Food Flashcards
All 32 cards in this deck
What is food security?
When people have reliable access to enough safe and nutritious food to stay healthy and active.
What is the relationship between a country's GNI and its food consumption?
A positive correlation — as GNI increases, food consumption increases.
Give two reasons why global food consumption is rising.
Economic development (people are wealthier and buy more, richer food) and rising population.
True or false? As countries develop economically, diets usually shift towards more meat and dairy.
True. Higher disposable income leads to more 'westernised', calorie-dense diets.
How do pests and diseases reduce food supply?
They eat or destroy crops and reduce yields, e.g. locusts devouring a field in hours or wheat rust destroying crops.
How does climate affect food supply?
It controls which crops can grow and how well, e.g. irregular rains in the Sahel limit crop production.
True or false? Conflict can cause food insecurity even when the climate is good for farming.
True. War destroys crops and stores, displaces farmers and blocks food distribution.
What is famine?
A widespread shortage of food affecting a significant number of people.
What is undernutrition?
A diet lacking enough calories, vitamins and minerals, causing illness and poor health.
Give two social impacts of food insecurity.
Famine causing death and malnutrition; social unrest / rioting against the government.
Give two economic impacts of food insecurity.
Rising food prices hitting the poorest hardest; undernourished people lack energy to work so earn less.
How can food insecurity lead to soil erosion?
Farmers over-cultivate and over-graze land to grow more food, leaving soil bare and easily washed or blown away.
What is irrigation as a strategy to increase food supply?
Artificially supplying water to crops so they can grow in dry areas or through dry seasons.
What is the difference between hydroponics and aeroponics?
Hydroponics grows plants in nutrient-rich water; aeroponics grows them in air with roots misted with nutrients.
What is the new green revolution?
Increasing yields sustainably using biotechnology, water conservation and improved seeds, while protecting the environment and helping small farmers.
What is appropriate technology in farming?
Simple, low-cost technology suited to local conditions and skills, e.g. Zaï pits that collect rainwater and compost around each plant.
True or false? A limitation of appropriate technology is that it is usually small scale.
True. It can raise yields locally but may not improve food supply for everyone.
Give two advantages of a large-scale agricultural development.
Increased food production and improved food security; also job creation and export earnings from cash crops.
Give two disadvantages of a large-scale agricultural development.
Small-scale farmers lose land or are priced out, and profits go to large companies.
True or false? Large-scale agricultural developments always increase the number of rural jobs.
False. Mechanisation often means fewer rural jobs, even though some jobs are created.
What is organic farming?
Growing food without artificial fertilisers or pesticides, using natural methods such as manure and crop rotation.
What is permaculture?
Farming that imitates natural ecosystems, using natural cycles and diversity so the system sustains itself with few external inputs.
Give one benefit of urban farming initiatives.
Food is produced locally on rooftops, allotments or unused plots, so it has a lower carbon footprint and is fresher.
Why does seasonal food consumption make food supply more sustainable?
It reduces the need for imported food, which is assumed to have a higher carbon footprint.
Why does reducing food waste and losses make food supply more sustainable?
Existing supplies last longer and less waste goes to landfill, where it produces methane.
True or false? A country with a high GNI always has a high calorie intake.
False. The correlation is positive, but there are anomalies — e.g. Japan is wealthy yet cultural norms mean a healthier diet with fewer calories.
Describe the global pattern of daily calorie intake.
Highest in wealthy regions such as North America and Europe; lowest in much of Africa and parts of Asia, where incomes are lower and less food is grown or imported.
How does poverty reduce food supply?
Poor people may have no land to farm and cannot buy inputs such as fertiliser or pesticides; poor countries cannot afford to import food to make up a shortfall.
How does water stress reduce food supply?
Under water stress, demand for water is greater than the supply, so there is not enough to irrigate crops or water livestock; harvests fail or shrink and animals die.
Give one way technology can increase food supply.
Any one: machinery lets farmers plant and harvest larger areas faster; fertilisers and pesticides raise yields; improved or genetically modified seeds resist pests, disease and drought.
Give two ways genetically modified (GM) crops can increase food supply.
Any two: bigger harvests from the same land; tolerance of drought; resistance to pests or disease (so less pesticide is needed); added vitamins or nutrients, making the food more nutritious.
Give one way fish or meat can come from more sustainable sources.
Any one: fishing quotas cap catches so fish stocks can recover; fishing methods that do less damage to the seabed and other species; eco-labels so shoppers can choose sustainably caught fish; rearing cattle on natural grassland instead of cleared forest and grain feed.