NTP: What kinds of policy changes would you like to see implemented immediately to address the needs of small scale farmers?
NU: This is too broad a question for a quick answer. To support SRI extension, perhaps the first thing would be to improve the physical infrastructure and (especially) the management of irrigation systems so that more water can be provided reliably to farmers wanting to get more yield with less water. Also, because SRI paddy (unmilled) rice gives about 15 percent more milled rice per bag or per bushel, because there is less chaff (fewer unfilled grains) and less breakage of grains during milling, millers should pay 10 percent more per bag or per bushel for SRI paddy, to give the benefit of the higher quality rice to its producers (rather than pocket this windfall themselves). That would be a big boost to getting farmers to shift their production methods since this is on top of a higher paddy yield.
NTP: Can you discuss the relationship between consumers in the United States and small scale farmers in Africa?
NU: I think that fair trade should be promoted more widely, and subsidies to U.S. farmers that tilt the playing field against African small-scale farmers should be revised and probably ended. If the U.S. wants to promote free trade, it should itself be practicing fair trade, i.e. unsubsidized production.
NTP: Why should food consumers in the United States care about the state of agriculture in other countries?
NU: In the case of SRI, reduced requirements for water (more crop per drop) do not directly affect U.S. consumers, but the whole world benefits from movement toward more water-economizing food production. In the case of SRI, the reduced requirements for water (more crop per drop) do not directly affect U.S. consumers, but the whole world benefits from movement toward more water-economizing food production. Also from less use of synthetic fertilizers and agrochemicals. We have been working with a U.S. rice-importing company in San Francisco, Lotus Foods, to help them import very high-quality indigenous rice varieties, organically-grown by small farmers with higher income for their produce, which helps conserve rice biodiversity and benefit farmers and the environment.
Few U.S. consumers realize the richness of rice biodiversity (oryza sativa), with thousands of varieties having desirable qualities of taste, texture, color, aroma, etc. and often higher nutritional quality. I think that with the increase productivity of SRI methods, also for traditional varieties as well as improved varieties, lowering the prices of rice for consumers while still giving farmers a better income, we are going to see rice becoming a much more popular and widely-consumed food in the 21st century. Rice is much more and much better than the 'white stuff' that used to be consumed just for its calories. Rices are good for soups, salads, desserts, casseroles, poultry stuffing, etc. Few Americans know what a wonderful grain the many kinds of rice can be; but now that SRI methods are being used for wheat, millet, sorghum, teff, and other grains, I have to avoid becoming a complete partisan for rice.
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