SPECIAL FEATURE
TECHNOLOGY IN AGRICULTURE
THE FEAR OVER “FRANKENFOOD” As food security becomes more unstable in a world of climate shocks and supply disruptions, new agricultural technologies can help protect the oldest ways of cultivating food. But they are not uncontroversial – and come at a price By Nicholas K. Smith, OPEC Fund
I n the middle of the last century, India was in trouble. Following the end of the British Raj, the newly independent country teetered on the edge of mass famines. There were several reasons for that, but prime among them was financial instability, which included a lack of access to credit for farmers, and low yields due to inefficient farming practices and droughts. A rising population and the nutritional needs that came with it meant that even the slightest unforeseen change had the potential to cause a chain reaction that would cost countless lives.
It wasn’t just India that faced the constant threat of large-scale famine around that time. The agriculture systems of Pakistan, Türkiye and the Philippines, along with many other nations, all were confronted with the very real possibility of falling short on feeding their people. Little of that came to pass. In India, agricultural scientists worked closely with government officials, international organizations and farmers to change the way crops were grown. High-yield wheat seeds were introduced, modern farm machines and fertilizers were purchased,
and irrigation improved. By the late 1960s these new disease-resistant crops, modern farming techniques and flexible government policies helped stave off famine and grow the Indian economy. Better wheat seeds in Pakistan and Türkiye and better rice varieties in the Philippines helped those places increase food security and
usher in the Green Revolution, a global technology transfer that saw the modernization of the agriculture sector expand across the developing world. Unfortunately, the challenges
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