Slashdot Mirror
Father of Green Revolution, Norman Borlaug, Dies at 95
countincognito writes "Norman Borlaug, a genuinely remarkable man and the father of the Green Revolution in agriculture, has died of cancer at his Dallas home aged 95. His life's work on developing high-yield, disease-resistant crops has been credited with having saved an estimated one billion people from famine, and one billion hectares of forest and rainforest from being cleared for agricultural production."
Yup, sure, he gave away these nice expensive seeds for humanitarian reasons. Problem is, many people in these countries don't want GM seed. So how many people are stepping up to the plate to donate free organic seed to those who want it?
I also question whether or not the seeds he made actually produced food that was better for the people. That was the claim for his work, but recent studies done regarding GM seed in the US have shown that organic is actually better for you, even if there is little difference in traditionally measured nutrients.
I find it interesting to hear people talking about how every "developed nation" in the world currently has the capability to produce not only enough food to feed their own populations, but excess as well. I find myself wondering how it is that we have to convert these people to a GM seed base now. Do we expect to get the additional 3 billion people in the world (in the next 50 years) through undeveloped nations that haven't the capability to grow their own food without GM products because of climate change?