1. INTRODUCTION
Maize (Zea mays L.) is an annual plant belonging to the grass family (graminae or poaceae)(Tollenaar and Dwyer, 1999). Maize is grown throughout the temperate and tropical regions(Teare and Peet, 1983) within wide range of altitudes that extends from below sea levels to4000 m.a.s.l. and temperatures from 5 to 4°C (Asnake, 1998). Though maize has widerenvironmental plasticity in general, it is a warm season crop and most production takes placebetween 21 -27 °C (Shaw, 1988) and in regions receiving rainfall of 500-700 mm per annum (Lafitte, 1994). Maize can be grown on a wide variety of soils, but performs best on well drained, well aerated, deep, warm loams with pH from 6-7 and silt loams containing adequateorganic matter and
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It is predominantly grown by small-scale farmers in the mid and low-altitude, sub-humid agro-ecologies. It is primarily produced and consumed by the small-scale farmers that comprise about 80% of Ethiopia’s population (Dawitet al., 2008). Ethiopia, one of the world’s centers of genetic diversity in crop germplasm (McCann 2001), produces more of maize than any other crop (CSA 2010).However, in comparison to other farming systems in Sub-Saharan Africa, the highland temperate system has the lowest area devoted to maize (Gibbon et al,. 2007) The majority of Ethiopia’s maize comes from three regions: Oromia (61%), Amhara (20%) and SNNPR (12%). It is largely produced in western, central, southern and eastern part of the county (MoA, 2011). Ethiopian maize is also cultivated mainly in the highland temperate mixed farming system, with some production in the cereal root crop mixed system of western …show more content…
Large increases in use of U.S. maize for domestic ethanol production would affect world maize and coarse grain export markets (Daniel, 2011). Absence of resistant or tolerant maize varieties to rust diseases is a limiting factor to production of maize (Ikenet al., 2004).Maize production in Ethiopia has remained low, with the estimated national average yield of 2.5 t/ha due to several constraints: biotic (inadequate improved varieties, pests and diseases), a biotic (low soil fertility, land and water degradation, and drought) and socio-economic (input unavailability, lack of storage facility, poor access to markets) (CSA,
The Popol Vuh doesn’t fall short in referencing and glorifying maize. One such reference in the Popol Vuh categorizes maize as a way to determine fate; if an ear of maize is planted and dries up, it indicates death. The article, “The Flowering of the Dead” concludes, “In Atiteco religion, ‘Flowering Mountain Earth’ is a place at the world’s centre whose primary manifestation is a maize plant or tree.” (Carlsen 27). A “Flowering Mountain Earth” is the center of the world that represents life, beauty, and the gods. Among this place, maize is an important object that animates and projects the qualities of a Flowering Mountain Earth. Maize is axis mundi, the center of the world. It is a staple crop in the Maya people; it is essential to the people and heavily relied on. The Maya saw maize as a fetish that truly gave them everything. Without it, everything that ties the Maya together falls apart. Successful growth of maize represents the life and well-being of the Maya, while a dying maize plant all but points to death and the failure of civilization. It is with the importance of maize in Maya culture, that it is omnipresent throughout the Popol
Corn, or maize, plays a vital role in many areas of the world today, and each location views and handles corn in a different way. How they manage corn can show small details about the area and culture as a whole. Not only is corn a staple today, it also had a huge presence in the ancient Native American’s lives; corn is sometimes revered as a deity and other times as a gift to the people from the Creator or a hero of the culture.
Somalia is one of the world’s poorest and least developed countries (Campbell). Because of the Civil War, which broke out in 1991, much of Somalia’s economy has been devastated. The war left many homeless and drove them to raise livestock as a means of survival. The economy used to be based on exports of cattle, goats, and bananas but as of early 1992 much of the economic trade had come to a halt. Now the economy is primarily based on the raising of livestock, which accounts for 40% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (Alhaus). Due to overgrazing, soil erosion, and the clearing away of many trees, Somalia has very few natural resources, which have not been exploited.
« What are the social costs and benefits of the production and the selling of GM food and what are the most effective policies available to solve the problems that arise from these costs? »
Ethanol production was developed in hopes of severing our ties with fossil fuels in favor of alternative energy, such as biofuels. Although, VOCs emissions are released during production of ethanol in a factory, the quality of air is greatly improved when burning ethanol versus fossil fuels. Burning ethanol instead of fossil fuels reduces the amount of cancer-causing greenhouse gases that go into the atmosphere. Ethanol production ranks at the bottom of industrial water usage, but is still not out of the woods with the abundance of water usage needed in corn feedstock and ethanol manufacturing and processing facilities. Many acres of land are needed to grow corn crops, however, many corn farmers are successful in growing more corn on less acreage.
