1 Other ways of grouping farms farming on Commercial agriculture: this is farming for a profit. It usually in a large sgale, using few workers but lots of machinery and technology. The produce at market. Commercial farms usually produce one crop, so they are a monoculture. The crops are often called cash crops, eg coffee or flowers. subsistence agriculture: producing crops and rearing animals just for use by the farmer. Little is left over to sell. It is often small scale and generally involves a mixture of crops and animals. Many subsistence farmers aim to be self-sufficient. The farm has little technology or machinery but may be labour intensive, involving lots of manpower. Farming and the environment How has farming changed? Farming has changed over time. These changes have not always benefited the environment. Farming in the past Farming today used smaller fields uses large fields hedgerows have been was labour intensive (lots of workers) removed used fewer artificial chemicals, producing capital intensive, ie uses more machinery more organic product uses more pesticides and fertilizers produces higher yields (increased production )