Feeding the World
Feeding the World

Author: Vaclav Smil

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2001-08-24

Total Pages: 396

ISBN-13: 9780262692717

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A realistic yet encouraging look at how society can change in ways that will allow us to feed an expanding global population. This book addresses the question of how we can best feed the ten billion or so people who will likely inhabit the Earth by the middle of the twenty-first century. He asks whether human ingenuity can produce enough food to support healthy and vigorous lives for all these people without irreparably damaging the integrity of the biosphere. What makes this book different from other books on the world food situation is its consideration of the complete food cycle, from agriculture to post-harvest losses and processing to eating and discarding. Taking a scientific approach, Smil espouses neither the catastrophic view that widespread starvation is imminent nor the cornucopian view that welcomes large population increases as the source of endless human inventiveness. He shows how we can make more effective use of current resources and suggests that if we increase farming efficiency, reduce waste, and transform our diets, future needs may not be as great as we anticipate. Smil's message is that the prospects may not be as bright as we would like, but the outlook is hardly disheartening. Although inaction, late action, or misplaced emphasis may bring future troubles, we have the tools to steer a more efficient course. There are no insurmountable biophysical reasons we cannot feed humanity in the decades to come while easing the burden that modern agriculture puts on the biosphere.

Fertilizer Use by Crop
Fertilizer Use by Crop

Author:

Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 128

ISBN-13: 9789251055922

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Most of the world's hunger and poverty occurs in rural areas. The use of fertilizers could improve agricultural productivity in these areas. However, many developing countries attach a low priority to the subsistence / smallholder sector, particularly in disadvantaged areas. This publication summarizes the information from 21 countries: the crops on which fertilizers are used, the social and structural context, appropriate fertilizer application rates and their profitability, arrangements for supplying fertilizers to farmers and for marketing their produce, credit facilities, and research.

Plant Nutrition for Food Security
Plant Nutrition for Food Security

Author: Rabindra N. Roy

Publisher: FAO

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 376

ISBN-13:

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Food security is an issue of global concern, and it will be determined to a large extent by developments in plant nutrition. This publication examines key topics relating to plant nutrition with special reference to integrated nutrient management for crop production, including present and future demand for plant nutrients, soil fertility and crop production, management of plant nutrients and their sources, nutrient management guidelines for major field crops, economic and policy issues, food quality and consumer health, and environmental issues.

Computer and Computing Technologies in Agriculture II, Volume 1
Computer and Computing Technologies in Agriculture II, Volume 1

Author: Daoliang Li

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2009-05-29

Total Pages: 777

ISBN-13: 1441902082

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The papers in this volume comprise the refereed proceedings of the Second IFIP International Conference on Computer and Computing Technologies in Agriculture (CCTA2008), in Beijing, China, 2008. The conference on the Second IFIP International Conference on Computer and Computing Technologies in Agriculture (CCTA 2008) is cooperatively sponsored and organized by the China Agricultural University (CAU), the National Engineering Research Center for Information Technology in Agriculture (NERCITA), the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering (CSAE) , International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP), Beijing Society for Information Technology in Agriculture, China and Beijing Research Center for Agro-products Test and Farmland Inspection, China. The related departments of China’s central government bodies like: Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Education and the Beijing Municipal Natural Science Foundation, Beijing Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, etc. have greatly contributed and supported to this event. The conference is as good platform to bring together scientists and researchers, agronomists and information engineers, extension servers and entrepreneurs from a range of disciplines concerned with impact of Information technology for sustainable agriculture and rural development. The representatives of all the supporting organizations, a group of invited speakers, experts and researchers from more than 15 countries, such as: the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Germany, Greece, Australia, Estonia, Japan, Korea, India, Iran, Nigeria, Brazil, China, etc.

Scaling Soil Nutrient Balances
Scaling Soil Nutrient Balances

Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 152

ISBN-13: 9789251052372

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Using data on three countries in sub-Saharan Africa, this report compares macro- and microlevel approaches to determine soil nutrient balances with an innovative mesolevel approach. It highlights the added value that a mesolevel approach can provide in terms of its usefulness to mesolevel stakeholders in articulating and targeting scale-specific soil fertility enhancing measures, and its validity as an entry point for policy-makers and private-sector intervention. Contains numerous color figures and tables.

Guide to Laboratory Establishment for Plant Nutrient Analysis
Guide to Laboratory Establishment for Plant Nutrient Analysis

Author: M. R. Motsara

Publisher: Fao Inter-Departmental Working Group

Published: 2008

Total Pages: 226

ISBN-13: 9789251059814

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This publication provides practical guidelines on establishing composite service laboratories for the analysis of soil, plants, water and fertilisers (mineral, organic and biofertilisers). It also provides various analytical methods for assessing soil fertility and making nutrient recommendations, assessing quality of irrigation water, and details of the equipment, chemicals and glassware required for a given analytical capacity. Useful to administrators and planners in establishing laboratories, and to technicians through providing detailed and precise procedures for estimation.