Agricultural sustainability and intensive production practices

Abstract

A doubling in global food demand projected for the next 50 years poses huge challenges for the sustainability both of food production and of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and the services they provide to society. Agriculturalists are the principal managers of global usable lands and will shape, perhaps irreversibly, the surface of the Earth in the coming decades. New incentives and policies for ensuring the sustainability of agriculture and ecosystem services will be crucial if we are to meet the demands of improving yields without compromising environmental integrity or public health.

Spatial diversification of agroecosystems to enhance biological control and other regulating services: An agroecological perspective

“…how much is produced per invested capita?) and does not take into account side-effects and pollution costs of chemical input uses on human health and the environment (Tilman et al, 2002).…”

Intensification of cattle ranching production systems: socioeconomic and environmental synergies and risks in Brazil

“…For instance, Paciullo et al (2014) showed that milk yield could be higher by 1 kg/cow per day in agrosilvopastoral systems compared with open pastures, but discussed that the effect was not always persistent over successive years. Transition of extensive pastoralism to agroforestry may also result in a range of socioeconomic benefits (Tilman et al, 2002;Murgueitio et al, 2011), such as risk reduction due to supply of alternative market products and higher incomes. Agroforestry has been shown to enhance rural livelihoods by providing firewood and preventing soil degradation, increasing biodiversity and the provision of ecosystem services, for example by increasing carbon storage (Tilman et al, 2002;German et al, 2006;Murgueitio et al, 2011).…”

“…Agricultural intensification -increasing agricultural inputs to improve yields per unit of area -has been highlighted as one of the means to reach global food security and as a potential strategy for reducing agricultural expansion into natural ecosystems (Tilman et al, 2002;Strassburg et al, 2010;Phalan et al, 2011;Mueller et al, 2012;Strassburg et al, 2012a and. Over the last years, intensification has been brought into international scientific and political debate as a response to the steadily increasing demand for agricultural products (Barretto et al, 2013).…”

“…Pasturelands have become a focal point of both development and conservation experts worldwide, due to their extent and to their potential with respect to the forecasted increase in meat consumption in the coming decades (Tilman et al, 2002;Bowman et al, 2012;Barretto et al, 2013;Strassburg et al, 2014a). Beef cattle production systems are developed in all the 27 Brazilian states and are highly diversified as a result of historic, social, economic and environmental factors.…”

Next generation of microbial inoculants for agriculture and bioremediation

“…The global population has grown dramatically increasing the needs for food (Tilman et al ., 2002). To satisfy the food needs, farmers of all countries have implemented the green revolution technology.…”