Our industry 2014 - (Page 52)

  52   04 Technology in agriculture   The role of crop protection   Crop protection products protect crops from damage by controlling weeds,  disease and insect pressure. The widespread use of newer and more effective  products since the middle of the twentieth century has increased food security  and improved standards of living around the world. Crop protection products   also help to safeguard public health by controlling pests that spread disease to  people and livestock or cause damage to homes and property. Weeds, insects and disease have attacked food supplies throughout human  history. Only very recently, however, has modern science discovered effective  ways of controlling these threats to crop yield. After 30 years of rapid growth in  agricultural production, the world can currently produce enough food to provide  every person with more than 2,700 kilocalories per day; this level would ensure  adequate food for all if distribution distortions did not exist. Theoretical maximum yield on key crops % 100 80 60 40 20 0 Rice Wheat Corn Soybean Cotton Potato Remaining potential Extra yield from crop protection today Yield with no crop protection Since 1975, when the population was four billion people, crop protection  products have been essential in order to produce enough to feed the global  population. Crop productivity improvements since 1961 have forestalled habitat conversion  to farmland of some 980 million hectares globally; an area roughly the size of   the total land area of the United States. Crop protection products are absolutely  essential for raising yields and keeping pace with rising demand without  encroaching on the environment.   Without crop protection,  ~40% of the world's food  would not exist 

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Our industry 2014

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