Deere  Jethro Tull  Cyrus McCormick  Steam Engine  Internal Combustion Engine  Gegor Mendel  Fertilizer  Squanto  Henry Ford  Crop farming