sábado, 12 de marzo de 2011

AGRICULTURE IN CANADA

Canadian agriculture has experienced a markedly distinct evolution in each region. A varied CLIMATE and geography have been largely responsible, but, in addition, each region has been settled at a different period in Canada's economic and political development, with a range of national and international forces being exerted. The principal unifying factor has been the role of government: from the colonial era to the present, agriculture has been largely state-directed and subordinate to other interests.


Before 1000 BC, Native peoples of the lower Great Lakes and St Lawrence regions received horticulture from the south or west. Iroquoians practised slash-and-burn farming, but no group depended on agriculture totally for subsistence. They planted 2 types of maize (Native CORN), SQUASH and BEANS and practised seed selection and elementary principles of forcing, but were not aware of the value of manuring. Long before the appearance of French traders, agricultural Native peoples traded maize for skins and meat obtained by woodland hunters. After the advent of the FUR TRADE, Algonquian middlemen traded maize with more distant bands for prime northern pelts, and traded furs, in turn, with the French. Native agriculture was important in provisioning the fur trade until the late 18th century.



Maritimes


Maritime agriculture dates from the establishment of PORT-ROYAL by the French in 1605. ACADIAN settlers diked the saltwater marshes in the Annapolis basin and used them for growing wheat, flax, vegetables and pasturage. After the signing of the Treaty of UTRECHT (1713), France withdrew to Plaisance, Nfld; Île Royale (Cape Breton Island); and Île St-Jean (PEI). They intended that Île St-Jean would serve as a source of grain and livestock for their naval and fishing base on Cape Breton. Few Acadians moved from their homeland to Île St-Jean before the 1750s. By mid-century the predominantly fishing population in Île Royale was cultivating small clearings with wheat and vegetables and possessed a variety of livestock.



After acquiring Acadia in 1713, Britain promoted Maritime agriculture in pursuit of objectives of defence andMERCANTILISM. Provisions were needed to support Nova Scotia's role as a strategic bulwark against the French. Britain also promoted agriculture to supply provisions for the West Indies trade, and hemp for its navy and merchant marine. Financial incentives were offered to Halifax settlers to clear and fence their land, but the lack of major markets kept the area in a state of self-sufficiency. The Acadians continued to supply produce to the French on Ile Royale, an act which contributed to their expulsion by the British in 1755. Some Acadians were later asked, however, to instruct the British in marshland farming. The influx of LOYALIST settlers in the 1780s increased demand for marshland produce. Since the American states provided stiff competition in flour and grains, the Fundy marshlands were largely turned to pasture and hay for cattle production. On PEI the British government attempted to promote agricultural settlement by granting 66 lots of 8094 ha to private individuals.



Between 1783 and 1850 agriculture was dominant in PEI, but subordinate to the cod FISHERY and the trade with the West Indies in Nova Scotia, and secondary to the TIMBER TRADE and shipbuilding in New Brunswick. With British and Loyalist immigration, the area of agricultural settlement in the Maritimes expanded from the marshlands to include the shores of rivers, especially the SAINT JOHN. Although the new areas were suited to cereal production, settlers tended to engage in mixed farming for cultural, agricultural and marketing reasons. Most full-time farmers concentrated on livestock raising, which required less manpower than did cereal growing. Before 1850 both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick remained net importers of foodstuffs from the US. PEI alone achieved an agricultural surplus, exporting WHEAT to England as early as 1831.



Agricultural development in the early 19th century was limited by the skills post-Loyalist immigrants possessed. Most of these settlers were Highland SCOTS who were ill-prepared for clearing virgin forest, and the standard of agricultural practice was low. In 1818 John YOUNG, a Halifax merchant using the name "Agricola," began agitating for improved farming methods. As a result, agricultural societies were formed with a government-sponsored central organization in Halifax. Young's efforts had virtually no impact, however, since merchants were not involved in local farming. Hence there was little economic incentive for farmers to produce a surplus for sale. Nonetheless, agricultural lands and output grew gradually, and by mid-century the farming community was a political force, demanding transportation improvements and agricultural protection.



After 1850 Maritime agriculture was affected by 2 principal developments: the transition throughout the capitalist world from general to specialized agricultural production and, especially after 1896, the integration of the Maritime economy into the Canadian ECONOMY. The last 2 decades of the 19th century witnessed an increase in the production of factory cheese and creamery butter and a rapid increase in the export of APPLES, especially to Britain (see FRUIT AND VEGETABLE INDUSTRY).



After 1896 the boom associated with Prairie settlement opened the Canadian market to fruit (especially apples) and POTATOES. By the 1920s the British market for Nova Scotia apples was threatened by American, Australian and BC competition, notwithstanding improvements introduced by Nova Scotia producers to increase efficiency. The Canadian market for potatoes was supplemented by markets in Cuba and the US. Although Cuba moved to self-sufficiency after 1928, PEI retained some of the market by providing seed stock.



