Production+and+markets


 * The effects of the following on the production and availability(marketing) of food**
 * 1. Trade barriers**
 * 2. Agricultural Subsidies**
 * 3. Bilateral and multilateral trade**
 * 4. Transnational corporations (TNCs)**

These are restrictions imposed by the government on imported goods. Trade barriers are meant to discourage consumers from buying imported products (in this case food) and as a form of revenue for the government. Examples of trade barriers include tariffs, quotas and embargoes. //Tariffs:// Taxes imposed on imported products. //Quota:// A restriction on the quantity of goods that can be imported into a country. //Embargo:// An outright ban on the importation of a product. When tariffs are imposed on imported foods, they become expensive for the local consumer, thereby encouraging them to consume locally-produced food products which would go a long way to increase agricultural production in the country. On the other hand, to make cheap imported food available, the government would reduce the taxes on food imports which would flood the market with imported food in order to increase availability. However, this may end up killing the local industries. //Embargoes// are also used to prevent importation. A common example in Ghana is the embargo on "Chofi" (turkey tail).
 * 1. __Trade barriers__**

Agricultural subsidy: Financial and technical support given by the government to farmers in order to increase food production. An example of a region where agricultural subsidies are given on a large scale is the European Union (EU). To increase agricultural productivity, the EU introduced the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) with the aim of encouraging farmers to maximize their production, and in return the government provided a guaranteed market for their produce. Tariffs were imposed on imported foods and export subsidies were given to farmers in the EU. This led to an increase in in the production of grains (wheat, maize, rice), leading to the "Mountain of Wheat," and the "Lake of Wine." Consequently, food became very cheap in the European Union and available to the population as well as for export to other countries.
 * 2. __Agricultural Subsidies__**

Bilateral agreement: An agreement between two countries or two organizations of a country and an organization. eg. Ghana-Japan Technical Corporation. Multilateral agreement: An agreement between more than two countries. eg. Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Bilateral/Multilateral agreements are important in alleviating food shortages for a number of reasons. a) Member countries can come together or decide to abolish trade barriers between themselves in order to make food available at a cheaper cost in both countries. For example, in 2007, the Caribbean island of St. Lucia had cause for celebration when the British supermarket chain Sainsbury announced that all bananas it would sell in future would be fairly traded bananas from St. Lucia. An example of a multilateral agreement that has led to an increase in food production and marketing is the African Caribbean and Pacific Nations Act. (ACP) which gave ACP farmers preferential access to the EU.
 * 3. __Bilateral and Multilateral Agreements__**

b) The countries can receive technical support to increase agricultural/food production. eg. Tractors donated by the government of Japan to Ghana.

c) They provide scholarship packages for students to study agricultural systems in the donor countries in order to apply this knowledge in their own countries

TNCs are large companies/businesses that have branches all over the world. Their headquarters are usually in a developed country. Example of a TNC are: Walmart, Shoprite, Walmart, KFC. TNCs can have an agreement with farmers in developing countries to produce food on a large scale for sale in their supermarkets. eg. Nestle engages many farmers in northern Ghana to produce maize and millet on a large scale so that they can use it to make Cerelac and other baby foods. TNCs also contribute to alleviating food shortages by exporting food to countries suffering from food shortages. "How can the actions of TNCs reduce food availability?" There are numerous possible ways in which TNCs can reduce food availability.
 * 4. __Transnational Corporations (TNCs)__**
 * They may encourage an emphasis on the growing of non-food cash crops rather than food crops.
 * They may gain control of the supply of seed for one or more basic crops; this seed may then be priced beyond the means of the average farmer or the seed may require higher than affordable investments in infrastructure or equipment in order for high yields to be obtained.

T**he relative importance of**
 * 1) **Food aid**
 * 2) **Fair trade**
 * 3) **Free trade**
 * in alleviating food shortages**

Food Aid: assistance given by a donor country to a recipient country in the form of relief food items such as maize, rice, oil or packaged food in situations where natural disasters have made it difficult or impossible for people to prepare their own meals. A good example of food aid is: United States oil and wheat flour sent to developing countries.
 * 1. __Food Aid__**

__Advantages of Food Aid__
 * 1) Food aid helps to alleviate food shortages because they serve as an emergency source of food during war or natural disasters like famine or drought. eg. Food aid was sent to Burma when they were affected by a cyclone named . Quite recently (in 2015) food aid was sent to Nepal when the country was affected by an earthquake.
 * 2) Food aid also reduces the financial pressure on the government.
 * 3) It forms a strong bond between the recipient country and the donor country.

