Agricultural Productivity Strategies for the Future: Addressing U.S. and Global Challenges - Dr. Gale Buchanan, Dean and Director Emeritus, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, The University of Georgia; former Under Secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture, from the 2010 Animal Ag Alliance Stakeholder's Summit: Truth, Lies and Videotape: Is Activism Jeopardizing Our Food Security?, April 28 - 29, 2010, Washington, DC, USA. More presentations at http://www.trufflemedia.com/home/conference/2010-animal-ag-alliance-stakeholders-summit

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6. Agricultural Productivity Strategies
for the Future:
Addressing U.S. and Global Challenges
West view of the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington D.C. (Photo courtesy of the Architect of the Capitol.)
CAST Issue Paper 45
January 2010

7. Issue Paper Authors
•
Gale Buchanan (Chair)
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•
Robert W. Herdt
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College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
The University of Georgia, Tifton Campus
Department of Applied Economics and Management
Cornell University, Ithaca, New York
Luther G. Tweeten
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Department of Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics
The Ohio State University, Columbus
Preface Author
•
Norman E. Borlaug, Professor Emeritus (1914 – 2009)
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Texas A&M University
College Station

8. Issue Paper Reviewers and CAST Liaison
Issue Paper Reviewers
•
Charles F. Connor
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•
Charles E. Hess
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•
National Council of Farmer Cooperatives
Washington, D.C.
Department of Plant Science
University of California, Davis
Per Pinstrup-Andersen
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College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Cornell University, Ithaca, New York
CAST Liaison
•
Henry L. Shands
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Fort Collins, Colorado

9. Dr. Norman E. Borlaug
1914 - 2009
Agricultural Science and the Public.
1973. CAST Paper No. 1
9

10. Introduction
•
•
•
•
Success of agriculture
Issues this paper addresses
Issues not addressed
Correcting pathologies in the U.S.
economy
• Future role of agriculture in meeting the
energy and climate control challenge
• Future success of agriculture through
enhanced productivity
10

11. Future Demands Facing Agriculture
• Principal drivers of global demand for
agricultural output
• One billion people who today rarely
get enough to eat
• Projections show 2025 demand for
farm products will be 143% of 2000
demand
11

12. Bioenergy and Bioproducts Bring About
a New Paradigm for Agriculture
• We can visualize, if not see, the end of cheap
petroleum
• Harvesting the sun’s energy is one approach
to meeting the energy challenge
• Competition for resources will require hard
choices
• Unfolding of this process will mean an
almost limitless demand for agricultural
output
12

13. Emerging Constraints on Future
Agricultural Productivity in the U.S.
• We are aware of present
constraints; others are emerging
• It is prudent to plan for all
13

14. Soil, Water and Crop Issues
• Soil erosion is a long-term problem
• Water quality and quantity are
affected by farming and irrigation
practices
• Bioengineered crops offer benefits
to agriculture but raise concerns in
some countries
14

15. Animal Welfare Issues
• Most people recognize that animal
agriculture is “under fire” in some areas
• Society as a whole will largely determine
and set social and moral standards in
animal agriculture
• Certain production practices, if
implemented, will place further demands
on agriculture
15

16. Challenges in Animal Agriculture
• Reduction of green house gas (GHG) emissions
• Balancing types of confinement with free range systems
• Developing alternatives to antibiotics and addressing
antibiotic resistance
• Identifying more effective means of handling animal
waste
• Enabling the public to gain a better understanding and
appreciation for the importance of animal agriculture
• Developing better animal health products
• Food security
• Capturing the power of biotechnology
16

17. Endangered Species Act
• Preserving diversity comes at a
price
• We must weigh costs vs. benefits
17

18. Fertilizer Resources
• Sustainability of agriculture requires
a sustainable source of plant
nutrients
─ Nitrogen
─ Potassium
─ Phosphorus
18

19. Global Warming
• Global warming will have an
influence on agriculture by affecting
the demand for natural resources
─ the crops we grow
─ the location of crop production
─ the availability of water: some areas
too much, other areas too little
19

20. Major Issues Facing Agricultural
Productivity Outside the U.S.
• Must consider agriculture from a global
perspective
– China: expected growing demand for food
has not affected global ecosystem in past
decade
– India: great potential for increased production
– Brazil: continued growth of agriculture is
possible, but there are environmental
concerns
– Sub-Saharan Africa: recent increases in
agricultural GDP, but significant challenges
remain
20

21. Strategies to Meet Future Agriculture
Needs for Agricultural Output
• Success requires a supportive
institutional structure
• Generally, this support must come
from the public sector
21

22. Assist Less-Developed Countries (LDC)
• Approaches
– Provide food and medical support
– Help build institutional and
intellectual capacity
– Develop international agreements
and trade
• Must be greater commitment for
sustained support for research
22

23. The “Next Green Revolution”
• Strong commitment to science is
necessary to meet future challenges
• Remember Dr. Borlaug’s challenge
• How do we go about making the
Next Green Revolution happen?
23

24. Commitment of ALL branches of Science
• Basic science
• Applied science
• Classical genetics
• Biotechnology
• Other areas such as nanotechnology
24

25. A Few Ideas That We Suggest
Should Be Considered
• Enabling C3 plants to utilize the C4 photosynthetic
pathway
• Nitrogen fixation in non-legumes
• Incorporating the process of apomixis into crop
plants
• Improving pest resistance in plants
• Improving energy efficiency of plants
• Effectively and efficiently capturing all animal waste
• Eliminating all respiratory diseases of livestock
• Utilizing the power of genomics and biotechnology
to improve food animals
25

26. What is the Commitment to Agricultural Research
to Bring about Another Green Revolution?
• Few signs the nations of the world are
making the commitment to the research
needed to bring about a second Green
Revolution
• Linkage between agricultural research and
productivity is unquestioned
• Bottom line: “We (all nations) must
strengthen our commitment to research!”
26

27. Conclusions
• Challenges are real
• Agriculture’s challenge is food,
feed, fiber, flowers, and now fuel
or energy
• Convergence of so many
challenges at one time is
unprecedented – “The Perfect
Storm”
27

28. Strategies for Meeting the Challenges
• Meeting the challenges of maintaining and
enhancing agricultural productivity
requires broad-based support
• It will require constant public commitment
to acquire adequate funding for
agricultural research and education
• Greatest concern felt by the authors
• Remain hopeful and confident
28

29. Thank you for your attention!
29

30. Questions/Discussion
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the entire
Issue Paper 45:
Visit the
CAST Website @
www.cast-science.org