In Africa, Organic Farming Is Not the Answer

Robert Paarlberg, an expert on agricultural policy, argues that the western world’s current focus on “organic, local, and slow” farming shouldn’t be extended to the developing world. “Poverty — caused by the low income productivity of farmers’ labor — is the primary source of hunger in Africa, and the problem is only getting worse,” he writes. Paarlberg explains the drawbacks of organic farming and calls for increased spending on agricultural technologies like modern seeds and better fertilizer. In his view, it’s a sound investment: “The?World Bank has documented average rates of return on investments in agricultural research in Africa of 35 percent a year, accompanied by significant reductions in poverty.”[%comments]