Exam 10: Food Production and the Environment

Excessive irrigation is only a problem in rainy areas that are prone to flooding.

Both people who are underfed and underweight and those who are overfed and overweight experience similar health problems.

A way to greatly reduce topsoil erosion is to eliminate or minimize the plowing and tilling of topsoil, leaving crop residues on the ground, using special machines in a process called ____________________.

Modern industrialized food production violates the three scientific principles of sustainability related to energy, greenhouse gases, and biodiversity.

Why is it less sustainable to eat grain-fed beef compared to other meats, such as poultry and plant-fed farmed fish?

It is possible to use natural parasites to control pest species.

Numerous practices have been developed to reduce ____________________, including reducing or eliminating tillage, managing irrigation to reduce runoff, and using terracing or contour planting.

A banana is produced in one country, where it is grown using a pesticide that is banned in a second country. If it is shipped to the second country with some residue of the pesticide still remaining, then that would be an example of the____________________.

Buying a share of a local farmer's crop is an example of ____________________ agriculture.

Animal waste produced by the meat industry is far _________(greater/less) than the amount of human waste produced.

What is a disadvantage of using pheromones to control pests?

Why did malaria control efforts in Malaysia once lead to cats being parachuted into affected areas?

A way to grow food on steep slopes or mountainsides without depleting topsoil is called ____________________.

Alley cropping, terracing, and contour planting are all methods that help reduce ____________________.

What proportion of food products sold on U.S. supermarket shelves contains some form of genetically engineered crop?

How can irrigation lead to salinization of soils?

To maintain good health and resist disease, people needs to consume relatively large amounts of ____________________ such as carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.

Explain how government initiatives can be used to help mitigate the harmful health effects of poverty on children.

Low-energy input ____________________ produces higher yields than does high-input monoculture.

Polyface Farm in the U.S. state of Virginia raises beef, chickens and pigs. A particular practice on Polyface Farm is to bring chickens into a pasture after the cows have eaten the grass. The chickens eat the insect grubs that are found in the cow manure. While the chickens fatten up on the insect grubs, they also produce waste, which in turn fertilizes the grass the cows will later eat. Explain this process in terms of sustainable agriculture and the basic principles of sustainability.