1.3.1.3 Limitations of the Green Revolution
According to Pingali (2012) the Green Revolution contributed to widespread
poverty reduction, averted hunger for millions of people, and avoided the conversion of thousands of hectares of land into agricultural cultivation. At the same
time, the Green Revolution also spurred its share of unintended negative consequences, often not because of the technology itself but rather because of the
policies that were used to promote rapid intensification of agricultural systems and
increase food supplies. Some areas were left behind, and even where it successfully increased agricultural productivity, the Green Revolution was not always the
panacea for solving the myriad of poverty, food security, and nutrition problems
facing poor societies. The slowdown in yield growth that has been observed since
the mid-1980s can be attributed, in part, to the above degradation of the agricultural resource base. These environmental costs are widely recognized as a potential
threat to the long-term sustainability and replication of the Green Revolution
success.
1.3.2 Biotechnology
Biotechnology is a complement, not a substitute, in many areas of conventional
agricultural research. It offers a variety of tools to improve our understanding and
management of genetic resources for food and agriculture. These instruments are
already contributing to the improvement and conservation programs and facilitating the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases of plants and animals
(FAO 2002).
1.3.2.1 Strategies to Increase Food Production
The agricultural solutions based in biotechnology may consist of new seeds or new
breeds of cattle, which continue the tradition of selecting and improving crops and
livestock produced over several centuries. However, the difference is that the new
genetic technology can identify the desirable characteristics more quickly and
accurately than conventional breeding practices of plants and animals.
According to Persley and Doyle (1999) modern biotechnology, composed of
genomic, bioinformatic, molecular genetic improvement molecular diagnostic, and
vaccination technology, will not solve all problems of food insecurity and poverty,
unless it is governed by a set of policies directed to: (1) greater public investment
in research and development, (2) standardize the regulation that informs the public
and protects from any risk arising from the release of genetically modified
organisms, (3) management of intellectual property to encourage greater investment in the private sector, and (4) the regulation of private sector seed production
and agricultural research to protect the interests of small farmers and poor
1 Strategies for Sustainable Plant Food Production
7
According to Pingali (2012) the Green Revolution contributed to widespread
poverty reduction, averted hunger for millions of people, and avoided the conversion of thousands of hectares of land into agricultural cultivation. At the same
time, the Green Revolution also spurred its share of unintended negative consequences, often not because of the technology itself but rather because of the
policies that were used to promote rapid intensification of agricultural systems and
increase food supplies. Some areas were left behind, and even where it successfully increased agricultural productivity, the Green Revolution was not always the
panacea for solving the myriad of poverty, food security, and nutrition problems
facing poor societies. The slowdown in yield growth that has been observed since
the mid-1980s can be attributed, in part, to the above degradation of the agricultural resource base. These environmental costs are widely recognized as a potential
threat to the long-term sustainability and replication of the Green Revolution
success.
1.3.2 Biotechnology
Biotechnology is a complement, not a substitute, in many areas of conventional
agricultural research. It offers a variety of tools to improve our understanding and
management of genetic resources for food and agriculture. These instruments are
already contributing to the improvement and conservation programs and facilitating the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases of plants and animals
(FAO 2002).
1.3.2.1 Strategies to Increase Food Production
The agricultural solutions based in biotechnology may consist of new seeds or new
breeds of cattle, which continue the tradition of selecting and improving crops and
livestock produced over several centuries. However, the difference is that the new
genetic technology can identify the desirable characteristics more quickly and
accurately than conventional breeding practices of plants and animals.
According to Persley and Doyle (1999) modern biotechnology, composed of
genomic, bioinformatic, molecular genetic improvement molecular diagnostic, and
vaccination technology, will not solve all problems of food insecurity and poverty,
unless it is governed by a set of policies directed to: (1) greater public investment
in research and development, (2) standardize the regulation that informs the public
and protects from any risk arising from the release of genetically modified
organisms, (3) management of intellectual property to encourage greater investment in the private sector, and (4) the regulation of private sector seed production
and agricultural research to protect the interests of small farmers and poor
1 Strategies for Sustainable Plant Food Production
7