Food production

• Biotechnology


  The alteration of living organisms to develop or make products
• Selective Breeding


  • Used in agriculture to produce better foods and medicines
• Cloning & genetic modification


  • Can be used to treat diseases in humans & crops
• GM Crops


  • Can provide more food/ food with improved nutrition
• Modern biotechnology

  • Enables large quantities of microorganisms to be cultured
• Sustainable fisheries - fish stocks in the oceans are declining
• It is important to maintain fish stocks at a level where breeding continues or certain species may disappear altogether
• To address overfishing

  Fishing quotas limit the amount of fish that can be caught and killed
• Food security


  Having enough food to feed a population
• Factors affecting food security

  • Increasing birth rate
  • Changing diets
  • New pathogens
  • Environmental changes (famine, rainfall)
  • Increased farming costs
• Farming techniques

  • Organic farming
  • Intensive farming
• Organic farming

  • Does not use artificial fertilizers
• Intensive farming

  • Uses machines, natural and artificial fertilisers to maximise yield of feed produced
• Intensive farming is more expensive than organic farming
• Intensive farming has higher yield and is more efficient
• Organic farming has ethical objections and increased risk of antibiotic resistance