Those sectors of Maritime agriculture dependent on local markets began to suffer in the 1920s. Difficulties in the forest industries contributed to the disappearance of markets, and the introduction of the internal combustion engine diminished the demand for horses and hay. Meat from other parts of Canada supplanted local production. In the 1930s the potato export market suffered as American and Cuban markets became less accessible. These factors, coupled with problems in the silver fox industry (see FUR FARMING), were catastrophic for PEI; its agricultural income dropped from $9.8 million in 1927 to $2.3 million in 1932. Only the apple export market remained stable, a result of British preferential tariffs on apples from the empire. In response to various difficulties during the 1930s, many farmers turned to more diversified self-sufficient agriculture, a change reflected in increased dairy, poultry and egg production.



Newfoundland

In Newfoundland agriculture was never more than marginally viable. Nonetheless, fishermen practised subsistence agriculture along the creeks and harbours of the East Coast, and commercial farming developed on the Avalon Peninsula and on parts of Bonavista, and Notre Dame and Trinity bays. Newfoundland's agricultural history really began with the food shortages associated with the American Revolution, when 3100 ha were prepared for agriculture in the St John's, Harbour Grace and Carbonear areas. In the early 19th century a number of factors combined to give an impetus to agriculture: the arrival of Irish immigrants with agricultural skills, the growth of St John's as a market for vegetables, a road-building program, and in 1813 an authorization allowing the governor to issue title to land for commercial use.


In the late 19th and early 20th centuries the government intensified its efforts to interest the people in agriculture. By 1900, 298 km2 were under cultivation and there were some 120 000 horses, cattle and sheep in the colony. Through the Newfoundland Agricultural Board (formed 1907) the government established agricultural societies (91 in 1913) which provided assistance in such things as land clearing and the acquisition of seed and farm implements. In the 1920s the government imported purebred animals to improve the native stock. In the 1930s, in order to mitigate the hardship of the economic depression, the government responded to the urgings of the Land Development association, a private group, by providing free seed potatoes in an effort to promote "garden" cultivation. Upon joining Confederation in 1949, Newfoundland took advantage of federal government funding to establish agricultural measures such as a loan program, a land-clearing program, and the stimulation of egg and hog production. Since WWII, in keeping with the general Canadian trend, the number of Newfoundland farms has decreased while the average farm size has increased.



Québec


In 1617 Louis HÉBERT began to raise cattle and to clear a small plot for cultivation. Small-scale clearing ensued as settlers planted cereal grains, peas and Native corn, but only 6 ha were under cultivation by 1625. Beginning in 1612 the French Crown granted fur monopolies to a succession of companies in exchange for commitments to establish settlers. The charter companies brought some settlers, who used oxen, asses and later horses to clear land, but agricultural self-sufficiency was realized only in the 1640s and marketing agricultural produce was always difficult during the French regime. In 1663 Louis XIV reasserted royal control and with his minister Colbert promoted settlement by families. Intendant Jean TALON reserved lots for agricultural experimentation and demonstration, introduced crops such as hops and hemp, raised several types of livestock and advised settlers on agricultural methods. By 1721 farmers in New France were producing 99 600 hL of wheat and smaller amounts of other crops annually, and owned about 30 000 cattle, swine, sheep and horses (see SEIGNEURIAL SYSTEM).


After 1763 and the arrival of British traders, new markets opened for Canadian farm produce within Britain's mercantile system. Francophone HABITANTS predominated in the raising of crops, but they were joined by anglophone settlers. British subjects purchased some seigneuries, which they settled with Scottish, Irish and American immigrants. New Englanders also settled the Eastern Townships and other areas. Anglo-Canadians promoted some new techniques of wheat and potato culture through the press and in 1792 formed an agricultural society at Québec.



While the focus of the government's promotional activity was in Upper Canada (Ontario) and the Maritimes, Lower Canada (Québec) enjoyed a modest growth of wheat exports before 1800. Nevertheless, Lower Canadian wheat production lagged far behind that of Upper Canada in the first half of the 19th century. The failure of Lower Canadian agriculture has been blamed by some on the relative unsuitability of the region's climate and soils for growing wheat, the only crop with significant export potential; soil exhaustion; and the growth of the province's population at a faster rate than its agricultural production in this period. Because there was little surplus for reinvestment in capital stock, Lower Canada was slow to develop an inland road system, and transport costs remained relatively high.



