Rice Beyond the "Green Revolution": Seeking Equity, Sustainable Farming and Biodiversity
By the Agriculture and Food Group and the Philippines Desk, Action for World Development
1995. 71 pp.
Reviewed by Jon Lamb
Rice Beyond the "Green Revolution" has been put together as an information source on the impact of the green revolution on developing nations, with a focus on rice production in the Philippines. It assesses the dire consequences of the green revolution upon farming and food production by Filipino farmers — particularly the adverse social, environmental and economic impact.
The green revolution was inspired by the multinationals that control the production of agricultural inputs such as seed, fertiliser and pesticides. Organisations such as the Kellogg Foundation sought to maximise the monopoly they held over these products through the 1960s and 1970s, developing so-called high yield variety (HYV) food crops to meet the rise in global population.
The green revolution became the means by which major agro-chemical firms established a vast worldwide distribution system, particularly in developing nations. Shell, Monsanto, Ciba-Geigy and others have reaped super-profits through their tight control of agricultural products.
The Rockefeller Foundation and the Ford Foundation established the International Rice Research Institute in 1960 in the Philippines with the assistance of the Philippines government and USAID, to develop new strains of HYV rice. The new varieties were used throughout the Philippines, replacing many of the wild and indigenous species traditionally used.
The use of these strains of rice, as described in the information kit, has been disastrous. Increased reliance upon fertilisers and pesticides has further indebted already poverty-stricken farming communities. Their lands have become poisoned and degraded, and farmers have encountered pests and diseases which did not affect varieties grown before. The farmers and their families, too, have suffered long-term health problems from the use of highly toxic chemicals.
The traditional social system of mutual help has been replaced with hired labour, and women have become pushed from the central role they once played in harvest. The Philippines, which was once a major producer of rice in the region, now needs to import rice to meet domestic demand.
The information kit documents projects initiated by farmers and non-government groups to turn this situation around. This includes the establishment of cooperatives in farming communities, along with the adoption of sustainable agriculture techniques. Examples of permaculture projects in other countries are also discussed.
[ Rice Beyond the "Green Revolution" is available from Action for World Development, 8th floor, 8-24 Kippax St., Surry Hills NSW 2010 for $12 (plus $3.50 postage).]