Dirt Cheap or Pay Dirt
For the most part we take dirt for granted. We even speak of it disparagingly… dumb as dirt, old as dirt.
And if you’re not a farmer, you generally take water for granted. We’ll leave that discussion for another day.
Today let’s talk dirt.
Not celebrity dirt. But that amazing substance that’s simultaneously composed of rotting decaying material and vibrantly alive and active micro-organisms. We more properly refer to said dirt as SOIL.
I was recently reading an economic report on topsoil. It startled me quite a bit.
We’ve been witnessing more significant global food constraints over the past couple of years. Public discussion has largely been focused on transferring food resources to fuel use, i.e., ethanol. Which in turn decreased food supply and concurrently led to escalating prices.
Throw in some weather challenges such as droughts here and there and some natural disasters such as floods and it “seemed obvious” to conclude the situation was somewhat temporary.
Not the conclusion I more recently came to.
In addition to all those “challenges”, globally we’re running out of soil. Yep. Seems unfathomable.
So says Lennart Bage, president of a U.N. fund for agriculture development: “Now fertile land with access to water has become a strategic asset.”
The planet has three feet of topsoil. Not dirt, but nutrient rich, fertile soil. What you need to grow food. And we’re losing it faster than we’re replacing it. In fact, according to the National Academy of Sciences, the U.S. is loosing fertile topsoil 10 times faster than replacing it. And according to the U.N. the oss rate is 10-100 times faster on a global basis.
As I said, I was quite startled.
Prior to the 1980’s cultivated land had been increasing. Since then it’s been on the decline… tho globally, the population is still increasing. So more people to feed, less acres to farm.
Iran bought 1 million tons of wheat from the U.S. this summer. Last time that happened was 27 years ago when we were on ummmm, “friendlier” terms. Drought decreased their harvest by a third and the U.S. was the only country that could supply them.
Prior to the 1940’s only Europe imported grain. North America, South America and the former USSR were exporters. Africa was self-sufficient. The only significant exporters now are North America (Canada, U.S., Mexico), Australia and New Zealand.
Countries such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, Libya, South Korea and China are looking to lease or buy farmland in other countries.
Many other countries have instituted export restrictions keeping their harvest within the country.
Is fertile land destined to replace oil as the top global strategic asset?
Go Vertical
I came upon this site some time ago. It takes a real mental shift… at least it does for me.
Vertical farming takes features of greenhouse and hydroponic gardening matched with skyscraper architecture… small footprint, tall structure.
Essentially they classify it as “indoor farming”. Indoor = controlled environment. No longer does weather matter. No longer do seasons matter.
Vertical farming is positioned as an extremely environmentally friendly solution:
Vertical farms can be built in urban centers decreasing the distance from “farm” to plate. Less procesesing, packaging, transportation. Greater freshness.
Food is grown organically… no pesticides (no pests), herbicides or chemical fertilizers.
Very water efficient… “runoff” and evaporation are recycled back into potable water.
Superior productivity: 1 indoor acre can produce the equivalent of 4-6 outdoor acres.
Methane is regenerated into energy.
Meanwhile some land currently used for traditional horizontal farming can be re-forested. This stops the decline of rain forests and animal habitats.
Very good arguments for vertical farms. We’ve seen agriculture go through two major “efficiency” evolutions. The first evolution when machinery replaced human labor. The second evolution when chemical fertilizer were used to “overcome” soil deficiencies.
One can look at vertical farming as the next efficiency evolution. It’s more space efficient. It’s more closely located to buyers of the food. It neutralizes weather, season and pest influences. It more efficiently uses water and energy
What do you think?
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