Subsistence vs. Commercial Farming (LDC ‘s) vs. (MDC’s)

• Differ in five ways:1. Purpose2. Percentage of farmers3. Machinery4. Farm size5. Farms and other industries

Purpose

• Subsistence: – People produce food for their own consumption– Some surplus may be sold, but not the primary

purpose• Commercial:

– Grow crops and raise animals for sale off the farm– Agricultural products are sold to food processing

companies

Percentage of Farmers

• LDC’s:– More than one half of the workers are engaged

directly in farming

• MDC’s:– Less than one tenth of the workers are engaged

directly in farming

In the U.S. and Canada only 2%

Labor Force in Agriculture, 2005

Fig. 10-3: A large proportion of workers in most LDCs are in agriculture, while only a small percentage of workers in MDCs are engaged in agriculture.

Machinery• LDC’s:

– Mostly rely on hand tools and animal power– Lack effective transportation systems– Lack technology

• MDC’s:– Tractors, combines, pickers, and planters have replaced most manual

labor– Railroads, highways, and trucks get crops to markets without spoiling– Biological research produce higher crop yields and healthier animals– Electronics provide precise data

Combines on Wheat in Kansas

Combines can reap, thresh, and clean crops like wheat in a single operation.

Farm Size

• LDC’s:– Very small

• MDC’s:– Very large (444acre avg. in U.S.)– Most are family owned and operated

Tractors, per cropland

Fig. 10-4: Tractors per 1000 hectares of cropland. Use of machinery is extensive in most MDC agriculture, but it is much less common in LDCs.

Farms and other industries

• LDC’s:– Very isolated

• MDC’s:– Tied closely to other businesses– Not isolated they are integrated into a large food-

production industry– 20% of U.S. labor work in food production and

agribusiness services

11 Main Agricultural Regions

• 5 Regions important in LDC’s• 6 Regions important in MDC’s• Derwent Whittlesey points out a correlation

between agriculture and climate• Cultural preferences can explain some

agricultural differences in areas of similar climate

World Agriculture Regions

Fig. 10-5b: Locations of the major types of subsistence and commercial agriculture.

Agriculture in Less Developed Countries

Characteristics of subsistence regions

Produce for own consumptionLarge percentage of workforce

engaged in agricultureFew mechanical aidsVery small parcels of landIsolated from economy

Rice Harvesting, Indonesia

Wet rice is often harvested by hand in Asia.

Agriculture in Less Developed Countries

Most people in the world are subsistence farmers.*Less developed=More farmers*

Types of subsistence agriculture:

• Shifting cultivation• Pastoral nomadism• Intensive subsistence agriculture• Plantation farming

Labor Force in Agriculture, 2005

Fig. 10-3: A large proportion of workers in most LDCs are in agriculture, while only a small percentage of workers in MDCs are engaged in agriculture.

Shifting Cultivation

• NOT Shifting “Agriculture”

• Two distinguishing characteristics

*Slash-and-burn agriculture

*Only grow on cleared land for 2-3 years

Shifting Cultivation in Guatemala

Dense vegetation has been cut and is being burned to open land for farming.

Shifting Cultivation CycleCut down big trees As they fall they take Undergrowth isleaving economically down the smaller cleared by macheteuseful ones trees or long knife

Debris is burned Rain washes ashes Fields are preparedunder carefully into the soil by handcontrolled conditions

Crops grown for Field is left fallow New patch of land3yrs or less for many years is selected

World Agriculture Regions

What are some consequences of Shifting Cultivation? Hint: think of the geography in the three major areas it is prevalent.

Shifting CultivationNortheast India

Types of Crops

S.E. Asia: Upland Rice

South America: Maize and Manioc

Africa: Millet and Sorghum

What do their fields look like?

For the Kayopo tribe of Brazil they are arranged in concentric circles. Why?

One swidden will have a variety of intermingled crops

Who owns the land?

• The village as a whole• Each family is allocated a patch of land• One quarter of the worlds land area is

occupied by shifting cultivation • But only 5% of the worlds people engage in it

The Future of Shifting Cultivation• Half of the earth’s tropical rain forests have been destroyed.• Being replaced by logging, cattle ranching, and cultivation of

cash crops.• Its critics view it as a preliminary step in economic

development• Its defenders consider it the most environmentally sound

approach• If eliminated it could upset the traditional diversity of

cultures in the tropics• This type is shrinking but will not disappear quickly

Pastoral Nomadism

• Based on the herding of domesticated animals• Dependent on animals rather than crops for

survival.• The animals provide:

– Milk– Clothing– Tents

Pastoral Nomadic Diet

• What was noticeably missing from the list of things the animals provide?

• They rarely slaughter the animals.• Their diet is still primarily grains.

What?

• If they depend on animals rather than crops for survival…but don’t eat the animals…

• What gives??? • They get their grains in different ways:

– Some trade animal products for grain– Some have part of their group stay put– Some hire workers to grow it– Some plant, wander around, then return to harvest– Some stay in one place long enough to grow and

then move on

Animals, Animals, Animals

• The animals are chosen because of cultural or physical characteristics– Middle East: Dromedary Camel, Sheep, Goats– Central Asia: Bactrian Camels, Horses

• A typical nomadic family would need:– 25-60 Sheep/Goats– 10-25 Camels

Pastoral Nomads in Iran

Qashqai nomads using paved roads to move their animals near Shiraz, Iran.

Nomads DO NOT wander aimlessly

• They have a strong sense of territory• They have precise migration patterns based on

knowledge:– The areas physical characteristics– Cultural characteristics– Most likely water sources– Political stability– Some practice transhumance

The Future of Pastoral Nomadism

• Declining form of agriculture• No longer play an important role in

transportation and communications• In the future it will be increasingly confined to

areas that cannot be irrigated or lack raw materials

Intensive Subsistence Agriculture

• Intensive implies that farmers must work harder to subsist on a parcel of land

• Found in densely populated E.,S., and S.E. Asia• Two types:

– Intensive Subsistence, Wet Rice Dominant– Intensive Subsistence, Wet Rice Not Dominant

Characteristics

• Agricultural Density• Fragmented Plots• Waste virtually no land

Intensive, Wet Rice Dominant

• Most dominant type of agriculture in S.E. China, E. India, and S.E. Asia

• Labor intensive and elaborate process• All family members contribute to the effort• Double Cropping

World Rice Production, 2005

Asian farmers grow over 90% of the world’s rice. India and China alone account for over half of world rice production.

Intensive, Wet Rice DominantSteps to Growing

• Rice seed is planted in a nursery• Fields are prepared and plowed• Field is flooded• Seedlings are transferred and planted in the

flooded field• Each plant is cared for individually until

harvest

Intensive, Wet Rice Not Dominant

• This is an ancient form of agriculture, think of places like Medieval Europe

• Dominant in interior India, and N.E. China• Wheat is the most important crop• Other grains and legumes are also grown• Cash crops include; cotton, flax, hemp, and tobacco• In milder areas two harvests possible

Land Ownership in China

• Communist Government Owns• Organized agricultural producer communes in

1949• Communes dismantled• Villagers now sign contracts to farm portions

as private individuals• Transition has been difficult

Plantation Farming

• Form of commercial agriculture found in LDC’s• Generally owned or operated by Europeans

and North Americans• Crops grown for sale primarily in MDC’s

Plantations

• Large farm specializing in one or two crops• Latin America- Grow coffee, sugar cane,

bananas• Asia- Grow rubber and palm oil• Workers must be brought in• Crops processed at the plantation