By the 1830s Lower Canada had ceased to be self-sufficient in wheat and flour, and increasingly began importing from Upper Canada. The mid-century gross agricultural production of Canada East (Québec) totalled $21 million - only about 60% of Canada West's (Ontario's) production. Both modernizing and traditional farms contained more children than they could adequately support, and widespread poverty induced thousands of habitants to migrate to Québec's cities and to New England (see FRANCO-AMERICANS). As well, spurred by religious colonizers, settlement pushed north of Trois-Rivières, south of Lac Saint-Jean and south along the Chaudière River. However, little commercial agriculture was practised.



Later 19th-century Québec agriculture was marked by increases in cultivated area and productivity, and by a shift from wheat production to dairying and stock raising. From the 1860s government agents worked to educate farmers to the commercial possibilities of dairying, and agronomists such as Édouard BARNARD organized an agricultural press and instituted government inspection of dairy products. Commercial dairies, cheese factories and butteries developed around the towns and railways, most notably in the Montréal plain and the Eastern Townships. By 1900 dairying was the leading agricultural sector in Québec. It was becoming mechanized in field and factory and increasingly male-oriented as processing shifted from the farm to factories. By the end of the century 3.6 million kg of Québec cheese were being produced, an 8-fold increase since 1851.



By the 1920s, however, agriculture accounted for only one-third of Québec's total economic output. WWI had artificially stimulated production, and new mining, forestry and hydroelectric ventures opened up new markets; but they also contributed to and symbolized the shift from agricultural to industrial enterprises in the Québec economy. By the 1920s Québec soil was again becoming exhausted due to a lack of fertilizer which stemmed from a lack of credit. Farmers' political organizations, such as the Union catholique des cultivateurs (founded 1924), addressed the problem of lack of credit and other issues.




Like their counterparts elsewhere in Canada, Québec farmers suffered during the 1930s. In areas removed from urban markets there was a return to noncommercial agriculture, with a consequent increase in the number of farms. During the decade farm income decreased more drastically than did urban wages. WWII marked a return to widespread commercial agriculture, and postwar trends included a decrease in the number of farm units and in farm population, and an increase in the average size of farm holdings.



Ontario

American independence in 1783 both created a potential security threat on British North America's southern border and cut off Britain's principal agricultural base in North America. The British channelled Loyalists into the lower Great Lakes region, where Governor SIMCOE suggested settling soldiers along the waterfront for defence, with other settlers filling in the land behind. The authorities initially promoted hemp culture as an export staple to stimulate British manufacturing and contribute to defence. However, scarcity of labour in relation to land inhibited its production. Between 1783 and 1815 settlement filled in along the lake shores and the St Lawrence, where some cereal grains and vegetables were grown, chiefly for subsistence.


Agriculture in what is now Ontario was dominated 1800-60 by wheat production. Wheat was the crop most easily grown and marketed and was an important source of cash for settlers. Apart from limited internal demand from such sources as British garrisons, canal construction crews and lumber camps, the principal markets were Britain and Lower Canada. Between 1817 and 1825 Upper Canadian farmers shipped an average of 57 800 hL to Montréal.



Dependence on wheat culture was reflected in a boom-and-bust economy. The application of the CORN LAWrestrictions in 1820 effectively shut BNA wheat out of British markets, causing a disastrous drop in wheat prices and land values. With the fixing of preferential duties for BNA wheat in 1825, prices and export volumes rallied, but the market collapsed in 1834-35. Crop failures in the late 1830s resulted in near starvation in many newly settled areas.



Despite the American tariff, similar failures in the US created a temporary market for surplus Upper Canadian wheat. Meanwhile, transportation improvements facilitated shipments out of the region. As a result of these improvements, favourable climate conditions and growth in markets, wheat exports increased from 1 million hL in 1840 to 2.25 million in 1850.



After 1850 Canada West's agriculture became increasingly diversified. Repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846 removed the preferential status of BNA wheat and thus promoted price instability, but higher American prices after the discovery of California gold helped producers overcome trade barriers to livestock, wool, butter and coarse grains. Favourable trading conditions continued with the RECIPROCITY Treaty, 1854-66. Moreover, a price depression in 1857 and crop destruction by the midge in 1858 hastened the switch to livestock. In 1864 factory cheese making was introduced, and by 1900 Canadian cheddar cheese, largely from Ontario, had captured 60% of the English market. At the organizational level, both the Grange (after 1872) and the Patrons of Industry (after 1889) reflected a developing producer consciousness among Ontario farmers.



Technological developments assisted both the grain and livestock sectors in the 19th century. Field tillage was improved by the introduction of copies of American cast-iron plows after 1815. To control weeds biennial naked summer fallow was generally practised between about 1830 and 1850, when crop rotation became prevalent. Government authorities also promoted the British technology of covered drains to reclaim extensive tracts of swampy or bottom land, averting the use of furrow and ditch drainage that impeded mechanization. The reaper diffused rapidly in the 1860s, permitting increased grain production. Widespread use of the cream separator by 1900 promoted butter production, while refrigeration was a catalyst to the beef and pork industry.



