#BorlaugBlog
For 30 years, the World Food Prize has worked to build on the legacy of Dr. Norman Borlaug, the man who saved a billion lives, by recognizing the achievements of individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world. Our Laureates, our close partners, and our staff work tirelessly to alleviate hunger through innovative approaches, and we hope to share their expertise, research, and personal stories on The Borlaug Blog.
In the Borlaug Blog, we will occasionally post a blog featuring stories, research, and expert opinion from our Laureates, partners, youth representatives and staff. It is our hope that this blog series will create a conversation between farmers, NGOs, CEOs and people across the globe.
For the Good of Africa, and the World
By Jennifer Blanke posted on
07/01/2019
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I was in the House Chamber of the Iowa State Capitol when African Development Bank President Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina was named the 46th World Food Prize Laureate in 2017.
Seeing the President receive the prize created by Dr. Norman Borlaug in 1986 – the same year that Dr. Borlaug first...
Making a Difference One Step at a Time
By Geoff Andersen posted on
06/24/2019
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It’s a walk I’ve never forgotten. Its length was short, but the impact was immense.
I was in rural central Kenya, and had just finished touring a small maize and livestock farm with a middle-aged farmer I had come to know. Before I could leave he stopped me, being sure to...
A Vegetable Revolution
By Simon Groot posted on
06/17/2019
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When I first visited Southeast Asia many years ago, it pained me to see so many small farmers struggling to make a living. Commercial vegetable breeding was all but unknown in the tropics, and many farmers were having a hard time growing a good crop with the low-quality, poorly adapted...
The Founder of a Family Business Dedicated to Vegetable Seeds for the Tropics Wins the 2019 World Food Prize
By Louise O. Fresco posted on
06/10/2019
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Today, the World Food Prize Foundation announced Simon N. Groot from the Netherlands as the recipient of the 2019 World Food Prize, for his dedication to bringing good quality vegetable seeds to smallholder farmers in tropical countries and making a significant contribution to both economic and dietary improvement.
Inspired by...
Improving the Health of Our Planet One Field at a Time
By Karsten Temme posted on
06/03/2019
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When Dr. Borlaug arrived in Mexico in 1944, wheat crops were being decimated by stem rust. The country imported much of the grain required to feed its hungry population. It was a problem nations across the globe were encountering: advances in medicine and technology meant their citizens were living longer,...
Feeding India's Future
By Marshall Bouton posted on
05/27/2019
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As Prime Minister Narendra Modi readies for a second term in office, one of his greatest challenges will be India’s persistent agrarian crisis. Five decades after the launch of Dr. Norman E. Borlaug’s Green Revolution, India has achieved national self-reliance in food grain production but failed to make farm livelihoods...
Norm Borlaug and The World Food Prize From My Foxhole
By Lt. Gen. William E. (Kip) Ward posted on
05/20/2019
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Several months ago, as a member of the United States Global Leadership Coalition’s National Security Advisory Council, I had the privilege of participating on a panel during the Borlaug Dialogue and attending the 2018 World Food Prize Laureate Award Ceremony and dinner in Des Moines, Iowa. To have been a...
Why Social Studies Matters in the Legacy of Dr. Borlaug
By Stefanie Wager posted on
05/13/2019
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I never had the opportunity to meet Dr. Borlaug, but his story is one for the ages. I mean, how many of us will ever be able to say that we helped save over a billion people? I don’t know when he first showed an interest in science and agriculture,...
Borlaug’s Vision and Impact
By Dr. Marty Matlock posted on
05/06/2019
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In order to know where we are going, we must know where we came from and how we got where we are.
Dr. Norman Borlaug said in accepting the Nobel Peace Prize, “There can be no permanent progress in the battle against hunger until the agencies that fight for increased...
The Father of the Green Revolution—Agriculturalist, Scientist, and Communicator
By Dan Gogerty posted on
04/29/2019
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Norman Borlaug is known as “the man who fed the world,” but he also was the acclaimed scientist who never forgot his roots. From his farm boy days in Iowa to his influential work with the World Food Prize and the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology, Borlaug had his...