G+-+Food+miles

Food production has increased significantly mainly as a result of an increase in the number of people living on the planet. The quest to increase food production worldwide - whether out of necessity for survival or to sell to areas where food items are desired, but otherwise unobtainable all year round - has had significant impacts. These can be categorised as environmental, political, social and economic.

A **food mile** is the distance that food itmes travel from where they are grown to where they are eaten.

A **carbon footprint** is the amount of carbon generated by things people do, including creating a demand for out-of-season food.


 * Environmental impacts:**
 * the demand for out-of-season food means we have to fly food in from aborad like apples. This leads to releasing more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and contributing to global warming and air pollution
 * carbon dioxide released from road transportation of goods
 * storing food such as apples. Apples are harvested in September and October and kept under cold storage for the rest of the year when they are required to be sold in February and March
 * desertification where the land turns into desert as a result of agricultural mismanagement.
 * Overcultivation and overgrazing - see powerpoint at bottom of the page
 * Monocultures
 * Irrigation
 * Salinisation


 * Political impacts:**

• This mainly arises from the hostilities associated with water • Mainly in areas of water stress – these are areas with little water – desert areas – Saharan Africa and the Middle East • Irrigation uses a lot of water – this reduces the amount of water in rivers and groundwater stores • People over than farmers have less water to drink and for business • The water would then need to be rationed • In areas where global warming is causing temperatures to rise more water will evaporate, there could be less rainfall and ultimately less water for people to use • There could potentially be wars in the future over the use of water in Egypt Social impacts




 * Economic impacts:**

Growing cash crops as well as food crops is often the way formward for many small-scale farmers - some even seek to sell any surplus of food they produce. Additional cash allows investment in the famr and other items to be bought. However, there are problems. There is often a need to intensify production, which means increasing the use of fertilisers and pesticides. These cost money and a vicious cycle of borrowing, spending the money, borrowing more money and getting into debt.


 * Buying locally produced food:**

In the UK, farmers benefit from local people buy food they produce and there are agruably more widespread economic, social, political and environmental benefits. Buying from local, or indeed regional or national sources, should benefit the domestic farming industry and address environmental concerns.

In the UK, we can ensure that we support local producers by:
 * looking at labels in supermarkets, which increasingly give the specific origin of foods
 * visiting specialist local shops
 * buying onlie from 'local' producers
 * supporting local farmers' markets
 * attending regional agricultural shows, which celebrate and sell local produce

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