Agriculture has played a key role in the development of human civilization. Until the Industrial Revolution, the vast majority of the human population labored in agriculture. The type of agriculture they developed was typically subsistence agriculture…in which farmers raised most of their crops for consumption on the farm, and there was only a small portion left over for the payment of taxes, dues, or trade. In subsistence agriculture cropping decisions are made with an eye to what the family needs for food, and to make clothing and not the world marketplace.

Development of agricultural techniques has steadily increased agricultural productivity and the widespread diffusion of these techniques during a time period is often called an agricultural revolution. A remarkable shift in agricultural practices has occurred over the past century in response to new technologies, and the development of world markets. This has also led to technological improvements in agricultural techniques, such as the “Haber-Bosch” method for synthesizing ammonium nitrate which made the traditional practice of recycling nutrients with crop rotation and animal manure less necessary, but it is still effective and used in many areas.

Synthetic nitrogen, along with mined rock phosphate, pesticides and mechanization, has greatly increased crop yields in the early 20^th century. Increased supply of grains has led to cheaper livestock as well. Further, global yield increases were experienced later in the 20^th century when high-yield varieties of common staple grains such as rice, wheat and corn (maize) were introduced as a part of the Green Revolution. The Green Revolution exported the technologies (including pesticides and synthetic nitrogen) of the developed world to the developing world. Thomas Malthus famously predicted that the earth would not be able to support its growing population, but technologies such as the Green Revolution have allowed the world to produce a surplus of goods.

Many governments have subsidized agriculture to ensure an adequate food supply. These agricultural subsidies are often linked to the production of certain commodities such as wheat, corn (maize), rice, soybeans and milk. These subsidies, especially when instituted by developed countries have been noted as protectionist, inefficient, and environmentally damaging.

In the past century agriculture has been characterized by enhanced productivity and the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, selective breeding, mechanization, water contamination and farm subsidies. Proponents of organic farming such as Sir Albert Howard argued in the early 20^th century that the overuse of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers damages long-term fertility of the soil. While this feeling lay dormant for decades, as environmental awareness has increased in the 21^st century there has been a movement towards sustainable agriculture by some farmers, consumers, and policymakers.

In recent years there has been a backlash against perceived external environmental effects of mainstream agriculture, particularly regarding water pollution, resulting in the organic movement. One of the major forces behind this movement has been the European Union, which first certified organic food in 1991 and began reform of its Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in 2005 to phase out commodity-linked farm subsidies, also known as decoupling. The growth of organic farming has renewed research in alternative technologies such as integrated pest management and selective breeding. Recent mainstream technological developments include genetically modified food.

In late 2007, several factors pushed up the price of grains consumed by humans as well as used to feed poultry and dairy cows and other cattle, causing higher prices of wheat (up 58%), soybean (up 32%) and maize (up 11%) over the year. Food riots took place in several countries across the world. Contributing factors included drought in Australia and elsewhere. Increasing demand for grain-fed animal products from the growing middle classes of countries such as China and India, and a diversion of food grain to biofuels production and trade restrictions imposed by several countries also caused the surge.

An epidemic of stem rust on wheat caused by race Ug99 is currently spreading across Africa and into Asia and is causing major concerns. Approximately 40% of the world’s agricultural land is seriously degraded. In Africa, if current trends in soil degradation continue, the continent might be able to feed just 25% of its population by 2025 according to the UNU’s Ghana-based Institute for Natural Resources in Africa.