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We must overhaul farming practices to feed world's growing population



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Published Date: 20 August 2008
Dan Buglass (Farming, 18 August) states that "if the world went totally organic, there would be even more hungry people around". He gives no evidence for this opinion, and my guess is that he'd struggle to do so.
Conversely, there's increasing evidence to the contrary – such as the recent report, International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development, from an international group of more than 400 scientists, published by the...



The full article contains 591 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
Page 1 of 1

  • Last Updated: 20 August 2008 2:13 AM
  • Source: The Scotsman
  • Location: Edinburgh
  • Related Topics: Dan Buglass
 
1

truthsleuth,

20/08/2008 00:25:08
The best way of feeding the worlds millions is to:
1. Stop grants to African and Asian nations they only spend them on arms and corruption.

2. Divert the funds saved 50% to the Borders agency to stop illegal immigration

3. 50% to birth control in these countries.

It is futile spending enormous sums on improving infant survival rates or famine when the population of these countries is already to high for available food resources.

Within a generation these nations will become self sustaining and of course will indirectly contribute to the reduction in future CO2 production.
2

James F,

East Ayr 20/08/2008 02:15:19
Iain McLean is mistaken. There is no amino acid found in animal protein which is not found in plant protein. There are only 20 amino acids and they can all be sourced from plants such as soya and quinoa or from judicious use of amino-acid complementarity (eg using lentils and rice together).

However even if he mistakenly assumes that children need certain magic meat-only amino acids, he infers that adults do not need meat for their protein. One assumes, therefore, that Mr Maclean is himself a vegetarian or vegan since he acknowledges that he has no physiolpgical need for meat and therefore no excuse to kill animals to supply himself with such amino acids. Or is he a hypocrite?

Maybe he'll let us know.
3

James F,

East Ayr 20/08/2008 02:21:54
On the topic of amino acid complementarity Mike Lean (Professor of Human Nutrition at Glasgow University) put it this way (private correspondence).

"Yes it is possible to construct diets with perfect balances of aminoacids by combining cereal sources (the staple) with legumes (to supply sulphur-containing aminoacids which are lacking in cereals). Millions of people do that all round the world. Beans on toast to you, rice and lentils elsewhere."
4

Sean K,

Elgin 20/08/2008 03:44:39
As one who has worked many years in Africa and Asia on sustainable food production and food security for the poor, I share the concerns about GM crops which have more to do with corporate business control of global agriculture than feeding the poor.
Among the many current threats to increased and sustained food production are the poisoning of soil and water by over-application of pesticides and chemicals. Peasant farmers are pressured into buying these and conned by the short-term apparent results.
GM crops lack the resistance to disease and pests that has been built up in traditional strains of rice and other cereals over centuries. So they require the additional help of chemical pesticides.
There are of course other threats such as the grabbing of land and water from rural farmers by big business. Long term answers to food production need to be based on social justice and respect for nature.
5

Unimpressed one,

20/08/2008 07:43:39
The soil Association - a bunch of eco-luddites who feel it is there right to trash GM field trials in order to protect their interests - getting the gullible to pay over the odds for their fruit and veg. GM is coming and there is precious little this lot or Prince Charles can do about it.
6

bill-alba,

fife 20/08/2008 10:15:24
#5 we already have mountains of excess food in the west..maybe we could give that to the hungry instead of producing an even greater mountain using GM crops...I think you'll find its the lack of backbone of governments that is the cause of hunger so go back and try and defend your pro gm crops nonsense.
7

Neil,

Glasgow 20/08/2008 11:35:46
The Soil Association is nothing but lobbyist organisation to try & extort more money for subsidies from us for farmers.

All 3 points their director makes are palpable lies.

1) "Organio" food, which is what people ate in the Middle Ages regularly failed to feed even the 5 million people ling here then. To say that it could feed the world now is a deliberate lie.

2) "because organic farming uses the sun's energy and clover to fix nitrogen in the soil, not oil and gas" implies that this is a unique feature of organic plants. In fact this is a lie. Indeed it is an almost unique feature of clover plants (though experiments are ongiong in GM other plants to adopt this feature.

3) There is no doubt whatsoever that GM has the potential to greatly increase yield & reduce prices. Indeed were that not so there would be no neccessity for Mr Raven to get paid to lobby & lie to get government to prevent it.

