ABSTRACT
When the land is not enough, i.e., when land scarcity becomes a limiting factor for food production, people usually resort to intensifi cation of their land use and opening up new, often unsuitable, land for cultivation.[4,9] Both pathways will most certainly lead to soil degradation, if unsuitable land-use technologies are used. The majority of land users in the developing world do not have adequate access to appropriate land-use technologies and the fi nancial means to invest in their land.[1] The area available for crop production therefore puts a defi nite limit to sustainable food production in many parts of the developing world. Alternative, i.e., nonagricultural means of income generation would enable the people to supplement their food requirements on the market and could relieve immediate pressure on the land. This would save soil and land resources.
