Reconsidering the Industrialization of Agriculture

Abstract:     
Most agricultural production in the United States occurs on large commercial farms that employ an industrialized model for production. Increasingly, this model is being adopted throughout the world. The application of this model to the production of living products, i.e., plants and animals is problematic, however, because some of its main tenants run counter to the natural processes that must be employed. Moreover, its long term environmental and social costs have not been factored into estimates of its alleged efficiency. This article calls for an re-examination of the appropriateness of an industrial model when producing living products.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 10

Accepted Paper Series