AGRIBUSINESS: the American Way of Farming

1. Introduction.
   1. American farming: more food, fewer people
      1. What accounts for this dramatic rise in productivity? How does it change the food we eat? How does it affect American society?
2. History of agrarian change
   1. Farming in1900
   2. Two inventions rapidly changing this
      1. McCormick
      2. Deere
      3. Both products are mass produced.
      4. Once it was joined with the internal combustion engine, both the productivity and the cost of the machinery goes way, way, way up.
   3. Technological revolution in agriculture
      1. Increased productivity
      2. Increased productivity is very costly
      3. Increased productivity means fewer people needed in farming:
3. Economies of scale
   1. Farming requires large investment.
      1. Fundamental principle: Economy of Scale
      2. The need to obtain an economy of scale drives farmers to adopt many new farming practices
         1. Cattle
         2. Pork

    

    

4. Conclusions
   1. American technological innovations make American farming the most productive in the world.
      1. We export more and more of our agricultural products: US farmers literally "feed the world."
   2. High productivity means low prices.
   3. This technological efficiency has reduced the % of the population involved in farming, which has contributed to urbanization in America.
   4. But even with technological aids, profit margins in farming are slim and farmers must grow more and more crop or more animals to make a living
      1. Farmer in the Pollan article: "We make less money on 850 head than my father made on 250"
   5. To make this profit, farmers are relying more and more on technologies that people find controversial
      1. Antibiotics, hormones, pesticides
   6. Critics are also concerned about the effects of factory farming on the environment.
      1. So bad the EPA is making new rules to regulate these farms.