Agriculture is fundamental to human survival. However, despite of the big strides that have been made in the sector, starvation is still a problem that faces many communities in the world. From my perspective, this phenomenon is caused mainly by people’s negligence of the environment and can only be solved if the governments invest more resources in ecological conservation.
Agricultural advances have been prevented from reaching their full potential because of the negative impacts they have on the environment. In order to ensure good harvests, farmers often use pesticides and unintentionally harm birds and insects that are indispensable to the agricultural process. Birds that feed on pests and insects that pollinate plants will therefore decrease in population, ultimately reducing the yield of the crops. Moreover, aggressive deforestation contributes to famines in the world as well. When woodlands give away to cultivated fields, the consequences of climate change will go unchecked and the likelihood of sandstorms will multiply. By cutting down trees, farmers eliminate their last defense against natural disasters which will destroy farmlands and diminish the amount of food that can be produced.
To address the problems listed above, governments should put more emphasis on environmental protection. More resources should be dedicated to research projects that will make agricultural practices more ecologically-friendly. For example, governments should invest in technologies that raise crops’ level of immunity against pests and diseases. This will discourage the use of pesticides, consequently saving the lives of birds and bees that will in turn aid the growth of crops. Another way governments can help is to support researches on increasing the productivity of crops. When crops can produce the same amount of food with a smaller area of land, forests will not have to be sacrificed for agriculture. As a result, trees will continue to thrive and protect humans against the ramifications of climate and ecological disasters.
In conclusion, food shortage can largely be attributed to farmers’ unsustainable agricultural practices. The farming methods they use often come at the expense of the environment. Thus, only when governments promote agricultural technologies that minimize ecological harm will starvation no long be a problem globally.