Africa must embrace crop protection technology
Posted on 25. Jan, 2010 by admin in News-Food
DuPont, the global leaders of market-driven science, says that farmers and governments in sub-Saharan Africa urgently need to embrace the scientific developments made in enhancing crop yields and protection, if it is to avert a growing food shortage crisis.
According to a recent report prepared by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), south Asia and sub-Saharan Africa is most vulnerable to the effects of global warming and will be hit hardest by failing crop yields. The report further states that children of 2050 will have significantly fewer calories to eat than those in 2000; and decades of progress in reducing child malnutrition would be wiped out.
Some regions of the world are already showing signs of vulnerability because of changing rainfall patterns and drought, linked to climate change. In September 2009, Oxfam launched a $152m appeal on behalf of 23 million people hit by a severe drought and spiralling food prices in Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia and Uganda. The charity called it the worst humanitarian crisis in Africa for a decade, and said many people in the region were suffering from malnutrition.
According to Carlman Moyo, Regional Director for the Sub-Saharan Africa region of DuPont, there have been tremendous breakthroughs over the last few years in improving crop yields. However, these new technologies are often slow to be implemented by farmers in the region. Studies show that this is mostly as a result of lack of credit, limited access to information and insufficient incentives associated with farm tenure arrangements. As a result, agricultural productivity growth in sub-Sahara Africa lags behind that of other regions in the world; and is well below that required to achieve food security and poverty goals.
Moyo says that DuPont has been involved in some notable successes with local farmers, with regards to the adoption of new technologies. In Ethiopia, for example, small-scale local farmers have increased their yield by over 300% (from 500kg/ha to over 2000kg/ha), since the implementation of new agricultural technologies in 1996, where open pollination seeds were converted to Pioneer hybrid seeds. “This shows what can be done when governments and players in the agriscience industry work closely with the local farming community.”
“The role of the Government is often underestimated. By expediting the registration of new agricultural technologies, the farming community will have earlier access to safer and more advanced products. This, coupled with training programmes aimed at educating farmers in the application of the new technologies can make a significant impact on improving the growing food crisis in the region.”
Moyo says that DuPont has developed an in-depth understanding of the current and future needs of commercial and small scale farmers. This, combined with the Company’s ability to deliver customised solutions to crop markets throughout Sub-Saharan Africa, places it in the unique position to make a real difference.
DuPont recently received three prestigious global Agrow Awards, in recognition of their innovation and excellence in the development of agricultural products. The company was congratulated on its ability to increase food production and the role it plays in reducing the environmental impact, through its technologies.
In the category ‘Most Innovative Chemistry’, DuPont’s insect control – Cyazypyr™, received an award for to its ability to control destructive pests, while having a minimal known impact on beneficial insects and the environment. DuPont’s Homogenous Granule Blend Technology, which is tailored to the rapidly changing weed control needs, received an award for being the ‘Best Off-Patent Pesticide Strategy’. And, in the category ‘Best Innovation in Non-Crop’, DuPont received an award for Acelepryn®, an insecticide for the turf and ornamental market that balances product efficacy with reduced environmental impact.