Sustainable Agriculture for Alaska and the Circumpolar North: Part I. Development and Status of Northern Agriculture and Food Security

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Alaska is food insecure, importing the vast majority of its agricultural products and commodities and maintaining a minimal year-round food supply. Much of the circumpolar North, with some notable exceptions, is also food insecure and similarly reliant on foods imported from outside regions. The stark differences in food policies, food security, and overall production that exist between individual countries and regions of the circumpolar North are likely due to variability in their physical and social environments, their varying agrarian histories (e.g., Old World vs. New World), and their different first-hand experiences with food insecurity, often during wartime. Alaska's agricultural history is unique, having progressed through periods of exploration and expansion and having experienced both success and failure. Agriculture exists today in Alaska as an underdeveloped natural resource -based industry that has been shaped by historical events and developmental processes and continually influenced by a host of environmental and socioeconomic factors. Continued interaction between stakeholders, agencies, and others will help the industry to progress to the point of meeting increasing food demands and improving food security.

Sustainable Agriculture for Alaska and the Circumpolar North: Part II. Environmental, Geophysical, Biological and Socioeconomic Challenges

“…Paragi et al (2010) reported that from 2001 to 2005, less than 1% of red meat produced in Alaska came from reindeer. The history and present status of reindeer herding in Alaska has been discussed previously, in detail (Stevenson et al, 2014a).…”

“…Very little of Alaska's food demand is met by local agriculture, and its year-round food supply is insufficient (Alaska State Senate, 1976;Drew, 1977;UAF CES, 2006;Consenstein, 2010;Helfferich, 2010;Helfferich and Tarnai, 2010;Stevenson et al, 2014a). Its communities are supported by some local farming and gardening ( Fig.…”

“…Its communities are supported by some local farming and gardening ( Fig. 1), but food imports are playing an increasingly major role in sustaining life in the North (Stevenson et al, 2014a). The disparity between Alaska's levels of food demand and local production is very generally linked to challenges inherently associated with farming at high latitudes and with geographic isolation from infrastructure and markets in the lower 48 contiguous states.…”

“…Past, present, and future aspects of food security and resilience in the North, including Alaska's current dependence upon imported agricultural goods, have been discussed at length (Stevenson et al, 2014a). Sustainable circumpolar agriculture has previously been defined to include food production occurring above 55˚ N (ARDC, 1974;Stevenson et al, 2014a) while also fitting the legal United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) definition of sustainable agriculture (U.S. Code Title 7, Section 3103).…”

“…Sustainable circumpolar agriculture has previously been defined to include food production occurring above 55˚ N (ARDC, 1974;Stevenson et al, 2014a) while also fitting the legal United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) definition of sustainable agriculture (U.S. Code Title 7, Section 3103). Briefly, sustainable agriculture is characterized as an integrated production system that will satisfy human food and fiber needs, enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base, make efficient use of resources, and, where appropriate, integrate natural biological cycles and controls.…”