In the late 19th and early 20th centuries urbanization expanded the demand for market gardening around cities and more specialized crops in different regions. These included orchard farming in Niagara Peninsula, Prince Edward and Elgin counties, and tobacco in Essex and Kent counties. Dairying developed on the fringes of cities and cash crop acreages declined in favour of feed grains and fodder, while beef producers were unable to meet the domestic demand. Throughout rural Ontario there were farm-initiated associations of stockbreeders, dairy people, grain growers, fruit growers, etc, as well as the government-initiated Farmers' Institutes and Women's Institutes. The associations reflected a faith in farm life in the face of rural depopulation and an industrializing society. Various farmer-initiated groups worked in the UNITED FARMERS OF ONTARIO movement, which formed the provincial government in 1919 under E.C. DRURY.



During the 1920s Ontario farmers experienced a taste of prosperity as prices increased on various agricultural commodities. One result of this prosperity was a decline in the drift to the cities. By 1931, however, Ontario farm receipts had decreased 50% from 1926. Although Ontario escaped the drought conditions of the Prairies, farmers were unable to market much of their produce, and surplus meat, cheese, vegetable and apples were shipped west. The government responded to the crisis with regulation, with dairying the most important example. The Ontario Marketing Board was formed in 1931 with a 5-year plan instituted in 1932. In return for government loans, producers improved their herds and modernized their barns. By WWII Ontario agriculture was diversified for an urban market, with both AGRICULTURAL MARKETING BOARDS and farmer-owned co-operatives playing important roles.



Carlos Alfredo Torres Duran

C.I.17.467.916

Electronica en Estado Solido

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriculture_in_Canada

http://www.aic.ca/

AGRICULTURE IN BRAZIL

In 1999, 17.3% of Brazil's economically active population worked in agriculture, down from 23.3% in 1990. Total arable and permanent crop area comprises 65.3 million hectares (161 million acres). Although agriculture's share of exports has declined relative to industrial goods, the value has continued to increase, so that Brazil in 1977 became the world's second-largest exporter of agricultural products. Except for grain (particularly wheat), of which some seven million tons had to be imported in 2001, Brazil is virtually self-sufficient in food. The growth rates for agriculture as a whole averaged 2.8% during 1980–1990, and 3.2% for 1990–2000. By 1999, agricultural production was 20.2% higher than during 1989–91. In 2000, agriculture accounted for 7% of the total GDP. Export crops are significant—in addition to the traditional exports of coffee and cocoa, Brazil is also a major exporter of soybeans and orange juice. In 1999, Brazil ranked fourth in the production of cocoa beans (after Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Indonesia) at 206,000 tons, or 7.1% of the world's cocoa bean production. In recent years, however, production has been devastated by the effects of the witches-broom fungus.


The Land Statute Law of 1964 was designed to modify the agrarian structure and increase agricultural output in selected regions over a 20-year period. The law empowered the federal government to expropriate unused or underutilized land by offering indemnification in bonds in the case of large properties and cash payment for smallholdings. In redistributing expropriated lands, priority is given to those who work the land under tenancy, sharecropping, or ordinary labor agreements. Responsibility for implementing the law is divided between the Brazilian Agrarian Reform Institute and the National Institute of Agricultural Development. In October 1984, a law was passed to facilitate the distribution of 43.1 million hectares (106.5 million acres) of state-owned land and non-productive private estates to1.4 million peasant families, primarily in the impoverished northeast, through 1989. The formation of cooperatives was encouraged.



Coffee


Coffee, until 1974 preeminent among export earners, has been declining in importance since the early 1960s, while soybeans, sugarcane, cotton, wheat, and citrus fruits have shown dramatic increases. Brazil led the world in coffee production in 2002/2003, at 3,096,000 tons. Sugarcane production, in which Brazil ranked first in the world in 2002/2003, is grown not only for refined sugar but also as a source of alcohol for fuel, and totaled 22,750,000 tons that season. In 1999, production included 22,772,000 tons of oranges, 20,973,000 tons of cassava, and 125,000 tons of cashews. Tobacco production in 2002 totaled 570,150 tons, 10% of world production. Agricultural production in 2000/2001 (in millions of tons) was corn, 35.5; soybeans, 39.0; rice, 6.9; wheat, 3.3; and cottonseed, 1.5. Further agricultural reforms have been carried out under the Carta de Brasília of 1967. The Carta included an incentive program for the construction of storage facilities, to permit farmers to hold products off the market in expectation of better prices. Agricultural research in Brazil is conducted by the Agriculture and Cattle Raising Institute of Research. The expansion of power, transportation, and communications systems during the 1970s further contributed to agricultural development.



