GEOGRAPHY YEAR 10: THE GLOBAL FOOD INDUSTRY. It contains: food consumption, food shortages, Malthus theory, Boserup theory, case study, commercial food production, Old Polsers, Netherlands, education indicators, dairy farming producing, glossary.

1. YEAR 10 GEOGRAPHY
DEVELOPMENT
15. THE GLOBAL
FOOD INDUSTRY

2. Food is one example of how globalisation has influenced
society.
The food supply chain is complex and involves more
countries than ever before.
For example, rice grown in Thailand may be packaged in
India and sold in a supermarket in the UK.

3. There is also a growing issue of food shortages in some
countries. The reasons for this are:
• Bigger population numbers - the global population increases
by 75 million people each year.
• More income - many people in countries such as Brazil and
China are becoming richer. As income increases people
demand more meat and dairy produce. The animals eat the
grain that could have been sold on the market. It takes five
times as much grain to produce one kilo of meat.
• More extreme weather - droughts and extreme rainfall ruin
crops so fewer crops can be sold on the global food market.

4. At a global scale, food consumption is very uneven.
Some MEDCs have many problems relating to the over
consumption of food. These include heart disease and
obesity.
In LEDCs, undernutrition is a problem.
76% of the population in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo are undernourished.

6. In the 18th century Malthus wrote that the rate of population
growth was faster than the rate that food supplies could
grow.
In time, there would not be enough resources for everyone.
Some people would therefore starve and the population
would reduce again.
More people may be killed from wars over trying to get hold
of resources - he called these a positive check.
People might try to prevent this from happening by having
smaller families.
He called this a preventative check.

7. In 1965 Boserup wrote that necessity is the mother of
invention.
That means, if you need it, someone will invent it.
So if more food was needed she wrote that people would
invent ways of increasing food supply - crops that fight
diseases or survive with less water are examples of this.

8. A technician screens peppers for diseases in California

9. • The Netherlands is a small but densely populated country.
• It has a population density of over 400 people per km2 (one
of the highest in Europe).
• Land is in short supply so some has been reclaimed from the
sea.

10. The area between Haarlem, The Hague and Rotterdam is
used intensively.
Glasshouses are found here, which grow crops like lettuces
and cucumbers.
The farmers use many fertilisers to help increase production.
Many glasshouses have computerised controls.

11. The Old Polders is a large, flat area drained by canals.
It is close to large cities, such as Amsterdam.
The area is used for dairy farming, producing cheeses like
Gouda and Edam.
It also produces butter.
Many of the cattle are fed on automated systems.

13. densely populated
Where the number of people per square kilometre is high.
globalisation
The way in which the world has become more interconnected.
It refers to how people communicate as well as world trade,
international investment and the sharing of ideas.
intensive commercial farming
A small amount of land farmed intensively; the products are
then sold on.

14. obesity
The medical term for being overweight. Being obese is
dangerous to health.
population density
The average number of people in a certain area.
reclaimed land
Land which has been drained which was once underwater.
undernutrition
The outcome of too little food intake in a person's diet.