ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the agricultural innovations and structural changes that resulted from the industrialization process and how they led to specialization and monoculture farming practices. Industrialization, which transformed farming globally by introducing scientific and technological innovations and mechanization, resulted in agricultural specialization, drastically transforming farm structures and consolidating global food production and supply chains. Specialization, the production of one specific product, takes advantage of economies of scale and leads to increased efficiency or reduced costs of production. One component of globalization is the process of expanding interdependence among countries through increased integration of product and resource markets. A multinational corporation (MNC) is usually incorporated in one country, the home country, and produces or sells goods or services in at least one additional country. Agricultural and food-related policy is enacted through legislative processes in which laws are enacted for programs affecting agriculture products, conservation of natural resources, directing food and nutrition programs, and supporting economic development and health in rural communities.
