Changing the rural landscape: developing countries
Developing countries
There have been many changes in farming practices in recent years in developing countries like India. These are shown in the diagram below.
Case study- the Lower Ganges Valley, India
The warm, wet climate in India is perfect for subsistence rice farming. When people only grow enough food to feed themselves and their family. means that food is grown only to feed the family, with no surplus remaining to sell for a profit.
Field sizes are small, usually 1 hectare - the size of a football pitch- and sub-divided into about 15 plots.
There is a low level of mechanisation as farmers cannot afford high-tech equipment, so they use A large animal used to pull simple farm ploughs in poor countries that cannot afford tractors. to plough the fields and When people do all the work by hand. to When crops are collected from the fields. the crop. As rice requires a constant supply of water, fields are often constructed beside water, eg the River Ganges.
Impact of new technology
Changes in farming policy have led to a large increase in food production in India because it has a rapidly growing population to feed.
The The application of modern farming techniques, eg fertilisers, high-yield variety (HYV) seeds and irrigation. involved the introduction of tractors, A man-made ditch used to collect rainwater. and chemical fertilisers and pesticides. The use of smart phone apps allow famers to electronically sell their crops and satellites enable farmers to monitor their fields, saving time and money. The use of modern farming technology has had both a positive and negative impact on rural areas:
| POSITIVE | NEGATIVE |
| Irrigation channels allow two to three harvests a year instead of one, because of a constant water supply | Land is constantly in use so soil quality becomes poorer over time |
| Crop yields increase which leads to higher profits for some farmers | Poorer farmers cannot compete as they can't grow as many crops without irrigation |
| Some farmers can grow a variety of cash crops to further increase profit | The poorest farmers are unable to buy chemicals or machines so new technology is of no benefit to them |
| There is less physical work for people because of increased mechanisation | Fewer jobs are available because of mechanisation, leading to increased unemployment |
| The need for machinery and chemicals has created new industries and jobs, eg mechanics to fix tractors | Machines are expensive to buy and repair. This can be overcome through co-operatives where machines are shared amongst farmers. |
| Living standards have increased as some farmers have money to buy goods | Many poorer families still live in extreme poverty as they cannot afford new technology |
| POSITIVE | Irrigation channels allow two to three harvests a year instead of one, because of a constant water supply |
|---|---|
| NEGATIVE | Land is constantly in use so soil quality becomes poorer over time |
| POSITIVE | Crop yields increase which leads to higher profits for some farmers |
|---|---|
| NEGATIVE | Poorer farmers cannot compete as they can't grow as many crops without irrigation |
| POSITIVE | Some farmers can grow a variety of cash crops to further increase profit |
|---|---|
| NEGATIVE | The poorest farmers are unable to buy chemicals or machines so new technology is of no benefit to them |
| POSITIVE | There is less physical work for people because of increased mechanisation |
|---|---|
| NEGATIVE | Fewer jobs are available because of mechanisation, leading to increased unemployment |
| POSITIVE | The need for machinery and chemicals has created new industries and jobs, eg mechanics to fix tractors |
|---|---|
| NEGATIVE | Machines are expensive to buy and repair. This can be overcome through co-operatives where machines are shared amongst farmers. |
| POSITIVE | Living standards have increased as some farmers have money to buy goods |
|---|---|
| NEGATIVE | Many poorer families still live in extreme poverty as they cannot afford new technology |