THEMATIC REPORT – SUSTAINABLE TABLE FOOD AND THE ENVIRONMENT - MONO-CULTURE AS AN UNSUSTAINABLE FOOD SOURCE - Ambassador report - Our Actions

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THEMATIC REPORT – SUSTAINABLE TABLE FOOD AND THE ENVIRONMENT - MONO-CULTURE AS AN UNSUSTAINABLE FOOD SOURCE
by Kalori Wesonga \| 31-12-2019 23:47 0
MONO-CULTURE AS AN UNSUSTAINABLE FOOD SOURCE With holiday festivities abound and with most people living in densely populated cities, we tend to depend on purchased foods. There is very little land to go by in urban centers. The high population growth coupled with market, trade and the investment sector demands precipitates a surge in mono-culture agriculture. Mono-culture has been the global staple food supply for the better part of the 20^th century. It simply implies the growth of one crop species in a given area, usually over large tracts of land. Naturally, the farming of one food crop strips land of nutrients over time. Of the 6000 global plant species cultivated for food, 9 of these food crops account for over two thirds of the global food production. This means missed opportunities to diversify not only plant variety, but our diets as well. The underlying and most often overlooked element of getting our food through mono-culture agriculture is that it inadvertently promotes the use of fossil fuels. This is because of how labor intensive it is. From tilling land to planting crops, these processes are often energy intensive. Harvesting of crops is usually done by machines from whence it is then often transported to distant places for processing and sale. The most sustainable farming practice that gives us food and preserves the environment is permaculture. Permaculture is a sustainable agricultural farming system which applies and simulates natural ecological processes. It embodies using natural, organic materials in farming. Much of the labor is human with organic manure being the primary soil enriching agent. Low energy inputs in this case translates to less use fossil fuels. The icing on the cake is that by using the principles of agriculture, food can be grown anywhere, even on a space as tiny as a balcony! By using permaculture, we can cultivate more food with less land due to the inter-dependency of crops existing beside each other , using different soil nutrients and in turn , preserving the biological soil cycle that would exist with naturally growing plants.

Dormant user Kalori Wesonga

5 Comments

Lisa Mentor says :
Hey Kalori,
this is your mentor Lisa.

I am so happy that someone finally mentions one of those major problems that we face involving food and environment mono-culture.
Valuing of efficiency and productivity has led us to grow only those specific species of crops that could survive in harsh environment and those that grow fast or those that taste better or grow in large size (or greater amount). It just seems great because we now can afford more and tastier foods with cheaper price but in the sense of biodiversity we have demolished the balance of ecosystem. Obviously those crops that are genetically same cannot survive in environmental change and would extinct. If this continues, majority of the crops that humans have cultivated would soon go away creating a huge hole in the entire ecosystem.
It's time that we change this habit of cultivation.

Thank you so much for diversifying our discussion and really, you are a talented writer!
Enjoyed reading it!
Posted 02-01-2020 23:09

Anishka Jha says :
Very informative report. First I learnt about permaculture and mono culture. Better farming practice should be discussed and encouraged in larger forum amongst world leaders as farming, food production and environment are intertwined.

Posted 02-01-2020 19:06

Hyeongmin Mentor says :
Hello Kalori

I could learn about the concepts of mono-culture and permaculture.
I've heard about the concept before but didn't know about the effect of those practices to the environment. But by reading your report, I learned that those cultivation methods can bring huge difference to the environment. I hope many farming regions practice permaculture method and the diversity of the crops are preserved.

Thank you for the informative report.
Posted 02-01-2020 18:38

Kushal Naharki

Kushal Naharki says :
Hello Kalori

I do hope that you are fine and doing great with your works.
Thank you for your report about USTAINABLE TABLE FOOD AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Green Cheers from Nepal :)
Keep writing great reports.
We are eager to read more reports from you.

Regards,
Kushal Naharki

Posted 01-01-2020 23:58