Change direction: Farm sustainably
By Hans Herren, 1995 World Food Prize Laureate
Originally Published by The Des Moines Register, July 13, 2008
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Herren |
In all the analysis by "experts" of various backgrounds and interests following the explosion of food prices in recent months, no new thinking is emerging to solve old problems.
Merely rehashing ideas long proven to be politically expedient, environmentally and socially unsound or scientifically questionable will do little to change the situation of the poor, hungry and malnourished - or of the Earth, which is being mined and poisoned in the process of producing today's food, feed, fiber and biofuels.
Fortunately, there is good news coming from 400 specialists from a broad range of agricultural disciplines. On April 15, while news reports shook the quiet around food and agriculture, the International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology for Development presented the results of four years of thorough work by representatives of 61 countries. (Herren co-chaired the assessment.)
This assessment was spearheaded by a number of international organizations, including the World Bank, UNESCO, the World Heath Organization and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization and was funded by countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Leadership included both civil-society and private-sector organizations.
The assessment analyzed how agricultural knowledge, science and technology have shaped agriculture over the past 50 years and outlined what may be needed in the next 50 years. Farmers, civil-society groups, scientists, policymakers and representatives of the private sector from around the world identified major challenges needing solution - hunger and poverty, livelihoods in rural areas, poor nutrition and health, inequity and environmental decline. The assessment process also kept in mind the constraints of a growing population, land degradation, climate change and increasing disparity between the haves and have-nots.
We will continue to face these issues unless we drastically change the way agriculture is done today. Business as usual is not an option.
Agriculture is a complex and risky business for all farmers. There is no one-size-fits-all solution, and even less so in the present food-price crisis. Solutions are, like agriculture itself, very much localized and depend on ecological and cultural conditions.
Farmers' knowledge was a very important part of the International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology for Development. Knowledge has always been important in agriculture and needs to be part of the future. New science builds on that experience, and new technologies are developed. There are many lessons to be learned from the past.
The assessment's strongest message is that the future of agriculture lies in developing new approaches to increase productivity sustainably. We must take into account and promote the many aspects of agriculture in terms of its ecosystem, social and economic functions.
We need to go back to the future by investing in research and developing capacity in soil sciences, soil biology and nutrient cycling. We should promote crop and animal diversity to improve resilience and adaptation in the face of climate change. We must reduce fossil-energy consumption in excessive tillage, synthetic nitrogen fertilizer use, and pesticide and herbicide application, to cut costs as well as agriculture's carbon footprint.
Unless agriculture is done with sustainability in mind, not only will food prices increase, but also water scarcity, land degradation, erosion of biodiversity, hunger, poverty and inequity. The challenges ahead must not be underestimated nor left to the flawed quick fixes that failed in the past and that some are touting again.
Time is running out on us, and we must change direction. The place we are starting now is not the place we want our children to be.
