megafarms
Massive agricultural operations
Megafarms are very large-scale agricultural operations, typically corporate-owned, that produce crops or livestock on an industrial scale.
The term often carries critical connotations, suggesting environmental damage, animal welfare concerns, or the displacement of family farms: Megafarms have transformed the rural landscape.
Also called factory farms when focused on livestock.
Livestock fattening enclosure
- cattleDomesticated bovines kept commercially
- poultryBirds raised for food
- dairyMilk-based foods collectively
- slaughterhouseAnimal killing facility
antibiotics · overcrowding · ventilation · breeding · methane
Self-operating system design
- machineryCollective mechanical equipment
- roboticsAutomaton design field
- conveyorMechanism that transports items
- mass-productionLarge-scale standardized fabrication
efficiency · scale · processing · workforce · standardization · infrastructure · logistics · mechanization
Chemicals for agriculture
- monocroppingCultivating one crop exclusively
- runoffExcess water drainage
- superweedsHerbicide-tolerant wild plants
- homogeneityState of sameness throughout
feedlot
Livestock fattening enclosure
- cattleDomesticated bovines kept commercially
- poultryBirds raised for food
- dairyMilk-based foods collectively
slaughterhouse · antibiotics · overcrowding · ventilation · breeding · methane
automation
Self-operating system design
- machineryCollective mechanical equipment
- roboticsAutomaton design field
- conveyorMechanism that transports items
mass-production · efficiency · scale · processing · workforce · standardization · infrastructure · logistics · mechanization · consolidation
agrochemicals
Chemicals for agriculture
- monocroppingCultivating one crop exclusively
- runoffExcess water drainage
- superweedsHerbicide-tolerant wild plants
acreage
Amount of land owned
hectares · bulk · wholesale · subsidies · land-grab · territorial · vast · massive · large-scale
soybeans
Protein-rich Asian legume
canola · sugarcane · palm-oil · rice · sunflower · alfalfa · sorghum · barley · harvest · yield
megafarmssmallholdings
Limited-acreage agricultural plots
small farms · family farms · market gardens · subsistence farms · homesteads
megafarmsorganic farms
Pesticide-free cultivation operations
sustainable farms · traditional agriculture · natural farming · traditional farms