It's been a while since I found myself disagreeing so strongly with a piece on agriculture.https://twitter.com/gmdutfield/status/1149264579177963520 …
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But how can this be? The authors even link to another article explaining "family farms produce over three-quarters of the world’s food. The FAO also estimates that almost three-quarters of all farms worldwide are smaller than one hectare"!
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Well, you've been tricked by a stereotype. You read "family farm" and you think "small farm" - but most *large* farms are family farms, too! Even in the US, presumably as close to "industrial ag" as we can get, most of the farm production happens in (often large) family farms.pic.twitter.com/OyZOzaINkk
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But are the small-scale, traditional approaches more sustainable? Yes, perhaps, if you compare environmental impacts *per unit of land*. But the point of farming is to produce food. Environmental impacts *per unit of food* typically look very different.
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For example, here are greenhouse gas emissions from beef expressed *per kg of protein*. By far the highest emissions intensity is found in ... traditional systems, where productivity is low.pic.twitter.com/s2sQx04pLh
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I'm a little confused by this chart. When it says "small," it means less than 2 hectares (about 5 acres)? That sounds more like a large garden, from a US perspective at least.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
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Consolidation has been going on since the early 70s.
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I'm sorry. I meant that as a question. But as far as impact goes, the effect of conservation and Ag agents is important as well as whether it uses "organic" or old fashioned tillage as opposed to modern. Modern methods sequester carbon. Traditional tillage releases it.
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