CHAPTER 2 - THE TRANSFORMATION OF AGRICULTURE

PREHISTORIC ERA

 Stone age 

  Bronze age

Iron age

STONE AGE

Hunter-Nomadic

• Pre-historic era of Palaeolithic
• Human evolution

    Human evolution during paleolithic                                                     

                                                 

                                                                Tools

                                                                                                      

BRONZE AGE

• Start metal working from naturally occurring ore than alloying those metal to cast bronze
• Better tools for agriculture  

                                                                        Agriculture tools

           

                Bronze                                             Tin

IRON AGE

• Iron cheaper, commonly found
• Easy to sharpen

                                                                Steel tools

THE MIDDLE AGE

4 key area

•  Irrigation system with machines, dams and reservoirs
•  Adopted scientific approach to farming with improved farming techniques
•   Incentive driven approach land ownership, workers right, rewards of harvest (wages)
•  Introduction of new crops and plant varieties (new cultivation techniques derived from function)

  Plant Grafting

MODERN AGRICULTURE VS TRADITIONAL AGRICULTURE

 

                                                             Modern Agriculture

Traditional Agriculture

Traditional agriculture	Modern agriculture
No machinery (human labour and animals)	Extensive use of machinery and electronics
Knowledge and skills are handed orally from one generation to the next	Employment of highly knowledgeable and skilled workers

GREEN REVOLUTION

   New varieties of plants produced through series of R&D and technology transfer initiatives. 

 High yielding and disease resistant

• New crop cultivars
• Genetic engineering
• Usage of chemicals and bioagents
• Use of precision agriculture
•  Innovations in mechanization and automation

GENETIC ENGINEERING IN AGRICULTURAL BIOTECHNOLOGY

Advanced processing methods and genetically modified organisms (GMO) to improve yields and quality

 
GM salmon which grows twice as fast as ordinary fish.

Advantages GMO	Disadvantaged GMO
Early maturity of crop	Many unknown effects
Round the year planting	Unpredictable health effects

                                                                               

BLUE REVOLUTION

Management of water resources for drinking and food security

Blue Revolution Aquaculture