Brazil has chosen a development strategy that continues to rely heavily on the agricultural sector for economic growth —a natural choice given the country's immense territorial area, good rain distribution throughout the year, suitable air temperatures for agriculture in most parts of the country, and abundance of inexpensive labor. These factors have been complemented by a series of policies (including macroeconomic adjustments, price supports and other fiscal incentives, favorable agricultural trade policies, and investments in research and development) that have transformed Brazil into a powerhouse of  food, fiber and biofuel production. Brazil is a leading producer and exporter of soybean, sugar, coffee, oranges, poultry, beef, and more recently ethanol. As a consequence, agricultural exports account for 40% of Brazil's trade surplus, and agricultural production accounts for almost 6% of the GDP, while the entire agribusiness sector contributes to approximately 25% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). This achievement has not been attained without a heavy price. Agricultural growth in Brazil continues to occur under a matrix of extensive social inequality and environmental degradation. Brazil has one of the highest rates of inequality in dietary energy consumption, income, and land distribution in the world, as well as one of the highest rates of tropical deforestation that has occurred since the beginning of farming by humans circa 10,000 year ago. In our research we contrast the country's agricultural system with its oppressive record of income and land inequalities and environmental degradation and discuss ways to reconcile economic, social, and environmental goals. Brazil faces this challenge and opportunity with other tropical developing countries – and with success, it could become a role model to other nations in Latin America, Asia, and Africa.



Brazil is endowed with vast agricultural resources. There are two distinct agricultural areas. The first, composed of the southern one-half to two-thirds of the country, has a semi-temperate climate and higher rainfall, the better soils, higher technology and input use, adequate infrastructure, and more experienced farmers. It produces most of Brazil's grains and oil seeds and export crops. The other, located in the drought-ridden northeast region and in the Amazon basin, lacks well-distributed rainfall, good soil, adequate infrastructure, and sufficient development capital. Although mostly occupied by subsistence farmers, the latter regions are increasingly important as exporters of forest products, cocoa, and tropical fruits. Central Brazil contains substantial areas of grasslandwith only scattered trees. The Brazilian grasslands are less fertile than those of North America and are generally more suited for grazing. This leads to the first region to have a better economy, and they can sell all of their crops for money for their people. The second region would have a hard time with this because they would not have as many crops to sell. That is how this kind of agriculture can affect Brazil.


The history of agriculture in Brazil in the colonial period and beyond is intertwined with the history of slavery in Brazil. Since the abolition of slavery in 1888 by the Lei Áurea ("Golden Law"), the practice of forced labour (trabalho escravo) has remained commonplace in agriculture.



During the dictatorship period, agriculture was neglected and exploited as a means of resources for the industry sector and cheap food for the urban population. Until late 1980s export and prices were controlled, with quotas on exports. This has changed since the early 1990s.



Soybeans

Brazilian agriculture is well diversified, and the country is largely self-sufficient in food. Agriculture accounts for 8% of the country's GDP, and employs about one-quarter of the labour force in more than 6 million agricultural enterprises. Brazil is the world's largest producer of sugarcane and coffee, and a net exporter of cocoa, soybeans, orange juice, tobacco, forest products, and other tropical fruits and nuts. Livestock production is important in many parts of the country, with rapid growth in the poultry, pork, and milk industries reflecting changes in consumer tastes. On a value basis, production is 60% field crop and 40% livestock. Brazil is a net exporter of agricultural and food products, which account for about 35% of the country's exports.




Half of Brazil is covered by forests, with the largest rain forest in the world located in the Amazon Basin. Recent migrations into the Amazon and large scale burning of forest areas have placed the international spotlight on the country and damaged Brazil's image. The government has reduced incentives for such activity and is beginning to implement an ambitious environmental plan - and has just adopted an Environmental Crimes Law that requires serious penalties for infractions.



Brazil is biggest exporter of coffee, soybeans, beef, sugar cane, ethanol and frozen chickens.


Carlos Alfredo Torres Duran

C.I.17.467.916

Electronica en Estado Solido

AGRICULTURE IN ARGENTINA

Agriculture and agro-industry in Argentina focus on the production of cereal, oil grains and seeds, sugar, fruit, wine, tea, tobacco, and cotton. Argentina is one of the greatest food-producing and food-exporting countries of the world, with an estimated 27,200,000 hectares (67,210,000 acres) of arable and permanent cropland. Agriculture and animal husbandry have traditionally supplied the nation with 70–95% of its export earnings, and the landowners have alternated the two activities in accordance with prices on the world market. As of 2001, agriculture made up 5% of the GDP. Agricultural products also accounted for 41% of exports by value. One of the most important factors in Argentine agriculture is the advanced degree of mechanization; in 1998, an estimated 280,000 tractors and 50,000 harvester-threshers were in use.

