Agriculture as a system

Agriculture as a system

Agricultural Systems is an integrative discipline that tries to combine our understanding of the parts of the farm into a larger understanding of how the parts interact with each other and the wider worlds of nature and economics. Ag systems research and teaching has a long history at UNE, with the visionary, pioneering work by Prof Bill McClymont laying the ground work for our modern understanding of “agro-ecosystems”.Agricultural enterprises-crop or livestock-deal with such concepts as labor supply, marketing, finances, natural resources, genetic stock, nutrition, equipment, and hazards. While it is possible to effectively manipulate each mechanism of successful farming individually, better results can often be obtained by treating the farming operation as a system. The interactions, then, among system components may become more important than how each component functions by itself. Treating production operations holistically offers greater management flexibility, provides for more environmentally and economically sound practices, and creates safer and healthier conditions for workers and for farm animals. NIFA staff provides leadership to land-grant university partners and other grantees as they conduct research, education, and extension activities in programs related directly and indirectly to agricultural systems.