I have friends on both sides of this equation. Person 1: An Iowa corn farmer, who owns several thousand acres of land, and rents it out to farmers who actually till the soil. He spends the majority of his time spying on the farmers in a variety of ways, to ensure they are "doing it right", and getting maximum yields, because he gets a cut of their sale price. He goes out and measures the distance between plants, the composition of the soil, the watering schedule, etc., and if they do anything wrong, they get dinged. It must suck ass to rent land from him. (But he does this micro-management because there are a LOT of ways for his tenants to screw him. And they have. So he has to constantly be on them to ensure they aren't hiding crops, underquoting their total sales, etc.) Person 2: She worked in big construction projects, like skyscrapers. In her spare time, she found a wreck of a house, spent a year fixing it up, sold it for a huge bucket of money. Then she bought a small house with lots of property, quit the construction job, and built herself a little urban farm. In fact, she called it that, too: Urban Sanctuary Farm She has had tremendous success going to local farmers markets, and making her own cosmetic products (essential oils, beard oil, skin care products, honeybee lip balms, etc.) in the winter, and going to all the winter/holiday bazaars and festivals. It is a lot of work, but she loves it. And, with her construction background, she builds all the facilities she needs to run the little farm. But in the end... there simply isn't enough land for everyone to be a farmer. There are too many people on the planet, now, and without industrial farming yields, a billion people would die. So idyllic farming like Person 2 will always be a niche for those who can afford it. Everyone else will eat Person 1's food.
I think it's an interesting prospect that everyone in the world could garden instead of farm. I'd be hard pressed to find a living space in which one couldn't grow a couple potted carrots and herbs. I agree that high-yield farming is impossible for everyone to do, for space constraints and because people don't have enough time or care to make it happen. I've been thinking of making some herbal infused oils and selling them at farmers markets alongside my modest crop of tomatoes and onions. Has anyone here ever tried anything similar?
There isn't physically enough arable land (27 million square miles on Earth) for 7.6 billion people to all grow their own food. Logistically it would be a problem, as well. There isn't enough room for 7.6b people to live near their plot of garden. (Much less issues like sewage, water, etc.) So the only way to feed the world now and into the future, is with industrial farming techniques. Gardening will always be a pastime effort for people fortunate to live in an area with arable land, and a small enough population that they can have a patch of garden. That's just the way it is. (Oh. And the farmer friend of mine has a business doing exactly what you are talking about: herbal infused oils, soaps, and selling them at farmer's markets. She calls that Soapy Business.
Oh, I have no doubt that it is impossible for every individual to grow all their sustenance. You are completely correct. I was referencing something more along the lines of having a small garden box / a few pots to grow herbs and spices in. I feel as if almost everyone has the means to accomplish this eco-friendly task. It couldn't take more than a few minutes per day to do. Ah! Your friend has a hobbyset I'd very much like to reflect. Do you know if farmers markets charge to set up a table?