The principal agricultural region consists of the humid pampas, one of the world's greatest reaches of arable land. Argentine agriculture is virtually coextensive with this region, although efforts have been made to spread it into other areas. Citrus fruit, tobacco, cotton, and sugarcane are cultivated outside the pampas.

Wheat is the leading crop. Argentina accounted for about 75% of all wheat produced in South America in 1999 and was the world's fifth-leading wheat exporter. The area harvested in 1999 was estimated at 5.8 million hectares (14.3 million acres), and production at 14.5 million tons. Argentina is the fourth-largest corn-growing country in the world. The area harvested in 1999 was 2.5 million hectares (6.2 million acres), and production was 13.2 million tons. Barley is favored as the grain of greatest yield and resistance to disease; types for feed and beer are grown in the pampas areas having soil unfavorable or a climate too rigorous for wheat. Harvests once amounted to 659,000 tons per season in the early 1970s, but in 1999 production was 400,000 tons.

Rice is a major crop, with a 1999 production of 1,576,000 tons on plantings of 281,000 hectares (694,000 acres). Argentina is one of the world's biggest producers of flaxseed (linseed); production in 1999 was 85,000 tons, down more than 80% from the early 1990s. Most of the crop is exported in the form of linseed oil. The province of Tucumán dominates the sugar-raising industry, which dates from 1646; sugarcane production in 1999 was 19.4 million tons. To control overproduction, the government formed the National Sugar Co. in 1970 and forbade the construction of new sugar mills through the end of the decade.

Cotton growing dates from 1909 and is concentrated in Chaco Province. In 1999 the production of cotton fiber was 227,000 tons, down from 432,000 tons in 1996. Sunflower seed oil is a major industrial plant product; 3.8 million hectares (9.6 million acres) of sunflowers were harvested in 1999, producing 6,500,000 tons of sunflower seeds. Tobacco is raised in several northern provinces, especially Misiones; production in 1999 was an estimated 113,000 tons. Soybean production, only 78,000 tons in 1971–72, increased to 7.1 million tons by 1985–86, and to 18 million tons in 1999.

Fruit growing has developed rapidly since the 1940s. Estimates for 1999 fruit production (in tons) were apples, 1,056,000; oranges, 780,000; lemons and limes, 1,050,000; peaches and nectarines, 250,000; and grapefruit, 230,000. The output of bananas was 400,000 tons in 1974, 10 times the 1961–65 average; it fell to 144,000 tons in 1978 and rebounded to 280,000 tons in 1992 before declining to 175,000 tons in 1999.
The province of Mendoza is the center for the nation's vineyards. In 1999, grape production was 2.5 million tons. Argentina is one of the world's leading producers of wine, accounting for 1.26 million tons in 1999, or 4.5% of the world's total production.Argentine agriculture is relatively capital intensive, today providing about 7% of all employment and, even during its period of dominance around 1900, accounting for no more than a third of all labor. Having accounted for 20% of GDP as late as 1959, it adds, directly, less than 10% today;[1] however, agricultural goods, whether raw or processed, still earn over half of Argentina's foreign exchange and, arguably, remain an indispensable pillar of the country's social progress and economic prosperity.



These developments were accompanied by a wave of European immigration and investments in education and infrastructure, all of which nearly reinvented Argentine society. Agricultural development, in turn, led to the first meaningful industrial growth, which, during the 1920s, was mainly centered around food processing and increasingly involved U.S. capital. Agricultural exports provided the Argentine Treasury with generous surpluses during both World Wars and helped finance a boom in machinery and consumer goods imports between the wars and after 1945. The creation of a single grain purchaser (the IAPI) by Pres. Juan Perón produced mixed results, often shortchanging growers even as it benefited them with investments in infrastructure, machinery and pest control. Policies friendly to industrial investment during the Arturo Frondizi's tenure led to the establishment of FIAT and John Deere farm machinery makers locally, spurring further modernization, as did accelerated rural roadbuilding and electrification programs during the 1960s. Cost-cutting measures by the Juan Carlos Onganía regime led to the closure of 11 large sugar mills in 1966, however, even as agriculture generally continued to grow.



Sunflowers

Domestic austerity policies pursued by the last dictatorship and Raúl Alfonsín's government led to record trade surpluses during much of the 1976-90 era, led by agricultural exports and, notably, the sudden boom in soybean cultivation, which displaced sunflower seeds as the leading oilseed crop in 1977. A severe shortage of domestic credit hampered the sector somewhat, however, as growing harvests soon outstripped transport and storage capacity.


A tie of the Argentine peso to the U.S. dollar implemented by economist Domingo Cavallo in 1991 reduced export competitiveness somewhat, though the resulting stability led to record investments in agricultural infrastructure and led to strong growth in harvests during the late 1990s. These trends were accompanied by the federal approval of GMO crops in 1995. A devaluation of the peso in 2002 and a sustained rise in commodity prices since has further encouraged the sector, leading to record production and exports, helping finance record public works spending through export tariffs, a centerpiece ofNéstor and Cristina Kirchner's economic policies. These, inturn, became a point of contention when President Cristina Kirchner advanced a hike in export tariffs, leading to the 2008 Argentine government conflict with the agricultural sector; the tariff increase was defeated in the Senate when Vice PresidentJulio Cobos cast an unexpected, tie-breakig vote against the measure.


Production per commodity


All data refers to 2004 information by the FAO and by 2007 data from the Argentine Ministry of the Economy. Around 10% of the country is cultivated, while about half of it is used for cattle, sheep and other livestock.


Wheat

Cereals


One of the main exports of the country are cereals, centered around corn, wheat and sorghum, with rice and barley produced mainly for national consumption. With a total area of around 210.000 km², the annual production of cereals is around 50 million tonnes.


Oilseeds


Oilseeds became important as their international price rose during the late 20th century. Of the approximately 52 million tonnes produced annually, around 92% are soybeans and 7% are sunflower seeds. The total cultivated area for oilseeds is around 41.000 km².


Oilseed farming in Argentina has been prominent from the early 20th century, when the country was the world's primary exporter of flax (linseed). The collapse of that market in the 1930s and the crop's soil denuding qualities, however, ended its dominance within the sector.


Meats


Beef and other meats are some of the most important agricultural export products of Argentina. Nearly 5 million tonnes of meats (not including seafood) are produced in Argentina, long the world's leading beef consumer on a per capita basis. Beef accounts for 3.2 million tonnes (not counting 500.000 tonnes of edible offal). Then, following in importance: chicken, with 1.2 million tonnes; pork, with 265,000 and mutton (including goat meat), over 100,000. Cattle is mainly raised in the provinces of Buenos Aires and Santa Fe.


Grapes

Fruit


Grapes (mostly for the wine harvest), together with lemons, apples and pears are the most important fruit harvests, produced mainly in the Río Negrovalleys of Río Negro Province and Neuquén Province, as well as Mendoza Province. Other important crops include peaches and other citruses. With an area of around 6.000 km², the fruit production is around 8 million annual tonnes.


Sugar cane


The cultivation of sugar cane and its derivates over an area of 3.000 km², mainly in the Tucumán Province, yields around 19 million tonnes annually. There are also sugar-cane factories (ingenios azucareros) for the production of sugar and cellulose.


Cotton crop

Cotton


In 2007 on 393,000, 174,000 net tons of cotton was produced of which 7,000 tons was exported. The main production area is Chaco Province and, though the crop is being replaced in many areas with soybeans due to production costs, production has more than doubled since the 2002 low.


Dairy


Milk production is of around 10 billion annual liters and eggs, about 650 million dozen. Their production, as well as that of related dairy industries (half a million tons of cheese, particularly), was favored by the 2002 devaluation of the Argentine peso, as this placed production costs well below the international price. This increased milk and dairy product exports; but has also raised their local prices.


Vegetables


Vegetables, mainly potatoes, onions and tomatoes, are cultivated all over the country, almost exclusively for the domestic market. Other important products include sweetpotato, pumpkins, carrots,beans, peppers and garlic. An approximate area of 3.000 km² produces over five million tonnes of vegetable every year.


Fish and seafood


Fish and other sea foods are less important to the export economy, and are not widely consumed by Argentines. Most of the 900.000 tonnes fished is frozen and exported. The most important product is hake (merlucciidae), followed by Cephalopod (squid) and other molluscs and Crustaceans.


Carlos Alfredo Torres Duran C.I. 17.467.916

Electronica en Estado Solido

http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Americas/Argentina-AGRICULTURE.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriculture_in_Argentina

AGRICULTURE IN PERU

The Andes mountains of Peru are still farmed by terracing, as was practiced by the Incans. From the roads you will see the varied colors of the crops and Incans tilling the soil by hand.


Suasi Island is positioned 12,496 feet above sea level and 50 miles from Puno. The island is a privately protected natural area and your guide will offer information on environmentally sound Andean agricultural systems. Organic crops include native produce, quinoa, oca, tarhui, potatoes, and corn, and introduced crops like barley and oats. The greenhouse produces native herbs, flowers and trees in danger of extinction. Solar power generates all electricity including three solar boilers. Our normal program is 2 days and 1 night overnighting at Suasi Lodge with a stop at Lake Titicacain the afternoon.


