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UNITED STATES CROPLAND: SIZE AND POTENTIAL
Pages 93-100

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From page 93...
... Less than 100 million acres are considered high in potential for conversion into cropland. The ERS concludes that there is adequate cropland available to fill domestic United States needs and expected foreign demand for several decades.
From page 94...
... The large gains in the past quarter century that came from concentrating production on the more optimum sites for individual crops; planting and pruning for maximum leaf area indexes; elimination of severe weed competition; improvement of defenses against insects, disease, and nematodes; and better farm mechanization will be difficult to duplicate over the next 25 years. However, further improvements in the same areas will continue to enhance productivity for the next decade or so.
From page 95...
... These are likely to restrict major gains in livestock production efficiency for the near future. Some research-based advances, such as more twinning in cattle, more frequent lamb crops, and larger pig litters should, however, improve animal productivity.
From page 96...
... Other potentials for assisting in the fuel crisis include developing plants with more efficient photosynthetic ability, minimizing tillage practices, utilizing energy in crop and animal wastes, and further enhancing the capability of ruminant animals to produce meat, milk, and fiber from roughages. PROJECTED UNITED STATES AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION The growth in population in the United States and the world has increased the demand for food and fiber from agriculture, especially from United States agriculture.
From page 97...
... Madsen and others forecasting national land use for the.year 2000 for various combinations of assumptions as to future farm policy, Dnited States population, water price, export level, and level of technology. For a free market serving a future population of 300 million with water prices and exports continuing at present levels, the acreage devoted to dryland annual crops was forecast to rise from 176 million acres in 1964 to 190 million acres in 2000.
From page 98...
... "The results of the study, based on conservative yield trends, indicate that United States agriculture would not be faced with aggregative strains on food producing capacity and water supplies relative to needs in the year 2000 under any of the alternative futures considered." If more vegetable protein were consumed by people, both the land area and water required for irrigation would be decreased substantially. Concerning expansion of agricultural production and exports it was stated, "if the nation decides to plan for greater crop production, such a decision should be based on thorough consideration of all of the possible options, looking to achieving greater production goals in the most efficient way possible.
From page 99...
... Furthermore the vagaries of weather in the United States and worldwide, which are contributing to starvation, malnutrition, and rapid depletion of food reserves in many areas, while the world population continues to increase, add further impetus to the realization that we cannot afford to be complacent about our agricultural productive capacity both now and in the future. The Agricultural Production Efficiency Report (NRC 1975b)
From page 100...
... In a recent study (NRC 1975a) , the Board on Agriculture and Renewable Resources sought to identify technologies that could enhance food production in the United States and help to meet the food needs of a growing world population and the demand from increasingly affluent societies.


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