| Term | Definition |
| 3rd Agricultural Revolution | Currently in progress, the Third Agricultural Revolution has as its principal orientation the development of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO's) |
| Green Revolution | Rapid diffusion of new agricultural technology, especially new high-yield seeds and fertilizers. |
| developing world | nations working toward development in Africa, Asia, and Latin America |
| high-yield seeds | seeds that have been engineered to be stronger and more productive. They will produce more crops peer seed, need less water, and can survive in warmer climates |
| mechanized farming | Farming with machines, is easy on the large expanses of flat land. |
| subsistence farming | the production of food primarily for consumption by the farmer's family |
| commercial agriculture | Agriculture undertaken primarily to generate products for sale off the farm. |
| monocropping | An agricultural method that utilizes large plantings of a single species or variety |
| monoculture | farming strategy in which large fields are planted with a single crop, year after year |
| bid-rent theory | different land users are prepared to pay different amounts, the bid rents, for locations at various distances from the city center. |
| Agribusiness | Commercial agriculture characterized by integration of different steps in the food-processing industry, usually through ownership by large corporations. |
| commodity chain | series of links connecting the many places of production and distribution and resulting in a commodity that is then exchanged on the world market |
| economies of scale | factors that cause a producer's average cost per unit to fall as output rises |
| agricultural sector | that part of a country's economy that is involved in the production of farm products |
| Von Thunen Model | An agricultural model that spatially describes agricultural activity in terms of rent. Activities that require intensive cultivation and cannot be transported over great distances pay higher rent to be close to the market. Conversely, activities that are more extensive , with goods that are easy to transport, are located farther from the market where rent is less. |
| specialty farming | Farming that grows crops to provide small upscale niche markets with fresh produce |
