The Farmers of Yesterday And Today
If you were to think back to how long man has been farming, then you would realize that it has been thousands and thousands of years. Farming was initially a way to ensure that the family would have enough to eat during the winter months when game would be scarce. With new developments in agricultural tools the farmers branched out and produced more for their families and still had enough to sell in the local market. Today’s factory farming operations produce massive quantities that go directly to feeding the masses.
The farmers today have a huge advantage over their prehistoric ancestors. The farming industry is a major force in the world. Food and agriculture research has led to hardier crops that are more resistant to diseases and require fewer pesticides. This is a huge step up from just barely having enough food to feed your family and trying to worry about having enough to sell at the market. Now everyone can have year round access to fresh fruits and vegetables without worrying about paying outrageous prices that previously only the wealthy could afford.
Rural development allowed farmers more access to larger tracts of land. They could farm on a much larger scale in order to produce high enough quantities of produce to help feed the rest of the world. Farmers now have more excess crops that are sold to huge processing plants. The processing plants then prepare the food for distribution to markets around the world. What may have started out as a small garden patch on the farm blossomed into a multi-billion dollar industry. There are still risks for farmers such as pests or crop damage but at least farmers no longer have to worry about starving if they have a bad harvest. There is an inherent food security now for everyone involved. If a country has been hit by natural disasters, then they can receive aid from other countries during their hardship.
If there were one group to thank for the radical changes for the farmers it would be the USDA. The United States Department of Agriculture regularly checks to make sure that the food being grown on farms is safe for the public. Their research and development division has created great innovations for farmers to have more resources and techniques for their farms. Food and agriculture is a major factor in every person’s life so there are times when the USDA will help farmers out if there has been a natural disaster. This is definitely a change from cavemen digging in the dirt with no guarantee of success.