Like most eco-fascists the Soil Association is willing to lie to get the law to prevent us exercising freedom of choice. Like far to many of them they are also partly funded by government to lie to us - government bureaucrats seem to have no objection to being told there aren't enough government regulations 7 bureaucrats.

This country need more freedom & fewer people being employed, from the government purse, to write letters in our press lying to erode our freedom more.
8

Guthrie,

Edinburgh 20/08/2008 12:13:36
Neil, in the good old days they had different crop varieties, poorer less efficient farming practises, and were even more susceptible to the weather. Comparing the medieval period with now is just stupid.
Your point number 2 is not a point at all, because the implication is in your mind only.
POint 3- there is no doubt in your mind, in fact in real life yield increases have not appeared, or only appeared after expensive application of modern fertilisers and suchlike. Basically, for much of the planet, GM crops are expensive and unnecessary.

Moreover, widespread introduction of GM crops removes my freedom of choice to not buy GM crops. Of course you'll ignore this point.
9

Andra, Dundee,

20/08/2008 13:10:00
#7 Neil,
I'm afraid your points - particularly point 2 - show a fair bit of ignorance of the subject. I've never heard anyone claim that organic plants fix nitrogen. Nitrogen is only fixed by clover and other legumes. Organic farmers grow these legumes, while non-organic farmers make hardly any use of legumes and instead use Nitrogen that is usually made from oil/gas.
10

Neil,

Glasgow 20/08/2008 13:19:55
" I've never heard anyone claim that organic plants fix nitrogen."

Precisely my point. That is what the Soil Ass boss implied & it is untrue.

Guthrie if GM food is "expensive & unnecessary" then none of the millions of acres cureently devoted to it will be devoted to it & the supermarkets which try to sell expensive GM foods instead of cheap organic stuff will find no market. In which case those paying the Soil Ass need not bother.

Of you have ever been in a supermarket you will have found that "organic" food is not cheaper nor those few bits of GM we are permitted more expensive. QED.
11

Slioch,

Scottish Highlands 20/08/2008 14:46:39
The following is taken from a post by Meredith Niles, Cool Foods Campaign Coordinator, The Centre for Food Safety:

"Farmer suicide rates and increasing debt problems in India have been increasing significantly in the past 10 years. While the issue may not be completely dealing with GMO crops, it is the result of debt that farmers accrued while trying to pay for agricultural inputs including fertilizers and pesticides sold to them by large agribusiness corporations. Research from Washington University published in Anthropology News gives an interesting overview of these issues, specifically corporate control. Considering that GMO seeds are yet another agricultural input that farmers must pay for year after year, rather than saving their seeds, GMO crops may be contributing to this problem significantly. This ... is affecting untold numbers of rural farmers throughout India. I would encourage you to watch the PBS Documentary Series "Seeds of Suicide" or a new French documentary, "The World According to Monsanto" for additional information."

www.coolfoodscampaign.org www.centerforfoodsafety.org

It appears in:

http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/8/14/135938/816?source=weekly

which is a reasoned and reasonable antidote to the rabid, ugly and confused views of Neil seen above.

12

Gdgy,

dundy 20/08/2008 15:04:51
Let's not forget that the Soil Association have a great interest in organic food - they own the sole rights to allow a UK grower to declare that his food is organic....That alone makes their opinion rather tainted....
Consider also that organic food is always more expensive than Non-organic food. This declaration is worth a lot of money and the soil association don't sell their declaration cheaply
However the thing that always gets my goat is that organic food is always portrayed as being somehow better and more nutritious....the balance of evidence suggests that that is not true BUT it has now become one of those "facts" that are being swallowed by a raneg of the chattering decision-mkaing classes.....
13

Andra, Dundee,

20/08/2008 15:50:48
#10 Neil
Where did the SA man make that implication?

#12 Gdgy
There are actually half a dozen or more organic certifiers - of which the Soil Association is only one.

14

Andra, Dundee,

20/08/2008 15:56:10
Organic foods is a bit more expensive but you get all of the advantages...
(1) Excellent care of the environment
(2) Excellent animal welfare
(3) Guaranteed GM free
(4) Virtually no use of artificial chemicals
(5) More opportunity to buy local
(6) No use of artificial fertiliser (the main component to agricultures CO2 footprint

And there are others.

 

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