In the Sacred Valley, from the Posada del Inca Yucay in Urubamba, experience the agriculture of the Incas via walking tours of the area. Visit ancient Incan agricultural terraces and a native Peruvian household in a walking tour and learn about the local culture and farming methods of the Incas. On an excursion to the salt mines of Maras, the inhabitants of the towns of Maras and Pichingoto will explain the process of salt extraction during your hike through the mines while you enjoy the picturesque beauty of an Andean valley. Walk to the circular terraces of Moray, ancient Incan laboratories used to domesticate the cultivation of plants that are now used all over the world. 


Peru's climate and different geographical zones make it an important agricultural nation. Of the 120 domesticated plants Peru has provided the world, the potato is the most important. There are more than 3,000 varieties of potatoes found in Peru, making it the world's genetic center for the crop. Other important crops include sugarcane, coffee, and cotton, with Peru producing 2 of the world's finest strains of cotton: Pima and Tanguis. In addition to these staples, the UNDP estimates that the Andean and jungle food baskets include important vegetables and fruits that are relatively unknown but high in vitamins and proteins. These include camu-camu, a small jungle fruit with the highest known levels of vitamin C, and quinoa, a highland grain. In addition, Peru is also a major supplier of crops such as asparagus, because of its unique climate. Peru has a window for asparagus (US$120 million in export earnings in 1999) exports between November and January, months in which almost no other country exports the product. Other "designer" products include mangos, sweet onions, and herbs.


Growing grape

A potentially important source of income could come from Peru's virgin forest in the form of logging. The Peruvian government began overhauling its laws governing the timber industry in 2000, dividing up parcels and placing conditions on logging and exports of slow-growth hardwood trees such as cedar and mahogany. Together with Guyana, in northern South America, Peru is one of the few countries on the planet that has most of its forest reserves relatively untouched.


Despite its history of agriculture and immense natural wealth, agriculture has received little attention in the past few decades. The sector continues to struggle after years of government intervention in the 1960s and 1970s (when the military government undertook agrarian reform), and benign neglect throughout most of the 1980s and 1990s. For a brief period in the 1980s, during Alán García's presidency (1985-90), the government attempted to offer interest-free loans to farmers through a state-run farmers' bank. The bank was a failure, with negligible returns on loans and declining production.


Growing potatoes

Agriculture represents 13 percent of GDP but employs 30 percent of the country's population. The incoming government proposes upping the sector's percentage of GDP as well as its employment participation by focusing on value-added products and concentrating on vertical integration . Cotton production is one agricultural product that the government is attempting to increase through vertical integration. Cotton production is linked to the country's textile manufacturing. The country's textile industry exported more than US$700 million in 2000 and includes several vertically-integrated companies, such as Textiles San Cristobal, which produces for U.S. manufacturer Ralph Lauren and other high-end clothing companies. They run cotton plantations, thread and fabric factories, garment producers, and exporters of the final product.


The goal of Toledo's government is to get Peruvian textiles included in the list of products exported to the United States tariff-free under the Andean Trade Preference Act, passed in 1990. The Peruvian government is pushing for them to be included in an extension of the act, which is currently being negotiated. The Peruvian government believes that if textiles receive tariff-free status, there will be a boom throughout the textile industry, beginning in the cotton fields.


The government plans on doubling the number of acres dedicated to cotton in order to increase cloth production to feed the textile industry. Other targeted products include hard yellow corn for the poultry industry, coffee for the specialty coffee market in the United States and Europe, and sugarcane. Peru currently imports corn and sugarcane, despite its long history of development of both crops. According to the Department of Agriculture, Peru has been a net agricultural importer since 1980, with agriculture imports worth roughly US$200 million more than exports in 1999.


Cotton from Peru

Hundreds of laws were passed under the previous administration to stimulate the agriculture sector. These included privatization of fallow lands and irrigation systems, as well as removing conditions on land ownership and tenure. However, the government failed to pass 2 important pieces of legislation governing community-owned lands and water rights. Without these 2 laws, large agroindustry projects will not be able to operate.


One of Peru's best-known crops is coca, which is the raw material used to make cocaine. In addition to coca, Peru also produces substantial quantities of marijuana and, in recent years, poppies used in opium production. The government, together with its U.S., European, and UN partners, has been reducing coca crops since the mid-1990s, with promising results. Coca crops have fallen from 276,000 acres in 1992 to 84,000 acres currently. Neighboring Colombia has passed Peru as the leading producer of coca.


Carlos Alfredo Torres Duran

C.I. 17.467.916

Electronica en Estado Solido