The Costs of Modern Agriculture

The process of agricultural modernisation has had an important influence on farm productivity and improved living standards for many farmers. However, farmers need access to: modern seeds, water, labour, capital or credit, fertilisers and pesticides. Many poorer farming households simply cannot adopt the whole package. If one element is missing, the seed delivery system fails or the fertiliser arrives late, or there is insufficient irrigation water, then yields may not be much better that those for traditional varieties. Even if farmers want to use external resources, very often delivery systems are unable to supply them on time.

Where production has been improved through theses modern technologies, all too often there have been adverse ecological and social impacts.

Ecological Costs

Many ecological problems have increased dramatically in recent years. These include:

	contamination of water by pesticides, nitrates, soil and livestock wastes, causing harm to wildlife, disruptions of ecosystems and possible health problems in drinking water;
	contamination of food and fodder by residues of pesticides, nitrates and antibiotics;
	damage to farm and natural resources by pesticides, causing harm to farmworkers and public, disruption of ecosystems and harm to wildlife;
	contamination of the atmosphere by ammonia, nitrous oxide, methane and the products of burning, which play a role in ozone depletion, global warming and atmospheric pollution;
	overuse of natural resources, causing depletion of groundwater, and loss of wild foods and habitats, and of their capacity to absorb wastes, causing waterlogging and increased salinity;
	the tendency in agriculture to standardise and specialise by focusing on modern varieties, causing displacement of traditional varieties and breeds;
	new health hazards for workers in the agrochemical and food-processing industries.

Social Costs

Agricultural modernisation has also helped to transform many rural communities, both in the South and the North. The process has had many social impacts. These include the loss of jobs, the further disadvantaging of women economically if they do not have access to the use and benefits of the new technology, the increasing specialisation of livelihoods, the growing gap between the well-off and the poor, and the cooption of village institutions by the state.

Source: Pretty, J. (1998) Regenerating Agriculture, Earthscan, London, p. 4.