Precision Agriculture and Food Production: From Whence It Came and Where Is It Going?

Charles J. McMillan

Jan 2023 · Cambridge Scholars Publishing

About this ebook

Around the world, the public faces a stark dilemma: food scarcity and food abundance, with food waste now reaching a trillion dollars a year. Rich countries have easy access to food products and can purchase a 300-gram chocolate bar for $4.00, yet a cocoa farmer in Africa earns less than $1 a day.

This book provides a comprehensive study of the food production system, from farms and farming to the ultimate haute cuisine of the finest restaurants, and corporate business models, from commodity traders, food producers, and food retailers. Problems arise with the rising value of land and corporate strategies to minimize risk and seeking low-cost inputs, including the prices paid to farmers.

For centuries, science and technology have played a role in all aspects of the ‘total system’. Together, they have improved plant yields, soil condition, animal health, and machine mechanization, including plant-based meat and dairy products. A new paradigm, precision agriculture, now beckons.

About the author

Charles J. McMillan is Professor of Strategic Management and International Business at York University, Canada. He is the author of 10 books related to international business and global management, including The Japanese Industrial System, and The Strategic Challenge: From Surfdom to Surfing in the Global Village. He is the author of more than 100 technical articles and papers in such prestigious academic journals as McGill Law Review, Academy of Management Journal, Sociology, Canadian Public Policy, and Ivey Business Journal. Active in Public Affairs, he has served as Senior Policy Advisor to the Prime Minister of Canada and on the Board of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada.