Just A Little Bit of Water

The world is an enormous place. Over 7 billion people call this earth home. While 7 billion seems like an unfathomable amount of people, here's something to fathom: it's going to continue to increase. Now, you're probably thinking, well what do the amount of people in the world have to do with agriculture? What does it have to do with me?

So think of something that you do three times a day. I'll give you a hint, your stomach acts as an alarm clock to remind you to do this every day.

I'm talking about eating.

Think of your favorite three meals. Now think of your favorite snacks. So you've got this mental list of what you like to eat every day. Take that list and multiply it by 7 billion.

The world has to eat, too, you know.

If you can't imagine the number of people in the world, then the amount of food the world consumes as a whole is something that most people can't wrap their minds around.

As of today, August 28th, 2015, the world has consumed over 207 million tons of meat just this year. (www.theworldcounts.com) That number is constantly rising. Meat is just one part of a diet, too. Think about wheat and its by-products like flour. Then lend a thought to corn and everything that is made from it. Food is one of the biggest parts of our lives, and it comes straight from the things that agriculture produces.

Let's say you are a native to Topeka, Kansas. If you drive in any direction outside of the city, the answer to my question becomes clear. Those food products come from the fields and farming operations that you would see on your drive outside the capitol city.

For now, that is just a little bit of water to keep the seed of knowledge inside your mind wanting to grow. The next post to come will shed some sunlight on the role that Kansas plays in the big picture. In the meantime, think a little bit next time you sit down to eat about where your food came from.