The unbridled pursuit of economic growth through industrialization forces rural dwellers to
overexploit natural resources as a means of paying for the basic requisites, once freely
available in the community. The cost of this overexploitation of the land is the degraded
capacity to provide essential natural services, namely healthy food and clean water to both
rural and urban communities. In effect, rural areas serve as a ‘supermarket’ which provides
nourishment for the inhabitants of the city and fuels industry. Furthermore, boosting food
production through commercially intensive agriculture, aquaculture and livestock rearing
creates a loss of community identity, culture and traditional livelihoods. The mending of this
rural-urban divide requires holistic methodologies based in eco-agriculture, protecting
biodiversity and the development of integrated bioregions. This paper critically examines the
impacts of modern food production on ecosystem services and quality of life in rural and
urban areas.