IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT AND THE SOCIETY

The expansion of intensive industrial agriculture has had significant impacts on the environment, but has also brought with it social and economical consequences. Some of these include:

• The loss of biodiversity: The expansion of a few commercial varieties (of sterile seeds from laboratories) have displaced a diversity of local varieties better adapted to local conditions.

• Pollution: Intensive farming and overuse of industrial chemical products has led to a loss of soil fertility and has resulted in air, soil and water table contamination.

• Loss of independence for farmers: farmers have become increasingly dependent upon the chemical industry (pesticides, fertilizers, etc.), upon fossil fuels for machinery and vehicles, upon continued purchase of seeds for each planting season (hybrid varieties are sterile), upon expert technical and business advice, etc.

• Prices keep dropping: The existence of large numbers of intermediaries and pressure from big supermarket chains, together with powerful competition on the local and global level, have forced farmers to lower prices. Despite all this, farmers have also had to constantly spend more (on machinery, fuel, supplies, fertilizers, etc.).

• Abandonment of farming: Reduced income (most other professions are more profitable), strong competition in the sector, and economic instability (due to many uncontrollable variables, such as fluctuations in international markets), lead many farmers to abandon this way of life. In Europe, for example, between 1995 and 2007, almost one in four farms closed their doors (more information here).

Ample information is available about these issues on the website of the IAASTD international process (International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development).