__Disadvantages of Food Aid__ __Forms of food aid__ Food aid can be given in cash (giving the government money to buy food items to feed the people in need) or in kind (cereals etc.) Food aid can help make food available in areas experiencing food shortages because it is usually given free of charge and any country in need would quickly embrace such a package in order to solve the problem in their country.
 * 1) Aid can damage the local production of food in the recipient country. For example in 2002-2003, food aid donors overreacted to a projected 600,000 metric tonne deficit in Malawi causing a severe decline in cereal prices, and hurting local producers.
 * 2) It can lead to a displacement of exports.
 * 3) It can be used to dispose of food surpluses.
 * 4) Food aid is also used to capture food markets.
 * 5) Food comes with strings most of the time.

Fair trade: trade that attempts to be socially, economically and environmentally responsible. ie. They adopt policies that meet the livelihood of the people, respect/preserve their local culture and protect/uses environmental resources wisely. Fair trade cabins take responsibility for the wider impact of their business and aim at sustainable development for disadvantaged/excluded producers. It provides improved working conditions, employs sustainable methods of production and characterized by the absence of any “middlemen”.
 * 2. __Fair Trade__**

Fair trade may take various forms. a. It help farmers obtain fairer prices for their produce. b. It help farmers with the needed technology to increase food production like tractors, combined harvesters. c. It provides guaranteed markets for the products d. More income returns to farmers and stays within the country (with an economic multiplier effect); i. Greater possibility of farmers growing food crops, rather than industrial crops; Examples of fair trade companies include Blue Skies in Ghana, which export pineapples and also produce pineapple juice for export and the local market.

It helps to prevent food shortages because a. Since guaranteed of the market for their produce, they tend to produce on a large scale. b. Fair trade also makes food available at a lower price in the areas where food is produced. eg. Blue Skies makes fruit juice available in Ghana at a lower cost. c. Fair trade companies also help to export food to areas experiencing food shortages. eg. Blue Skies export pineapples to many parts of the world, especially developed countries which do not have access to tropical fruits.

3. __**Free Trade**__ Free trade: an agreement between two countries to trade between themselves without any restrictions or barriers. Examples of free trade include ACP, NAFTA (North Atlantic Free Trade Area), the EU, ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) and many other agreements.

a. Free trade makes food cheaper to the recipient country because there are no tariffs imposed on the imported food. For example, it costs 99p per bag to import rice. b. Countries that do not have access to particular foods due to their geographic location can benefit from some food items that are not grown in their countries.e.g. Ghana imports apples from South Africa due to their geographic location. c. Food companies can relocate to areas experiencing food shortage in order to provide food. eg. FanMilk is a Swedish company. Shoprite is South African. They give subsidies to local farmers to produce the food. d. The trade between the two countries allows the exchange of agricultural technology which can be used in increase food production.

Disadvantages
 * The fertilizers that they use may cause environmental pollution.
 * It is costly.
 * They are unable to control food miles as their food is mostly transported by air.
 * The factories that involve in food processing contribute to the carbon footprint of the areas.


 * Questions:**
 * 1. Explain how the actions of TNCs can reduce the availability of food. [6 marks]**

There are numerous possible ways in which TNCs can reduce food availability.
 * They may encourage an emphasis on the growing of non-food cash crops rather than food crops.
 * They may gain control of the supply of seed for one or more basic crops;
 * this seed may then be priced beyond the means of the average farmer or the seed may require higher than affordable investments in infrastructure or equipment in order for high yields to be obtained.

Examples may be given of trade barriers/agreements (EU), of food (bananas), or both. (There should be at least two examples of trade agreements/barriers, or of food such as bananas.) Examples of a barrier/agreement/country eg, EU/CAP. Give a basic explanation of how production is affected by a rule eg, import tariffs. eg, difficulties created for Kenyan farmers seeking access to EU markets.
 * 2. Using examples, explain how trade barriers and/or trade agreements can affect the production of food. [6]**

Other barriers/agreement that could be explained include: • choice of crops • amounts grown (quotas) • preferential trade access • agreement to use GM crops • health hazards/bans • set aside • fair trade.

