Agriculture

The development of agriculture spans thousands of years and has been affected by human cultures, climate variations, and evolving technologies. Despite the industry's evolution over the centuries, all types of farming still rely on methods to maintain environments conducive for raising domestic species. In terms of plants, the land must be sustained with a type of irrigation system; for raising livestock, rangeland must be cultivated to support animal life. Nowadays farm yields have greatly increased due to improvements in breeding, chemicals, and technology. Yet some of these measures can cause damage to the environment and pose health risks to humans.

A modern innovation in the agriculture industry is the Green Revolution, which began in the second half of the 20th century. This development is cited for saving people around the world from starvation through initiatives involving irrigation systems, production of high-yielding crops, and better management strategies.

Today farming professionals face the daunting challenge of keeping current with increasingly rapid changes in equipment technology and agricultural research. For instance, biotechnology is being applied to industrial livestock operations to provide healthier animals and improve breed development, resulting in more meat, eggs, and dairy products to meet consumer demands. Artificial intelligence (AI)—when paired with sensors, cameras, drones, the Internet of Things, and other technology—can be used by farmers and agricultural managers to save time and money. Examples include utilizing AI and other technology to monitor soil moisture levels and weather conditions for outdoor crops; automatically adjust temperature, humidity, and light levels based on real-time data in smart greenhouses; detect leaks in irrigation systems to enhance water efficiency; detect the presence of pests, diseases, or livestock predators in real time; and carry out robotic process automation tasks, such as automatic weeding of cropland.

Responsible for putting healthy food on consumers' tables, the agriculture industry is regulated by strict policies. Farmers must be up to date on all legislation affecting their product and their laborers. For example, at the end of the decade trade-related tensions between the United States and China had caused commodities prices to plummet. Subsequently, in December 2018 President Donald Trump signed a new $867 billion farm bill (the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018) that included billions of dollars in subsidies. In late 2023, President Biden signed the Further Continuing Appropriations and Other Extensions Act, 2024, which extended the 2018 Farm Bill through September 30, 2024. Members of Congress are currently negotiating the components of the next farm bill.

A farmer may work a single tract of land in addition to renting out a number of separate tracts. The farmer may be the sole operator of the establishment or work within a partnership or corporation. The agriculture industry employs a wide-range of workers including farm laborers, veterinarians, scientists, salespeople, and soil managers.

Despite all the advances made in the agriculture field, it still remains a hazardous industry. Fatalities and injuries due to machine operation as well as diseases and birth defects spawned by exposure to pesticides and fertilizers are among the work-related dangers faced by agricultural workers. Farm workers were ranked as the 10th–most dangerous occupation (in terms of fatal work injury rates) in the United States in 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

A hard-hitting recession and severe droughts have plagued the agriculture industry over the past decade. Industry consolidation and the disappearance of smaller farms is expected to continue through the late-2020s, along with the adoption of technologies that boost productivity. Subsequently, the U.S. Department of Labor expects employment of farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers, as well as farmworkers and laborers, to decline between 2022 and 2032. Job opportunities for animal breeders will increase as fast as the average for all careers during this time span, and employment for agricultural equipment operators is expected to grow much faster than the average.