Farming for Our Future examines the policies and legal reforms necessary to accelerate the adoption of practices that can make agriculture in the United States climate-neutral or better. These proven practices will also make our food system more resilient to the impacts of climate change. Agriculture's contribution to climate change is substantial--much more so than official figures suggest--and we will not be able to achieve our overall mitigation goals unless agricultural emissions sharply decline. Fortunately, farms and ranches can be a major part of the climate solution, while protecting biodiversity, strengthening rural communities, and improving the lives of the workers who cultivate our crops and rear our animals. The importance of agricultural climate solutions can not be underestimated; it is a critical element both in ensuring our food security and limiting climate change. This book provides essential solutions to address the greatest crises of our time.

Many friends, colleagues, and research staff members have directly and indirectly contributed to this book. It is impossible to acknowledge the contribution of each. Still, we would like to recognize several persons as well as institutions that have been particularly helpful. Research funds were provided by the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station and by the Ford Foundation. John Myers of the Current Research Information System provided us with a computer tape listing current projects. Carolyn Sachs was extremely helpful in coordinating the mail survey of scientists. Christian Ritter, Lisa Slatin, and Bobbie Sparks assisted in coding the data. Ann Stockham developed the index and also organized the data. Janet Baynham, Sue Lewis, and Greg Taylor aided in the voluminous computer programming and statistical analysis. Rosemary Cheek typed most of the manuscript. Marlene Pettit, Michael Claycomb, Deborah Wheeler, and Penny Hogue also assisted in the typing. Janice Taylor aided in the manuscript typing and ran interference on much of the administrative detail.

This book examines the differing concepts of food security and the practicalities, policies, and resources that shape issues of food security. It begins with discussion of the nature of food security, its components, and related concepts such as self-sufficiency and global carrying capacity. It then reviews food consumption patterns in developed nations and developing regions, and discusses the complexities of determining what constitutes an adequate diet, taking into account recommended dietary allowances, variability in food composition, dietary balance and imbalance, diet and disease, nutrient deficiencies, intolerances, and food allergies. The book also reviews divergent concepts of sustainable agriculture, examining resources and policies that influence economically efficient and ecologically conservative food production and distribution. Soil and water management, genetic diversity, atmosphere and climate, energy in agriculture, government policies, and production systems are discussed as they relate to food security. Finally, the book reviews agricultural research, notably that conducted by members of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, research on agricultural pests and diseases, the need to improve post-production systems (including markets and transportation), food science research, and future requirements for human resources to ensure food security.

Science, Agriculture and the Politics of Policy examines the intersections of globalisation, technology and politics through a detailed, empirically-based examination of agricultural biotechnology in India. The focus is on Bangalore and Karnataka, a part of India which has seen a massive growth in biotech enterprises, experimentation with GM cotton and a contested policy debate about the role biotechnology should play in economic development. The book asks what does this new suite of technologies mean - for society, for politics and for the way agriculture, food and rural livelihoods are thought about? Can biotech deliver a second Green Revolution, and so transform agriculture and rescue the countryside and its people from crisis and poverty? Or is it more complex than this? Through a detailed case study, the aim of the book is to discuss, question and refine these broader debates, locating an understanding of biotechnology firmly within an understanding of society and politics.