7.5 Food Production Flashcards
what is food security?
having enough food to be able to feed a population.
state the biological factors threatening food security.
- rising birth rates
- changing diets in developed countries –> food is transported around the world
- new pests and pathogens
- environmental changes affecting food production
- increased cost of agriculture
- armed conflicts
what are the advantages of intensive farming?
- higher yield of food
- more efficient
- allows easier quality control
how does intensive farming increase the population of animals?
- feed animals high protein foods to increase growth.
- reduce their energy loss to the environment:
- limiting movement
- regulating their surrounding temperature
- feed animals antibiotics to prevent diseases.
what are the disadvantages of intensive farming?
- may lead to antibiotic resistance.
- cost is high.
- ethical objections e.g. limiting movement of animals may cauuse them harm.
- biodiversity may be reduced.
how might crops be genetically modified?
- to improve nutritional value
- to be pest resistant
- to be pesticide resistant
state an example of genetically modified foods.
golden rice.
how can fish stocks be conserved?
- control the size of gaps in fishing nets to prevent jubenile fish from being killed before reaching reproductive maturity
- introduce fishing quotas.
how is mycroprotein produced?
fusarium, a fungus, is grown on glucose syrup, in aerobic conditions and the biomass is harvested and purified to get the mycoprotein.
what are the advantages of golden rice?
it contains additional beta-carotene which can be converted to vitamin A in the body, supplementing peolpe who do not obtain enough vitamin A in their diet to prevent night blindess from forming.
what is a transgenic organism?
an organism that has been genetically modified to contain genetic material from another source.
what is mycoprotein?
a protein-rich substance used to make meat substiture food for vegetarians and vegans.
