Chapter 10: Agricultural and Food Systems
10.7 Global Food Production
With all of this food being shipped around the world, the question must be asked, “Why are there still hungry people in the world?” That is a complex and highly debated question right now. First, we need to look at the production of food by global region. It shows some notable patterns.
Source: “Global agricultural output growth rate slowed over the past decade along with declines in agricultural productivity growth” from USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS) using data from the ERS International Agricultural Productivity data product.
Source: ” Developed countries: Growth of agricultural output and productivity both increased in the 2010s” from USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS) using data from the ERS International Agricultural Productivity data product.
“Developing countries: Agricultural output slowed in the 2010s as the rate of productivity growth declined” from USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS) using data from the ERS International Agricultura Productivity data broduct
According to the Economic Research Service U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE long-term agricultural productivity growth has varied across countries. From 1991 to 2020, total factor productivity (TFP) grew annually by over 2% in major agricultural producers like Brazil, China, Mexico, and Ukraine. During the same period, annual TFP growth ranged from 1-2% in Canada, India, and Russia, and from 0-1% in the United States and Australia. Several countries in Africa and South America experienced negative TFP growth over the past 30 years. While TFP fluctuates annually due to weather and other factors, long-term negative growth can occur if farmers expand into less productive land, natural resources degrade, or climate change impacts agriculture.
The slowdown in agricultural productivity growth can be attributed to several factors. Firstly, recent studies indicate that climate change and related weather shocks, such as droughts, have hindered or reduced agricultural yields. If these weather shocks become more extreme or frequent, the negative impact on productivity will likely increase. Secondly, new pests and diseases, including disease-resistant weeds, have sometimes lowered crop yields or necessitated additional inputs and management practices for control. Lastly, the pace of developing new productivity-enhancing technologies may be decelerating.
Source: “Map of countries by exports” by Hustle77 via Wikimedia Commons is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Figure 10.7.4 shows the net exporters of food worldwide. There are a number of important points of reference. First, there are only a few net exporters of food; the main countries being USA, Germany, China, and as well as Canada, France, Australia, Poland, Brazil,with some other South American and South East Asian economies also net exporters of food. The most striking pattern in the map is the reliance of almost the entire African continent on food imports. Traditionally in the 20th century, the developing countries as a whole have had a net surplus in agricultural trade. However, the agricultural trade balance of the lower income countries has gradually dwindled until, by the mid-1990s and beyond, it was more often negative than positive.Unfortunately, this overall trend masks a complex picture which varies from one commodity to another and from one country to another. The drastic decline in lower and low income countries’ net surplus in sugar, oilseeds and vegetable oils, for example, reflects growing consumption and imports in several low income countries and the effects of protectionist policies in the major industrial countries. For commodities produced almost entirely in low income countries and consumed predominantly in the industrial countries, such as coffee and cocoa, slow growth in demand prevented the trade balance of the developing countries from improving. Fluctuating prices further contributed to the problem. Globally, there is enough land, soil and water, and enough potential for further growth in crops, to make the necessary production possible. Harvest growth will be slower than in the past, but at the global level this is not, and producers have satisfied effective market demand in the past. But the concept of supply and demand does not represent the total need for food and other agricultural products worldwide because hundreds of millions of people lack the money to buy what they need or the resources to produce it themselves.