Fair trade is trade that gives a higher/guaranteed minimum price/bigger profit for farmers, improved working conditions, sustainable methods of production and characterized by the absence of any “middlemen”
 * 3. a. Describe what is meant by fair trade.** [2]


 * b. Explain how fair trade can help to alleviate local food shortages in regions where food crops are grown. [6]**
 * More income returns to farmers and stays within the country (with an economic multiplier effect);
 * greater possibility of farmers growing food crops, rather than industrial crops;
 * raises likelihood of receiving emergency food aid in times of need from consumers.

The ability of a farm to produce indefinitely without causing harm to the ecosystem/environment. It ensures that resources are used in such a way that future generations can still benefit from it. Sustainable agriculture __conserves natural resources__, prevents environmental degradation and increases the profitability of the farm.
 * __Sustainable Agriculture:__**

__The Environmental Costs of Increasing Food Production__
 * The practice of mono culture by large TNC's causes significant damage to the natural environment.
 * The use of aggro-chemicals is harmful to the environment.
 * The cost of cleaning up chemical pollution is expensive.
 * It also leads to air pollution and greenhouse gas pollution from the farm. Eg. Methane.
 * It leads to the removal of hedgerows leading to deforestation.

Increasing food production has come at a greater cost to the environment in terms of the use of natural resources as well as man-made resources. e.g. fertilizers, tractors. Man-made resources which rely on energy inputs can be measured by the amount of energy subsidies they use. **Energy subsidies** are defined as: “sources of energy not directly received from the sun. eg. Fossil fuels like oil, natural gas and coal.

To assess the extent to which a particular agricultural system depends on energy subsidies, the energy efficiency ratio (EER) is calculated. For example, in a poultry farm, the hens or chicken are dependent on shelter, heating, automatic feeding and watering. Such a farm would consume more energy inputs/subsidies than an arable farm.

The Energy Efficiency Ratio measures the amount of energy __input__ compared with the amount of __output__ produced by the farm. There are two types of inputs: direct inputs and indirect inputs. Example of the direct inputs include planting, cultivation, labor, machinery, vehicle fuel, farm tools etc. Examples of indirect inputs are fertilizers, electricity, irrigation, transport, pesticides etc. The output input ratio is calculated by dividing the total output by the total input. An efficient farm should have an EER ≥ 1. Energy Efficiency Ratio=total outputs/total inputs.
 * __Energy Efficiency Ratio__**

__Factors affecting energy subsidies/ Energy Efficiency Ratio__
 * 1) Climate: Farms located in warm climates will need less energy than those in cold climates because colder ones need artificial light for crop growth.
 * 2) Type of soil: Loamy soil requires less fertilizer. Sandy soil requires more fertilizer.
 * 3) Type of crop cultivated: beans do not use a lot of nutrients. They fix nitrogen into the soil. Crops that produce protein require a lot of energy.
 * 4) Relief/topography: When the land is relatively flat, it needs less energy, because it retains water and minerals easier.
 * 5) Irrigation.
 * 6) The type of farming system: labor intensive or capital intensive.

One obvious critique of the EER as in indicator of environmental impact of a particular farming system is with its narrow focus. this is because it neglects to consider the wider environmental impacts of the farming system on soil quality, water resources and long-term conditions of the natural environment. It therefore doesn't address the wider sustainability issues.

Benefits of EER
 * 1) It is useful for looking at the overall efficiency of energy use within a farming system, and this is particularly relevant in the context of climate change.

__Reasons why energy efficiency ratios vary within a country or region.__ Energy ratios depend on numerous factors, including
 * the **technology employed** in agriculture (e.g. glasshouses are much less efficient than open field farming);
 * **methods of cultivation** (generally, subsistence farming is more energy-efficient than commercial farming);
 * the **precise crop(s) grown** (e.g. growing peas has a higher energy ratio but its subsidies will be lower than growing wheat or maize);
 * the climate (energy ratios are often more efficient in warmer, wetter areas, than in cooler, drier areas, because of
 * differences in biological productivity);
 * the soil type (which also results in different yields or levels of productivity).


