IT SOUNDS like an environmentalist’s dream. Low-tech “sustainable
agriculture”, shunning chemicals in favour of natural pest control and
fertiliser, is pushing up crop yields on poor farms across the world, often by
70 per cent or more. But it’s no dream. That’s the claim being made in the
biggest ever survey of green-minded farming
(see “An ordinary miracle”).
The findings will make
sobering reading for people convinced that only genetically modified crops can
feed the planet’s hungry in the 21st century.
The gains are greatest among poor farmers. This is not surprising. The
high-tech green revolution that has doubled…
