Food stage and production

Food production depends on the following:

1. The role of government in agricultural production
2. Any ways of improving crop production
3. The environmental factors required for food production

Environmental Factors Required for Food Production

Environmental factors affecting food production include the biotic and abiotic factors

1. These Abiotic factors include:
   • Rainfall
   • Temperature
   • Wind
   • Sunlight
   • Solar radiation
   • Relative humidity
2. The biotic factors affecting food production include:
   • Soil organisms
   • Parasites
   • Weeds
   • Predators
   • Diseases

The role of government in agricultural production can vary depending on the country and its specific policies.Governments, in general, play several roles in the agricultural sector. These roles are:

1. Establishment of river basin authorities
2. Provision of effective transportation network
3. Provision of storage and processing facilities
4. Efficient quarantine measures
5. Provision of research work
6. Provision of financial assistance
7. Provision of extension services
8. Providing high quality planting materials

Ways of Improving Food Production

Food production can be improved by:

• The adoption of better cultivation methods
• The use of good crop varieties
• The use of resistant variety
• The use of manures and fertilizers
• The control of pests of crops
• The control of diseases of crops

Food wastage

Food wastage refers to the loss or waste of food at various stages of the food supply chain, including production, processing, distribution, and consumption.

Reasons why food is wasted annually include the following:

1. Poor storage: Inability to store properly due to inadequate facilities causes food wastage. Harvested crops must be properly stored otherwise wastage will occur. For example yam must be stored in cool, dry, airy barn or else it will decay
2. Incomplete Harvesting: Some crops such as rice, yam, groundnut, cocoyam are usually not completely harvested. Some parts of the potential harvest are left in the field to waste.
3. Pest Damage: Pest damage may begin in the field and sometimes continue in storage. For instance, rice, maize are eaten by pests in the field and in storage.
4. Weather: The weather may damage part of the harvest in rainy season. Maize grains may mature, germinate and waste in the field before harvest. The wind may also dislodge some rice stands in the field causing the grains to fall on the ground and waste.
5. Poor Preservation: Harvested crops need to be properly preserved otherwise they rapidly get spoilt or decay. Maize and rice must be well dried or they become damp, hot and mouldy when stored. Tomatoes, vegetables, carrot etc must be properly preserved to avoid rot.
6. Bad Roads: Due to bad roads, farm produce are inaccessible to markets and this leads to wastage.
7. Unavailability of Markets: Unavailability of markets to dispose crops may also lead to food wastage
8. Natural Disasters: Natural disasters like flood and drought may cause food shortage as their effects normally reduce the availability of food.
9. Poor method of preservation of some farm produce like tomatoes, carrots, vegetable and other perishable crops.

Effects of Food Shortage on Population Size

There is a direct relationship between population size and food supply. As the population of organisms increases, the quantity of food produced should increase accordingly. However, when there is food shortage due to food wastage, the following result:

1. High cost of food making food unavailable to the common man
2. Competition: Situation in which the organisms in a population struggle for limited available essential of life e.g. food. This results in survival of the fittest in the population.
3. Emigration: This is the outward movement of organisms from a particular population when there is shortage of food.
4. Increased mortality: especially of organisms which could not survive competition or migrate out.
5. Cannibalism: This is an animals feeding on one another

Methods of Food Preservation

Food preservation is to treat food to keep it in good condition for a long time.

Need for preservation

1. To prepare new products like jams, pickles, etc. Such products are enjoyed by everyone and all the year round.
2. Processing reduces the bulk of fruits and vegetables. The storage and transportation becomes easier.
3. To increase the shelf 1ife of foods

The methods and principles of preserving food include:

1. Drying: Food such as vegetables, maize, cassava, fish, meat etc. can be preserved by drying under the sun.
   Principle: Drying reduces water content of the food thus making it unsuitable for the growth of spoilage micro organisms due to increased osmotic concentration of food.
2. Salting: This involves coating of the food with table salt or common salt (NaCl).
   Principle: The salt on the surface of the food dehydrates it i.e. it removes water from the food. This form a highly concentrated solution which has osmotic pressure than the cytoplasm of the micro organisms that cause decay. The salts inhibit the growth of the microbe or kill them. This method can be used for fresh meat, fish etc.
3. Smoking: Involves placing the food over naked fire to dry it. Food preserved this way includes meat, fish, groundnut, plantain etc.
   Principle: The smoke creates an oxygen deficient environment that kills micro organisms. The smoke also contains chemicals that are poisonous to the organisms.
4. refrigerationThis involves keeping food in the refrigerator or freezer at low temperature. Such food includes fruit, vegetables, milk, bread, fish, meat etc. Low temperature reduces the metabolic rate of microbes. Some can even be killed thus reducing spoilage considerable.
5. Pasteurization: This is the heating of some food product to a very high temperature for about 10 minutes and its immediate cooling for the purpose of storage. The high temperature kill the spoilage microbes. beef, milk, cheese can be preserved this way. Pasteurization usually precedes canning or bottling method of food preservation.
6. Canning: This is the storage or sealing of processed and consumable food in cans or bottle under special conditions for future consumption. This is used for food like fruit, meat, fish, and beans. etc. Microbes are gradually killed, entrance of new ones is prevented and long storage is ensured.
7. Irradiation: This is the subjection of some food e.g. Milk, Canned food, tubers, fruit juices etc, to a high radiation such as ultraviolet rays. The irradiation kills the microbes in the food and also prevents the entrance of new ones.
8. Chemicals: This is the addition of harmless chemicals to food e.g. soft drink, vegetables etc. Principle: The chemical choke spoilage organisms in the food. It also dehydrates the microbes.

Food storage

Some crops are meant to grow in the rainy season while some few are grown in the dry season. If there is no good storage facilities, distribution of food across the season will be difficult; as there would be a period of plenty of food and another period of food shortage. To strike a balance, storage facilities will make equitable distribution of food and food will be available in required quantities at all seasons. Advantages of food storage include the following:

1. Provision of adequate food supply during period of war and natural disaster
2. Provision of employment opportunities i.e. to workers in processing industries
3. Stabilization of food prices at all season. Equitable distribution of food will prevent unnecessary high demand for food at any time which may lead to like in prices of food
4. Provision of foreign exchange to improve the economy of the nation. Food can be used as aids to countries in need as love and donations
5. It ensures economic use of food by preventing spoilage at time of plenty and adequate supply of food at off-harvest period