B2(i) - Life Processes 11.

Managing Food Production.

People have used what they know about energy loss from food chains to find the most efficient ways of producing food. However the most efficient isn't always the best. Although it's most often the cheapest.

The Efficiency of Food Production Can Be Improved.

There are two ways to improve the efficiency of food production:

REDUCE THE NUMBER OF STAGES IN THE FOOD CHAIN

1) For a given area of land, you can produce a lot more food (for humans) by growing crops rather than having grazing animals. This is because you are reducing the number of stages in a food chain. Only 10% of what beef cattle eat becomes useful meat for people to eat.

2) However, people do need a varied diet to stay healthy. There's still a huge demand for meat on the market. Also you can't grow crops on some land for example moorland or fellsides. In these places, animals like sheep or deer might be the best way to get food.

RESTRICT THE ENERGY LOST BY FARM ANIMALS

1) In "civilised" countries like the UK, animals like pigs and chickens are often intensively farmed. They are kept close together indoors in small…