Like Michael Pollan, the author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, puts it “so much of our industrial food turns out to be clever rearrangements of corn”. Today it has become easier to grow large amounts of corn, which in turn makes it very cheap. Corn has become a great raw material since it can be reassembled and created into a totally new food product. Corn not only can be used to create food, but it can also be fed to animals. It is so cheap to produce corn that companies rather give it to animals like cattle, chickens, and hog. Since corn is cheap to feed to these animals the price of the meat also becomes cheaper. It may seem as if corn is a positive ingredient to the industrial food production, but in reality it harms cattle. Yes, corn is cheaper to feed cattle and it makes them fat, but they are supposed to eat grass in order to be healthy. Allen Trenkle, a ruminant nutrition expert, examines a cattle’s stomach and states, “there is microorganisms, bacteria millions of them.” Trenkle goes on to claim that “high corn diet results in E.coli that are acid resistant, these would be the most harmful E.coli.” The way cattle are kept in industrial owned farms makes it possible for more cattle to become infected with E.coli. Cattle are standing in their own manure and covered in it, and at the same time closely interacting with all the other cattle. So if one cow had E.coli the others become
GMO’s are essential parts of society and are eaten everyday by billions of people. Unfortunately the majority of people never ask what a GMO is, and what is in one. Essentially a GMO is a crop that has been modified to be resistant than its non-modified counterpart. The enhancement of desired traits has usually been undertaken through breeding, but normal breeding methods are slow and are inaccurate. Genetic modifying, on the other hand, can create plants with the desired trait very quickly and rarely fail. With the rapid increase in the world’s population, GMOs can be the answer, but there are still problems that organizations like Forbes and Greenpeace have pointed out, such as the safety factor, moral issues, and outright cost of the process. However GMO’s are already used on farms and are found in almost every grocery store. GMO corn is the most abundant GMO crop, with 40 different types of it. This is because corn is America’s most abundant crop, and our entire economy depends on it. With GM corn, it will become easier to mass produce corn. Different types of GMO corn can increase herbicide tolerance, pest resistance, and nutrient availability. However GMO’s contain some cons such as health risks and Economic concerns.
Selling corn in massive quantity can lead to a greater profit. An ear of corn may averages about eight-hundred kernels in sixteen rows and a pound of corn consists of approximately 1,300 kernels. One-hundred bushels of corn makes approximately 7,280,000 kernels. Every year, a single U.S. Farmer may provides food and fiber for 129 people in the U.S. and 32 overseas. In the U.S., corn production is 2 times that of any other crop. Over 55% of Iowa’s corn goes to foreign markets and the rest is used in other parts of the United States of America.
Corn took over American farmlands at the end of World War II, when a new synthetic fertilizer was introduced and manufactured by former munitions factories. It allowed for the elimination of crop rotation, leading to the switch from family farms to the corn monoculture. Economically, this system seems to make more sense, but it destroyed the once sustainable, sun-driven fertility cycle. Now, farmers are trapped into making more and more corn by government policy. As the abundance of the crop causes prices to fall, farmers must plant even more in order to make ends meet, surviving off constantly decreasing government subsidies. What’s worse is that the New Deal system that allowed corn farmers to stay afloat has since been dismantled in an effort to lower food prices and increase production without considering the farmers
After viewing this documentary to the best of my ability I have learned numerous facts about corn and its pros/cons. Corn is stored in a silo and when an overflow occurs mountains of corn are made outside of the silos. This corn grown in the Midwest is in almost all of the food in every supermarket ranging from steak sauce to syrup to lasagna. Majority of its use is as a sweetener in the form of corn syrup or high
Much of Ethiopia is covered by highlands, plateaus and mountains and with this country’s climate is categorized as primarily H with some subcategories of B on the Köppen system (Attoh). The Western Highlands and Eastern Highlands that consume most of Ethiopia are dissected by the Eastern Rift Valley that slices through from the northeast to the southwest. The highlands here are classified as H climates which means that they experience temperate climates and dry winters. The highlands here can receive up to 80 inches of rainfall a year and average temperatures in the low 60s F (Brittanica.com). Attoh classifi...
K.C. WILLSON p 4 ). Studies indicate that thanks to the country’s favorable ecological factors such as suitable altitude, optimum temperatures, appropriate planting materials, and fertile soil.). (Alemayehu p 6) , coffee grows in Ethiopia in several places at various altitudes ranging from 550-2750metrs above sea level. More than any other country, Ethiopia has abroad genetic diversity among its coffee verities. It is the center of origin and source of genetic diversity of the Arabica coffee plant to the world. Nine different coffee species are cultivated in the four region of Ethiopia, all with distinctive tastes, size, shapes and colors.
We live in a world that is constantly changing and advancing thanks to technological advancements, especially in the field of molecular genetics. Today, we are discovering and implementing new ways to overcome the ill-fated symptoms developed as a result from poor health or accidents. We are also making advancements in the field of agriculture thanks to molecular genetics. As we all know, food is an essential entity in our lives and is abundant as well as relatively easy to obtain here in the United States. However, as good as it may sound, this is not necessarily true for developing countries. Many people in developing countries receive very little food, if any, due to its scarcity. It is estimated that in Asia alone, close to 800 million people go to bed hungry every night due to food shortage. This problem can be alleviated by turning to the production of genetically modified organisms (a.k.a. GMOs).
Genetic engineering enhances plant resistance to drought, salinity, disease, pests and herbicides. The aim is to try and enhance the growth, productivity, nutrient value, and chemical composition of the plants. Chemicals are constantly being developed or improved to enhance the competitiveness and adaptability of crops, and to kill the parasites and weeds which plague the agricultural sector. . This however is not always good as the plant and the pests then become resistant to these new chemicals defeating the purpose of it being used. The new chemicals which are produced to kill these strong pests and weeds may be more harmful to other plants and remove nutrients within the soil in turn reducing the yield of agricultural crops. The benefits of these characteristics are seen in Argentina according to Pelletier (2010) as they use glyphosphate resistant soybean which allowed the comeback of this crop, as the so...
The global population in the year 2050 is expected to be nine billion and the agricultural demand is expected to double. With the current population already over seven billion people, there are hunger issues all around the world (“New” par. 1). How are we going to deal with food shortages in the future? With less land to work with, strains on the soils, and the lack of water, it is getting harder for the farmers of the world to support our growing population. These complications are making it harder for farmers to produce quality, affordable food. To help the crops grow better, farmers use fertilizers and chemical sprays to enhance growth and control the weeds. Farming in the United States is a relevant business because it supplies people with food, provides people with jobs maintaining the used equipment with the new equipment being much more expensive, and it provides research for more efficient ways on how to feed the world.