For related articles and more information, please visit OCA’s Resource Center on Farm Issues, and our Genetic Engineering Resource page.

Last year, I had the opportunity to travel to Zambia for a project for Worldwatch. The massive report “State of the World 2011: Innovations that Nourish the Planet,”
released Wednesday, focuses on many projects that were highly effective
in both feeding people and raising incomes in Africa. Much of this work
was chronicled on Nourishing the Planet blog,
as researcher Danielle Nierenberg logged thousands of miles
criss-crossing the continent meeting with farmers, researchers, NGOs, and
government officials. 

It was a refreshing perspective because so much of the discussion
about agriculture in Africa focuses on production. Plant more. Increase
yield. Improve seed technology. But there is really no silver bullet
when it comes to food production and access, and the relentless focus on
technology ends up being lopsided and incomplete — as I saw in Zambia.

The
nation produces more than enough food, much of it by small-scale
farmers without tractors, irrigation, or any form of transportation. But
this excess food ends up rotting in warehouses and causes price crashes
when it hits the market — good for buyers but dismal for small-scale
farmers who depend on these sales for their meagre income.

Even so, some
areas of the country still suffer from malnutrition and shortages. Why?
There are many reasons, inadequate roads and supply networks among
them, since it isn’t always easy to get the food from areas where it is
surplus to areas where it is in short supply. In this reality, high-tech
seeds are the least of the nation’s problems. And yet, on op-ed pages, that often seems to be the focus of discussion.

How come we hardly see op-eds on what paved roads, improved
sanitation, more efficient distribution networks, soil conservation, and a
reduction in food waste might do for world hunger? Fifteen percent of
the grain harvest is wasted in poorer countries, according to a
researcher quoted in this report. Even cutting that in half would
amount to an enormous yield gain. The Worldwatch report attempts to
jump-start this discussion by addressing these issues.