History 2158A/B Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: International Rice Research Institute, The Population Bomb, Rockefeller Foundation
7 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
The Green Revolution
●The Population Bomb
(1968) By Dr. Paul R. Ehrlich
○“The battle to feed all of humanity is over. In the 1970s hundreds of millions of people will starve to death in
spite of any crash programs embarked upon now. At this late date nothing can prevent a substantial increase
in the world death rate…”
●Famine 1975! America’s Decision: WHo Will Survive
○Books wrong about upcoming famines because of the green revolution
Beginnings
●Funding all came from U.S., Rockefeller Foundation
●International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (1963)
○Spanish acronym – CIMMYT
●Norman Borlaug (1914-2009)
○Father of the Green Revolution
○Grew up in depression-era Iowa
○Additional crops in Iowa - farming was transformed
Gathering Momentum
●Dwarf Wheat
○Shrinking traditional wheat to make a hardier version more likely to survive and producing more kernels
●International Rice Research Institute (1963)
○Did the same thing with rice plants
●Travelled to India with their idea, allowing them to produce enough food to feed themselves with growing population
○Since this time, India and Pakistan’s food production has grown faster than the population has
●Tried it with corn too
Rising Tides
●Increased production was done without increasing the amount of land
Problems
●Green Revolution substituted capital inputs for land and labour
○Fertilizers, seeds, & pesticides instead of more land and labour
●Assumed link between food and national security
Environmental Impact
●High Yielding Varieties dependent upon: Fertilizers, Pesticides and Irrigation
●Amount of farmland under irrigation is much higher
●Increased pollution of waterways and soil
●Fear of agricultural monocultures
Green Revolution and Hunger
●Green Revolution didn’t end hunger in places like Asia
○Dietary diversity decreased
●Caloric intake (up) vs dietary diversity (down)
●Economic improvement in India but malnutrition persists
The Green Revolution and Income Inequality in Latin America and Asia
●Large landowners dominate(d) LA
Document Summary
The population bomb (1968) by dr. paul r. ehrlich. The battle to feed all of humanity is over. In the 1970s hundreds of millions of people will starve to death in spite of any crash programs embarked upon now. At this late date nothing can prevent a substantial increase in the world death rate . Books wrong about upcoming famines because of the green revolution. Additional crops in iowa - farming was transformed. Shrinking traditional wheat to make a hardier version more likely to survive and producing more kernels. Did the same thing with rice plants. Travelled to india with their idea, allowing them to produce enough food to feed themselves with growing population. Since this time, india and pakistan"s food production has grown faster than the population has. Increased production was done without increasing the amount of land. Green revolution substituted capital inputs for land and labour. Fertilizers, seeds, & pesticides instead of more land and labour.
