Sustainable Farming Systems for Development

What is Agriculture?

Agriculture is the art and science of cultivating the soil, growing crops and raising livestock. It includes the preparation of plant and animal products for people to use and their distribution to markets. Agriculture provides most of the world’s food and fabrics; cotton, wool, and leather are all agricultural products. Agriculture also provides wood for construction and paper products. 

Agriculture is the science of growing crops and raising animals to meet the food, fiber, fuel, and other needs of humans.
 

These products, as well as the agricultural methods used, may vary from one part of the world to another.

Other definitions related to agriculture CLICK HERE

This definition used here as a compressed answer to the main question what is agriculture. It describes agriculture as both an art and a science (needs skill and founded on scientifically verified facts) and thus includes specialized disciplines; the words “growing” and “raising” are descriptive of enterprise*, activity or practice. It has two main divisions: plant or crop production and animal or livestock production; and it’s ultimate purpose is for food production, other human needs such as clothing, medicines, tools, artistic display and dwelling, or for economic gain or profit.

(Enterprise is a project undertaken or to be undertaken, especially one that is important or difficult or that requires boldness or energy and synonymous with plan, undertaking, or venture).

In relation to crop farming and livestock farming, the term “agriculture” may be defined as: the art and science of growing plants and other crops and the raising of animals for food, other human needs, or economic gain .
This definition used here as a compressed answer to the main question what is agriculture. It describes agriculture as both an art and a science (needs skill and founded on scientifically verified facts) and thus includes specialized disciplines; the words “growing” and “raising” are descriptive of enterprise, activity or practice. It has two main divisions: plant or crop production and animal or livestock production; and it’s ultimate purpose is for food production, other human needs such as clothing, medicines, tools, artistic display and dwelling, or for economic gain or profit.

  Some Definitions of Agriculture

It is admitted that no definition can be exacting for everybody and for all purposes. Nevertheless, I find this elucidation on what is agriculture specially convenient where its coverage is limited to crop production (agronomy and horticulture) and livestock production even knowing that some definitions include fisheries, forestry, and other activities. Further, the science of agriculture is dynamic.

For more details and perspectives, given below are 8 definitions of agriculture from various sources. This list is not exclusive.

1. Agriculture is the systematic raising of useful plants and 

    livestock under the management of man.

2. Agriculture is the growing of both plants and animals for human 

    needs.

3. Agriculture is the deliberate effort to modify a portion of Earth's 

    surface through the cultivation of crops and the raising of 

    livestock for sustenance or economic gain.

The next 6 definitions give more insights on what is agriculture. These are presumably for legal purposes or applied in legal disputes.

4. Agriculture includes farming in all branches and, among other things, includes the cultivation and tillage of soil, dairying, the production, cultivation, growing and harvesting of any agricultural and horticultural commodities, the raising of livestock or poultry, and any practices performed by a farmer on a farm as an incident to or in conjunction with such farming operations, but does not include the manufacturing or processing of sugar, coconuts, abaca, tobacco, pineapple or other farm products.

5. Agriculture, Agricultural Enterprise or Agricultural Activity means the cultivation of the soil, planting of crops, growing of fruit trees, including the harvesting of such farm products, and other farm activities and practices performed by a farmer in conjunction with such farming operations done by persons whether natural or juridical. 

6. “Farming” or “agriculture” shall include farming in all of its branches and the cultivation and tillage of the soil, dairying, the production, cultivation, growing and harvesting of any agricultural, aquacultural, floricultural or horticultural commodities, the growing and harvesting of forest products upon forest land, the raising of livestock including horses, the keeping of horses as a commercial enterprise, the keeping and raising of poultry, swine, cattle and other domesticated animals used for food purposes, bees, fur-bearing animals, and any forestry or lumbering operations, performed by a farmer, who is hereby defined as one engaged in agriculture or farming as herein defined, or on a farm as an incident to or in conjunction with such farming operations, including preparations for market, delivery to storage or to market or to carriers for transportation to market.

More on What is Agriculture: Definition from Court Decisions

7. Agricuture is the science of cultivating the soil, harvesting crops, and raising livestock and also as the science or art of the production of plants and animals useful to man and in varying degrees the preparation of such products for man's use and their disposal.   

all its branches and among other things includes the cultivation and tillage of the soil, dairying, the production, cultivation, growing, and harvesting of any agricultural or horticultural commodities, the raising of livestock or poultry, and any practices performed by a farmer on a farm as an incident to or in conjunction with some farming operations, but does not include the manufacturing or processing of sugar, coconuts, abaca, tobacco, pineapples or other farm products. 

2. So, once more,  what is agriculture?

The first 3 are scientific and practical definitions while numbered 4 to 8 are legal definitions of agriculture. These last 6 give more details on what is agriculture by enumerating the activities covered by the enterprise or practice. That contending parties have found the necessity to elevate to the Court controversies in relation to what is agriculture only underscores the uncertainty some feel for the term. The following conclusions can be made from these definitions and from those of specialized fields under agriculture:

1. Agriculture is an enterprise or business, activity or practice. It is synonymous to farming.

2. The practice of agriculture is based on systematized body of knowledge (science) and requires skill (art).

3. Agriculture often involves the cultivation of the soil to grow plants and the raising of animals for human needs. The words “crops” and “livestock” are also used. However, both words are special or technical terms. “Crops" should clearly mean plants (with exceptions, as in mushroom) which are useful to man  while “livestock” applies to both domesticated animals and poultry. However, cultivation which essentially involves disturbing the soil does not apply to crop production systems using soil-less media, as in hydroponics.

4. Agriculture is practiced for the purpose of producing food and other human needs such as clothing, shelter, medicines, weapons, tools, ornaments, and indefinitely many more. It is likewise practiced as a business for economic gain. The ultimate purpose is essentially important in clarifying what is agriculture.

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