 * __Sustainable Yield__**

A second indicator of the environmental impact of farming is sustainable yield. Sustainable yield is defined as the amount of **food that may be produced from an area of land without impacting the capacity of the land to produce the same amount of food in the future, without additional inputs.** Commercial farming systems have negative consequences on the environment. These include In all these cases, the capacity to produce the same amount of food in future is reduced.
 * overuse of chemical fertilizers which pollute water bodies,
 * over-cultivation which pollutes soil nutrients,
 * irrigation which leads to water over-extraction

Advantages of using sustainable yield as an indicator of environmental impact of farming
 * 1) It gives a broad picture of the extent of environmental degradation.
 * 2) Sustainable yield is more specific to agriculture and food production and therefore gives a more specific result than EER, which is used in other disciplines, and whose formula might not be necessarily suited to agriculture.

Disadvantages
 * 1) However, sustainable yield does not have a specific link to the energy required to transport food.
 * 2) It doesn't make reference to whom the food is produced for.

__**Food** **Miles**__

Food miles is the third indicator for measuring the extent to which a farming system is sustainable. It is defined as the distance food travels from the producer to the consumer. It measures the carbon footprint of the food crop that is being transported. Managing Sustainable Food Supply Benefits and Disadvantages of Food Miles __The advantages of Food Miles__
 * It gives an indication of the carbon footprint from the farm gate to the retailer.
 * It allows the consumer to know the origin of the food they are buying.
 * It also provides information about the likely type of transportation used.
 * It gives an indication of the relative costs of different forms of transport.

Weaknesses of Food Miles
 * Food miles only considers the carbon footprints produced from the transportation of the food, and not the production of the food itself, not what happens after the food is bought from the supermarket.
 * Its focus is narrow, as it excludes other forms of energy inputs such as direct and indirect inputs, namely irrigation and pesticides.
 * Food miles does not give an indication of the use of organic methods of farming.

Food miles are a measure of the distance that food travels from its source to the consumer. It can be stated either in units of actual distance or of energy consumed during transport.
 * Question: “Food miles are an excellent indicator of agriculture’s environmental impact.” Discuss this statement, referring to examples.**

The advantages of food miles are that:
 * they give an indication of the carbon footprint from farm-gate to retail location and allow consumers to know the origin of the food they are buying.
 * They also provide information about the likely type of transportation used and the relative costs of different forms of transport.

The disadvantages of using food miles as an indicator of environmental impact are that:
 * they do not take account of the carbon footprint of food production methods or the energy/water requirements used in different farming systems. Locally produced foods may have low food miles but a very high energy footprint (eg growing out-of season crops in glasshouses). Delivery of farm produce to retailers and consumers may not necessarily take the shortest route available.
 * Food miles give no indication of the use of organic methods.
 * The food miles concept ignores other environmental aspects eg sustainability, indices of water usage, energy efficiency, the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, and their effect on local ecosystems.

Conclusion – food miles are useful but far from perfect as an indicator of environmental impact.

To achieve a good mark, the answer must describe environmental impacts. To obtain very good or excellent marks, the answer must look at the advantages and disadvantages of food miles (in respect of the range of environmental impacts). The argument need not be balanced.


 * Organic Farming**
 * The most sustainable**

Organic farming is a system of farming using only natural inputs without any form of genetic modification of seeds, application of fertilizers, or the use of agro-chemicals. > Disadvantages of organic farming
 * 1) ** Organic farming is rapidly growing in popularity for the following reasons:
 * The food produced is healthy. i.e. it does not use any type of harmful chemicals; it uses natural methods that do not harm the consumer or the environment.
 * It is closely regulated internationally, which means that the organic food industry uses the same standards no matter where they are in the world, which helps the consumer to know that they are truly getting what they are paying for.
 * Organic foods taste better and are more nutritious. i.e. fruits and vegetables have much better taste, due to the fact that they are given a much longer time to develop and are not harmed with artificial fertilizers.
 * They are environmentally friendly.
 * It is a whole lot of work to produce food organically. It is time-consuming, and requires high amount of farmer interaction time with the crops (to ensure that plants are free of pests in an organic way, or act as weed prevention)
 * The consumer pays the price for the product because organic foods’ prices in the supermarkets are infamously higher than the others. For example, a pound of non-organic red pepper costs $2.76, while a pound of organic red pepper is $5.89.3.
 * Much smaller yield than non-organic farming.
 * More prone to pests and diseases.