Agricultural Crisis in America: A Reference Handbook

by Dana L. Hoag

Overview

Providing a thorough summary of the challenges facing our agricultural industry, this book investigates problems and considers solutions, examining issues relevant to the viability of America's farms.

In Agricultural Crisis in America, topics of importance to the vitality of America's farms are thoroughly examined such as the pollution of groundwater, the loss of quality farmland to urban development, food safety, wildlife impact, animal welfare, economic difficulties facing farmers today, government policy, and much more.

A wealth of tables, graphs, and other statistical information supports the text, so readers may objectively evaluate the situation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780874367379
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	01/01/2000
Series:	Contemporary World Issues
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	275
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.81(d)

About the Author

Dana Hoag is professor of agricultural and resource economics at Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO.

Editorial Reviews

Agricultural Crisis in America offers a clear, balanced, up to date introduction to complex farm, food, technology, and environmental issues. An excellent starting point for students, researchers, and general readers, this is recommended for public, high school, and college libraries.” —Library Jourbanal

“Well-suited for general undergraduate and reference collections, as well as comprehensive agriculture and rural sociology collections. All levels.” —Choice

“In addition to clear and readable historical background information, there is hard-to-find statistical information provided in tables and graphs for easy reading and use. This handbook is recommended for high school, public, and undergraduate academic library collections.” —American Reference Books Annual

From the Publisher

A number of books have been written in the 1990s about the various economic and social problems of modern-day farming, among them Victor D. Hanson's Fields Without Dreams (LJ 1/96) and John Hildebrand's Mapping the Farm (LJ 6/1/95). Agricultural Crisis in America, by contrast, looks at agriculture in the broadest possible way. Hoag (agricultural and resource economics, Colorado State Univ., Fort Collins) identifies seven crises: farm survivability, modernization, feeding the world, safe food and water, environmental issues, urbanization, and rural-urban conflicts. Whether each of these is truly a crisis depends on one's definition of the word, but these seven broad areas do provide a coherent organization for the book. A discussion of these crises in the first chapter is supported by a later chapter of statistics and case studies for each crisis. Other chapters include biographical sketches of historical and modern figures in agriculture, a chronology of agricultural events from this country's beginnings to the present, a directory of organizations, and annotated lists of print and Internet resources. There is also a useful glossary. Agricultural Crisis in America offers a clear, balanced, up-to-date introduction to complex farm, food, technology, and environmental issues. An excellent starting point for students, researchers, and general readers, this is recommended for public, high school, and college libraries.--William H. Wiese, Iowa State Univ. Lib., Ames Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Provides a comprehensive, readable summary of challenges facing the agricultural industry, with a thoughtful overview of the topic, a chronology tracing significant events, biographical sketches of relevant individuals, and annotated lists of print and online sources. Topics examined include groundwater pollution, urban development, food safety, wildlife impact, and economic difficulties. A key feature is a chapter that presents a wealth of tables, graphs, and other statistical information. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews