Crops, climate, culture, and change

Excerpt

The future of agriculture will depend on how well we negotiate change and adapt. A changing climate is one of many drivers of change. Increased variability in distribution and timing of precipitation, along with changing temperatures, bring about greater volatility in global agricultural production and markets. Growing competition for water resources and increased water pollutants are altering the hydrology, biology, and chemistry of streams, lakes, and rivers. Concurrently, long-term productivity of agricultural lands is reduced in many row crop fields due to soil erosion, compaction, and nutrient depletion. Each growing season, a series of invasive species, diseases, and pests challenge the practices put in place to control them, requiring ever more intensive management by farmers. End users and consumers will continue to demand efficient and economical production while desiring more varied and resource-intensive diets, biofuel feedstocks, and food security as populations grow and developing countries gain wealth (Garnett et al. 2013; Bennett et al. 2014).

The Upper Midwest, with its fertile soils and abundant rainfall, reported an unprecedented 384 billion kg (15.1 billion bu) of corn (Zea mays L.) harvested in 2016, with many state averages reaching all-time highs: Indiana at 10,859 kg ha⁻¹ (173 bu ac⁻¹); Minnesota at 12,115…